Scientists have been obsessed with resurrecting the woolly mammoth for years. These are ancient beasts that roamed the earth almost 40,000 years ago and greatly resemble elephants. The interest in revival of these animals increased especially after 2013 when scientists discovered an almost completely intact mammoth carcass frozen in the permafrost in Siberia.
There are a few ways scientists have wanted to try and bring these mammoths back to life. One way is to create a clone of the animal by extracting the DNA from the carcass and use CRISPR to create the clone. Another way discussed is to extract the DNA and biologically engineer a hybrid between the woolly mammoth and its close living relative, the Asian elephant by introducing the DNA of the woolly mammoth into an Asian elephant cell without its nucleus. This would then be grown in a lab into a Woolly mammoth.
I think there are definitely pros and cons in recreating these giant animals and releasing them into the wild again and into Siberia. An advantage is that it would prove the scientific ability to bring back animals and the possibility to then be able to save all animals in the endangered list by doing the same to them and then preventing any animals from becoming extinct again. However, by introducing an animal into its habitat 40,000 years after its extinction, can prove to have issues. First of all, it now has no natural predators to keep its population in control. There is a possibility that it can grow uncontrolled and will then pose an issue. Also, we don’t really know how these animals act in the wild, we can only speculate which isn’t comforting.
According to one of the articles it could have a positive impact on the environment in the Permafrost. It can control global warming by balancing the amount of carbon that is released into the atmosphere. Being herbivores and feeding on the Siberian steppe would expose the land to the cold air keep the land frozen longer which prevents the release of carbon into the atmosphere. On the other hand, we don’t know how well they will adapt to their environment 40,000 years after they left it.
There are many critics of this project to revive the woolly mammoth. Some believe it shouldn’t be in a person’s hand whether an animal is brought back or not. They believe that scientists are starting to play god and can mess with the delicate balance on the earth. I think that this project can have a really positive influence on science and prove the amount of technology we have and can positively influence global warming on earth. While I don’t see us bringing them back within the next 5 years, I do believe they will be brought back in our lifetime and I am interested in following the progress.
National Geographic (July 8, 2017). We Could Resurrect the Woolly Mammoth. Here’s How.Retrieved from https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2017/07/woolly-mammoths-extinction-cloning-genetics/
History (January 22, 2019). Are Scientists on the Verge of Resurrecting the Wholly Mammoth? Retrieved from https://www.history.com/news/wooly-mammoth-resurrection-cloning-genesis
Morse, F. (2015, June 11). Why scientists want to bring back woolly mammoths. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/article/33062252/why-scientists-want-to-bring-back-woolly-mammoths