Scientists plan resurrection of Australian animal that's been extinct since 1936

Sounds like they want to eventually reintroduce them to the wild, but it sounds a long way from that eventuality, still not sure if we should be doing this kind of thing. Lots more in the article

www.9news.com.au... 824a-9b2c2405d991?ocid=Social-9NewsB&fs=e&s=cl

Almost 100 years after its extinction, the Tasmanian tiger may live once again.
Scientists want to resurrect the striped carnivorous marsupial, officially known as a thylacine, which used to roam the Australian bush.
The ambitious project will harness advances in genetics, ancient DNA retrieval and artificial reproduction to bring back the animal.

The project is a collaboration with Colossal Biosciences, founded by tech entrepreneur Ben Lamm and Harvard Medical School geneticist George Church, who are working on an equally ambitious, if not bolder, $15 million project to bring back the woolly mammoth in an altered form.
About the size of a coyote, the thylacine disappeared about 2,000 years ago virtually everywhere except the Australian island of Tasmania.
As the only marsupial apex predator that lived in modern times, it played a key role in its ecosystem, but that also made it unpopular with humans.

The project involves several complicated steps that incorporate cutting-edge science and technology, such as gene editing and building artificial wombs.
First, the team will construct a detailed genome of the extinct animal and compare it with that of its closest living relative – a mouse-size carnivorous marsupial called the fat-tailed dunnart –to identify the differences.
"We then take living cells from our dunnart and edit their DNA every place where it differs from the thylacine. We are essentially engineering our dunnart cell to become a Tasmanian tiger cell," Pask explained.

a reply to: putnam6



Lets hope it does not carry some diesease/tick

What could possibly go wrong?

originally posted by: UpThenDown
a reply to: putnam6

Lets hope it does not carry some diesease/tick

Actually, they were hunted to extinction by European settlers. Natural selection/extinction had nothing to do with it.

a reply to: putnam6

How about this is a con?

There is some low quality evidence the thylacine isn't extinct - hazy pictures / videos, sightings, etc - nothing conclusive though.

Let's say it's the thylacine is still going and some one trapped one.

Instead of going public, the trappers sell to a bio med lab, who spin a pitch around genetically engineering a clone.

Since the last official captive was in 1936, there's not much room to challenge the clone for not being a clone.

So, apart from the prestige of doing a magic, Lazarus type job, and all the research grants that may follow, the bio med lab would 'own' the thylacine and earn royalties and cash from selling copies round the world.

originally posted by: Doxanoxa
a reply to: putnam6

How about this is a con?

There is some low quality evidence the thylacine isn't extinct - hazy pictures / videos, sightings, etc - nothing conclusive though.

Let's say it's the thylacine is still going and some one trapped one.

Instead of going public, the trappers sell to a bio med lab, who spin a pitch around genetically engineering a clone.

Since the last official captive was in 1936, there's not much room to challenge the clone for not being a clone.

So, apart from the prestige of doing a magic, Lazarus type job, and all the research grants that may follow, the bio med lab would 'own' the thylacine and earn royalties and cash from selling copies round the world.

you can take the following to the bank
it is NOT i say again NOT extinct
and that is all i will say
full bloody stop

I always wonder why they have not brough back the Tasmanian Tiger yet, it was humans the one that contributed for its extinction.

The animal was no danger to humans really.

Some people think is still some in the wild.

I don't see a problem, nature didn't decide it's fate, it was killed off by people. It left unnaturally, it can come back that way. I think though, it probably never went 100% extinct, there are enough sightings, it's possible enough survived in the backwoods, but the genetic diversity would be pretty poor.

originally posted by: vonclod
I don't see a problem, nature didn't decide it's fate, it was killed off by people. It left unnaturally, it can come back that way. I think though, it probably never went 100% extinct, there are enough sightings, it's possible enough survived in the backwoods, but the genetic diversity would be pretty poor.

Exactly, not the worst idea in the world as we’re not talking about the re-introduction of a species who nature decided had run its course.

It’s quite possible they have survived and there are various reported sightings though with their appetite for sheep and small livestock I think a farmer would have trapped/shot one by now as that’s why they were hunted to extinction.

There’s also a similar level of sightings, sheep carcasses found up trees etc. along with hazy footage to lend credence to the idea of big cats (panther size) across Australia with many theories abounding but that is another (and very interesting) topic.

a reply to: IAMALLYETALLIAM
I wonder what the Aboriginals say?

a reply to: vonclod

I think there are accounts in some areas of big native cats though would need to have another look to confirm my memory is not deceiving me.

None of my Aboriginal mates have ever mentioned them however, Yowies (Bigfoot) are spoken of as fact.

The predominant theory on the panthers is they’re escaped circus/zoo animals or echoes of the US military from WW2 when they were bought over here as mascots. I know a handful of people who have claimed to see them and are people who grew up in/live in the bush.

a reply to: putnam6

Where else do you think they're going?



Nothing new under the sun.

a reply to: putnam6

Well I should not be too surprised to find out these scientists watched this many times as Kids.


Seriously though the Taz may just possibly not actually be extinct.




Though some claim the Thylacine is most definitely extinct, so who knows.

Another alternative is that there were subspecies that were not seen by people that somehow did not go extinct but that the main species did indeed go extinct.

Now here is my worry, while the Taz is recent enough to perhaps be re-integrated without too much of a problem re-introducing extinct species will be disruptive to the new ecology that has taken over after there extinction, like I say in the case of the Thylacine this should not be a problem but plans to reintroduce other extinct species around the world and of course Re-Wilding of areas such as in parts of the UK of - relatives they are not the exact same species - animals that have long been extinct is actually a potential recipe for disaster, it will upset the new ecological balance as well.


Be thankful that this one is not alive.


Or is it?.

a reply to: IAMALLYETALLIAM

I certainly concede but are humans not part of the nature of Earth?

a reply to: putnam6

a reply to: UpThenDown

I think in antiquity/pre-agrarian societies and certainly a long time prior to the industrial revolution that idea would have some credence but we divorced from nature when the majority of us became far removed from our food sources, building materials etc.

In the case of European settlement in places like Australia, we’re an introduced species so could be argued unnatural.

Interesting angle nonetheless

Tasmanian tiger Zombies.

To be honest I believe it's still around there have been plenty of sightings .

I think it's a great idea. European settlers wiped out the Tasmanian tiger mostly because of sheep farming, bringing it back will also help control non-indigenous pests too.