De-extinction

jdluvr06

I've talked about this before somewhere but I'm not sure if it was on here of not. I've been fascinated by this for months. I've read every article and watched every video I can get my hands on about it. Im so torn about what to think on the subject. On one hand a lot of the animals they want to bring back were brought to extinction by humans and are relatively harmless, like the passenger pigeon. On the other hand they are talking about bringing things back like the wooly mammoth and the saber tooth tiger and that is scary. 

Has anyone else been following this and if so what are your thoughts?

KeptInStitches

I think anything that can bring back animals driven to extinction by humans is a good move. I read an article today about a rhino born using sperm frozen before her father died 12 years ago. Seems like a good step.

MollyandD

I'm torn on this too. I worry about animals that went extinct not due to human involvement mostly. Basically, I worry that they are bringing animals back to a world that they aren't adapted to live in. These animals will never be able to be wild, and will spend their whole lives in captivity. I'm not opposed to zoos, I just think it's sad to bring back animals that could only survive in zoos.

sophhabobopha

Can you post some articles?

jdluvr06

Here is a national geographic page that features a few articles and videos:

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/deextinction

Here are some more random articles I've read. I tried to include articles for and against it: 

http://dinosaurs.about.com/od/dinosaurcontroversies/a/De-Extinction.htm

http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/species-de-extinction-plagued-by-looming-questions-expert-says-1.2637789

http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/02/opinion/sutter-jurassic-park-endangered/index.html

jdluvr06

If you go to YouTube there are tons of videos. TED actually did a series of talks about it that were pretty interesting. 

I have to admit that I would love to see the Passenger Pigeon come back. The last Passenger Pigeon died at our local zoo and I've seen the memorial for it my whole life. So seeing a live one would be amazing.

sophhabobopha

This kind of stuff is so crazy. I watched this documentary:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2657396/Hitler-wanted-bring-prehistoric-wild-Auroch-cows-dead.html

It was insane. 

mrsmorales2be

I agree w/ PP's.  Working to recover recently extinct or near-extinct animals where it was conclusively caused by human activity may be ethical and worth pursuing.  But animals that have been extinct for a significant period of time or that just died out due to natural causes - probably shouldn't touch that.  

That said, Jurassic Park is one of my all time favorite movies and seeing it in Imax 3D was awesome!

MollyandD

I love Jurassic Park too! It's so entertaining.

monkeysip

Sorry... couldn't help it.  

In all seriousness, I think it's a cool idea, but we have to be prepared for unintended consequences.

WinstonsGirl

I haven't read anything on this, but I'm on board (unless I read something that changes my mind) on animals that are extinct cos of humans. Others, not so much. But I also have huge dinosaur issues and Jurassic Park scared the shit out of me. I had nightmares after watching it for a few nights, and I was 13/14 when it came out

sophhabobopha

Have you guys read Jurrassic Park? Love it.

Simply Fated

It's really important to consider all the consequences. Sometimes there is a reason why these animals become naturally extinct.

chibiyui

Relevant:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ebqVjZB0mmM

And

jdluvr06

Simply Fated said:

It's really important to consider all the consequences. Sometimes there is a reason why these animals become naturally extinct.

Most of the animals they are looking at didn't become extinct naturally. Their extinctions were caused my humans. I was really struck by the history of the Thylacine. It is really sad. I wouldn't have a problem with something like that being brought back. Wooly mammoths were hunted tons extinction too but there is no place for them go now. We are much too developed so there is just no room for them, plus the climate is completely different now then they were alive so I can't imagine any mammoth species would thrive.

MollyandD

jdluvr06 said:

Simply Fated said:

It's really important to consider all the consequences. Sometimes there is a reason why these animals become naturally extinct.

Most of the animals they are looking at didn't become extinct naturally. Their extinctions were caused my humans. I was really struck by the history of the Thylacine. It is really sad. I wouldn't have a problem with something like that being brought back. Wooly mammoths were hunted tons extinction too but there is no place for them go now. We are much too developed so there is just no room for them, plus the climate is completely different now then they were alive so I can't imagine any mammoth species would thrive.

That's my concern too about mammoths. They would only be able to live in captivity. The entire species would be unfit for life in the wild. Maybe they could be in Canada or something, but it really seems like a bad game plan.  

buttercup1958

Honestly I'm not sure about this. Our planet evolves over time along with its species. These species may not be able to adapt and die off. I think we should focus on what species are living now to prevent extinction. But I'm no expert and I'm a geology student so my knowledge of living things is limited. If they brought back species then they would mess up the geological time scale.

monkeysip

I agree with buttercup.

It is sad that humans have caused the extinction of some amazing creatures, but it just seems too late to try and bring them back and figure out how to get them to survive again here, especially if it's been a long time since they existed on earth.

Seems like with all the money that this kind of engineering would cost, they could do SO MUCH towards preserving and helping endangered species today.

LadyMillil

Ecosystems are very complex and each organism has a niche within the ecosystem. When one organism becomes extinct, removing it from the ecosystem, several changes take place and a new balance is found. Although it is awful that so many species have become extinct, it is not a good idea to bring them back. Because the ecosystem has changed drastically when one species went extinct there is no guarantee that the organism can survive. If it does survive it is likely that other organisms will suffer because they have lost a source of food, gained a predator, etc. It's similar to introducing an exotic species into a non-native environment. The other problem is genetic diversity. To be successful (able to survive and reproduce) a species needs to have enough genetic diversity that infections, unusually cold winters, lack of food and all sorts of other issues does not kill every member of that species. 

Just because it CAN be done, doesn't mean it SHOULD be done. Research is ridiculously expensive. I think money is better spent preserving species that are currently endangered.

jdluvr06

They are using a lot of the research they are doing on the de-extinction to benefit currently endangered species.