By Robin Lyons / Full360 Media Producer
Thousands of species are critically endangered, and hundreds of species have gone extinct in the blink of the human eye; and to the fault of humans themselves. The diversity of life on this planet is at stake, and with it, the health of its ecosystems; a problem humans cannot ignore, as much as they’d like to. The Anthropocene, a proposed geological epoch that denotes humans having a noticeable impact on the Earth, rages onto the scene.
Some species that have gone extinct played key roles in their habitats.
The Thylacine, also known as the Tasmanian Tiger or Tasmanian Wolf, was the apex predator of its Australian outback ecosystem. It kept the populations of its prey in check, according to researchers at the University of Melbourne (https://tigrrlab.science.unimelb.edu.au/the-thylacine/).
It has disappeared, persecuted by settling humans and replaced by feral dogs.
The Wooly Mammoth is not so far off in time as it seems, and its very size created grasslands in the Arctic regions by trampling shrubs and trees. These grasslands can reflect more light, possibly keeping the Siberian permafrost from melting and releasing greenhouse gasses that would warm the Earth even more than it already has, according to a study published in the journal of Geophysical Research Letters (https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/19448007).
Now we lack them, and their ecosystem engineering that kept the potential ticking time bomb of the permafrost from exploding.
What if we had these species and more back? Can we reach back in time and bring these animals into the present to play the crucial roles they did before?
That is what Colossal Biosciences, a genetic engineering and biotechnology company, is promising to do with their De-Extinction project. By using DNA collected from Wooly Mammoth specimens and hybridizing them with the complete Asian Elephant genome, which shares 99.6% of the same DNA, Colossal Biosciences hopes to have hybrid Wooly Mammoth calves ready for the Arctic Tundra by 2028. They also plan to take this technology further for other recently extinct species.
It seems like a good idea, and the confidence Colossal exudes with their ability to accomplish this seems to fill the public with hope. They wave the flag of conservation. But is it really possible? How effective would these solutions be? Is it all a pipe-dream?
DelVal professor Dr. Gregory George weighs in.
Dr. George is an Ecology and Ornithology professor here at DelVal. He had heard of these types of projects before, just not this specific one.
REPORTER: “The De-Extinction project promises to promote ecosystem health and raise biodiversity, using conservation as its M.O. Do you trust it? Do you think this can be an effective way to go about promoting ecosystem health?”
DR. GEORGE: “I do not trust this approach. Extinction is happening due to systematic breakdowns of the ecosystems required by some species. Rebuilding ecosystems that would allow species to ‘de-extinct’ and be successful seems far off.”
REPORTER: “Do you believe the re-introduction of the Wooly Mammoth (or an organism that resembles one) will promote grasslands in the Arctic?”
DR. GEORGE: “Not sure either way- this would be a good place to start considering it is a less complex ecosystem (compared to – tropical rainforest).”
REPORTER: “Do you believe the re-introduction of the Thylacine (or an organism that resembles one) as the apex predator in Australia is necessary? What about Dingoes, who have taken the Thylacine’s spot?”
DR. GEORGE: “I’d think Thylacine and Dingoes would have significant niche overlap- one would out compete the other and dingoes probably have a leg up (or four) in that race.”
REPORTER: “Do you worry about more shallow goals of this project, like captive entertainment, Jurassic Park style? Do you trust the company to put conservation first?”
DR. GEORGE: “Yes I do – sounds expensive and conservation dollars are few.”
Dr. George, a professor with years of knowledge and expertise surrounding the dynamics of ecosystems, isn’t buying into it. If an educated individual doesn’t have the highest opinion of it, can we trust Colossal and similar projects?
Further, some DelVal students share their thoughts. Emma Menzel, a Conservation and Wildlife Management major, echoes similar concerns.
“I absolutely worry about the shallow goals of captive entertainment,” Emma says, “There is nothing that moves this world more than money and sometimes important projects fall victim to those that fund them.”
Another Conservation student, Kam Sibilia, says the same.
“If captive entertainment starts to bring in a lot of profit, then Conservation is gonna take a backseat in their goals if the right people aren’t in charge.”
They also aren’t very confident about the efficacy of the idea of reintroducing extinct species. Emma says, “Introducing (and reintroducing) any species should be done with a large amount of caution especially considering for the amount of time that a species has been extinct.”
Kam agrees, adding “The ecosystems just aren’t the same anymore.”
Dr. George summed up his thoughts on the matter with this concluding question:
“Could energy and funds be better placed elsewhere?”
It’s an interesting point.
Perhaps the best way to protect our current ecosystems is not to try to resurrect what we have already lost, but to protect what we have now.