, Columnist
'Dire Wolf' Pups Are Cute, But Not the Real Thing
Colossal Biosciences created a new, not ancient, animal. That’s still an impressive scientific achievement.
It’s adorable, but not what you think it is.
Courtesy of Colossal BiosciencesThis article is for subscribers only.
In a wildly misleading announcement for what is still an amazing achievement, researchers at a Dallas-based startup claimed they’d created dire wolves, a species that has been extinct for more than 12,000 years. To make the news more irresistible, there were images of adorable white fluffy pups named Romulus and Remus.
Scientists outside the company, Colossal Biosciences, say the pups aren’t really the same dire wolves that roamed North America during the last Ice Age. But they do represent an impressive feat of genetic manipulation that could usher in a new era of designer animals.