A Texas based company have announced plans to bring a giant flightless bird back from extinction, with backing from Lord of the Rings film-maker Sir Peter Jackson.
Colossal Biosciences - the self-proclaimed world’s first and only de-extinction company - have said they aim to genetically engineer living birds which will resemble the extinct South Island giant moa within five to ten years.
The bird, which stood at 12 feet (3.6m) tall, roamed the forests, coastal dunes and shrublands of both the North and South Islands of New Zealand for 4,000 years before it went extinct around 600 years ago due to overhunting and habitat loss.
The project also includes the New Zealand-based Ngāi Tahu Research Centre at the University of Canterbury.
Jackson, who currently owns the world’s largest private moa bone collection, has given £11 million in funding to the project alongside his long-time partner Fran Walsh.
Speaking about the project, he said: “The movies are my day job, and the moa are my fun thing I do. Every New Zealand schoolchild has a fascination with the moa.”
Colossal’s chief scientist Beth Shapiro said the first stage of the project will be to identify well-preserved bones from which it could be possible to extract DNA.
Colossal Biosciences
|The moa bird went extinct around 600 years ago
Once hatched, the genetically modified birds would be released into “rewilding sites”, according to the company.
This is not Colossal’s first project regarding the resurrection of extinct species.
Last year, the company created headlines when it claimed it had successfully bred designer grey wolves with genetic similarities to the extinct dire wolf.
Colossal also has aims to bring back dodos, thylacines or Tasmanian tigers, and the woolly mammoth.
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However, this is the first time the biotech company has tried to resurrect a bird, which brings new challenges due to bird embryos developing inside eggs.
Although, not everyone is positive about this project.
Some scientists suggest the idea of bringing back extinct species is likely to be impossible.
Aroha Te Pareake Mead, member of the International Union for Conservation of Nature Policy Development Working Group on the use of Synthetic Biology in Conservation, said: “De-extinction is a misnomer, a false promise, that is rooted more in ego than a genuine effort to conserve species.
“These are exercises in the egotistical delight in the theatrical production of ‘discovery’ devoid of ethical, environmental and cultural considerations. Bring the moa back? To where? To what quality of life? To roam freely?”
Other scientists have expressed worry that focusing on extinct species could distract from protecting species which still exist.