Extinct for 12,500 years, the dire wolf howls again – Watch

The dire wolf – a species that went extinct nearly 12,500 years ago, has been revived through genetic engineering. Scientists are referring to this as the “world’s first de-extinction.” The species is well known for its portrayal in the HBO hit series Game of Thrones. In a press release, Colossal Biosciences, a Texas-based genetic engineering company, announced the birth of three dire wolves.

“This is a revolutionary milestone of scientific progress that illustrates another leap forward in Colossal’s de-extinction technologies and is a critical step on the pathway to the de-extinction of other target species,” the company said.

Colossal Biosciences also successfully cloned two litters of red wolves, the world’s most critically endangered wolf species, using an “innovative non-invasive blood cloning technique.”

“The three litters of Colossal’s dire wolves include two adolescent males (Romulus and Remus) and one female puppy (Khaleesi). Colossal also birthed two litters of red wolves from three different genetic founder lines. These litters include one adolescent female red wolf (Hope) and three male red wolf puppies (Blaze, Cinder, and Ash),” the company said.

Colossal also shared a video on X, capturing the moment dire wolf puppies howled for the first time in over 10,000 years. The caption reads: “You’re hearing the first howl of a dire wolf in over 10,000 years. Meet Romulus and Remus—the world’s first de-extinct animals, born on October 1, 2024.”

Founded in 2021 by entrepreneur Ben Lamm and renowned Harvard Medical School biologist George Church, Colossal was initially created to bring back the woolly mammoth. Over time, its mission expanded to include the de-extinction of other iconic species, such as the Australian thylacine (Tasmanian tiger) and the dodo, as reported by Bloomberg.

Colossal CEO and co-founder Ben Lamm shared his pride in the team’s accomplishment, stating, “I could not be more proud of the team. This massive milestone is the first of many coming examples demonstrating that our end-to-end de-extinction technology stack works. Our team took DNA from a 13,000 year old tooth and a 72,000 year old skull and made healthy dire wolf puppies. It was once said, ‘any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.’ Today, our team gets to unveil some of the magic they are working on and its broader impact on conservation.”