It could only be a matter of time before dinosaurs are back among us. Genetic engineering company Colossal Biosciences claims it is on the cusp of bringing back extinct species. The company announced its plan to resurrect the moa – a 3.6-metre-tall, flightless bird. The giant moa once roamed around New Zealand. However, it was hunted to extinction 600 years ago. Colossal's chief scientist said: "We're bringing back avian dinosaurs." Her team will try to recreate the extinct bird by taking DNA from the bones of deceased moa. This DNA will be used to modify the genome of an emu.
Colossal has many "de-extinction" projects. These are controversial among the scientific community. Colossal defines de-extinction as: "Generating an organism that both resembles and is genetically similar to an extinct species." It says de-extinction will let scientists engineer natural resistances in endangered animals. It will also mean species will "thrive" amid climate change, disappearing resources, disease and human interference. However, critics say extinct animals cannot be replicated. Many scientists worry about the unforeseen impact of inserting "hybrid" species into the wild.
Try the same news story at these levels:
De-extinction - Level 4 or De-extinction - Level 6
Sources- https://www.livescience.com/animals/extinct-species/were-bringing-back-avian-dinosaurs-de-extinction-company-claims-it-will-resurrect-the-giant-moa-in-next-10-years
- https://edition.cnn.com/2025/07/09/science/giant-moa-colossal-biosciences
- https://colossal.com/de-extinction/
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