Ten Extinct Beasts That Could Walk The Earth Again

News Scientist ^ | 1/07/2009 | Staff Writers

[ex-Texan]

THE recipe for making any creature is written in its DNA. So last November, when geneticists published the near-complete DNA sequence of the long-extinct woolly mammoth, there was much speculation about whether we could bring this behemoth back to life.

Creating a living, breathing creature from a genome sequence that exists only in a computer's memory is not possible right now. But someone someday is sure to try it, predicts Stephan Schuster, a molecular biologist at Pennsylvania State University, University Park, and a driving force behind the mammoth genome project.

So besides the mammoth, what other extinct beasts might we coax back to life?

Well, it is only going to be possible with creatures for which we can retrieve a complete genome sequence. Without one, there is no chance. And usually when a creature dies, the DNA in any flesh left untouched is soon destroyed as it is attacked by sunshine and bacteria.

There are, however, some circumstances in which DNA can be preserved. If your specimen froze to death in an icy wasteland such as Siberia, or snuffed it in a dark cave or a really dry region, for instance, then the probability of finding some intact stretches of DNA is much higher. * * *

Of course, bringing extinct creatures back to life raises a whole host of practical problems, such as where they will live, but let's not spoil the fun . . .

For Details About These Beasts Click Here

They inlcude the Sabre-Toothed Tiger and Neanderthal Man (Homo neanderthalensis) . . .

[Peelod]

The once and future pius Aeneas.

[WillVoteForFood]

Can we bring back the Andrewsarchus? Then maybe I wouldn't get such a bad rap.

signed,
pit bull

[Dr. Bogus Pachysandra]

Ah! The time traveler Aeneas! Gotcha.

[Texican]

Ex-Texan
First, there is no such thing as an ex Texan. Former Texan yes.
My selection for bringing back would be the Passenger Pigeon. There use to be millions of them, in fact some reports said that the sun would be blocked out just from the flight of them.

The very best to you and yours.
Semper Fi
Texican

[Otho]

I vote for the Tasmanian Tiger. Went extinct in the 1930s. There are specimens preserved in alcohol.

[null and void]

Someday, they will figure out how to make a living couch. It will be soft, warm and furry and able to survive on nothing more than butt sweat and the crumbs that fall between the cushions.

Ping

[BJClinton]

I guess my plans to buy some land in the northwest territories and start a mammoth ranch aren’t so crazy after all.

[Darksheare]

[Neidermeyer]

Can we bring back Dorothy Stratten?

[stanz]

The most current mass extinction was the GOP.

[TexasRepublic]

Neanderthal Man (Homo neanderthalensis) may stalk the streets of Detroit after they escape from laboratories.

I think that has already happened.

[SunkenCiv]

The Neandertal Enigma
by James Shreeve

Frayer's own reading of the record reveals a number of overlooked traits that clearly and specifically link the Neandertals to the Cro-Magnons. One such trait is the shape of the opening of the nerve canal in the lower jaw, a spot where dentists often give a pain-blocking injection. In many Neandertal, the upper portion of the opening is covered by a broad bony ridge, a curious feature also carried by a significant number of Cro-Magnons. But none of the alleged 'ancestors of us all' fossils from Africa have it, and it is extremely rare in modern people outside Europe." [pp 126-127]

[SunkenCiv]

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[Antoninus]

I know science is evil right??

No, science is morally neutral. The problem is, too many scientists are morally reprobate these days.

[RikaStrom]

Uhmm.... just a teensy, weensy, ity bit. :-)

[Forward the Light Brigade]

Not on the list—A passenger Pigeon. We have the last ones who died in 1924 frozen. They were said to be good eating—thats why they are extinct. Raise them and sell them to restaurants. I would pay for a passenger pigeon pie.

[Battle Axe]

They were added as earmarked earmarks.

[Max in Utah]

I vote for the Dodo and the Giant Beaver!

I've encountered both and frankly, I'm not interested.

[Dr. Bogus Pachysandra]

“I vote for the Dodo and the Giant Beaver!
I’ve encountered both and frankly, I’m not interested.”

Well,,, I’d pay good money to eat a Dodo burger. But,,, the Giant Beaver???? No way!

[ApplegateRanch]

10?

Dragons, Elves, Ents, Andorans; Tribbles, Eewoks, unicorns, Cyclops, Conservatives, non-violent Muslims...naw; that last one is a fictional creature