Dire Wolves Are Back
By Journey Tribune – April 8, 2025
Dire Wolves Are Back in what scientists call a groundbreaking step toward de-extinction. The legendary predator, believed to have vanished over 12,000 years ago, has returned—this time through genetic engineering. Using ancient DNA and gene-editing technology, researchers have recreated physical traits of the extinct dire wolf, a creature long embedded in pop culture through Game of Thrones.
Florida vs Houston NCAA Final 2025 may dominate sports headlines, but in the world of science, another kind of comeback is making waves—this time, from the Ice Age.
Dallas-based biotech company Colossal Biosciences claims it has bred three living dire wolf pups using gene editing and cloning. These aren’t digital recreations or fossils in a lab. They’re real animals that carry the physical traits of Aenocyon dirus, a prehistoric predator that once ruled North America.
“This is the world’s first successfully de-extincted animal,”
— Ben Lamm, CEO of Colossal Biosciences
How It Happened: From Fossil to Fur
The scientists began by extracting ancient DNA from a 13,000-year-old tooth and a 72,000-year-old skull. They reconstructed high-quality genomes of the extinct dire wolf and compared them with those of modern canines such as the gray wolf, jackal, and fox. From there, they identified unique traits—larger skulls, wider jaws, and thicker fur.
Using CRISPR-Cas9, they introduced 14 specific edits at 20 locations in the gray wolf genome. These altered genes were injected into donor eggs and implanted into domesticated dog surrogates. Two male pups were born on October 1, 2024, and a female pup followed on January 30, 2025.
Today, these pups live in a secure 2,000-acre enclosure, monitored by drones, security personnel, and camera systems. The site is certified by the American Humane Society and registered with the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Conservation or Controversy?
While the dire wolves grab headlines, Colossal is pushing forward. The company has parallel projects underway to bring back the woolly mammoth, Tasmanian tiger, and dodo. With over $435 million in funding and partnerships with top geneticists like Harvard’s George Church, Colossal views this as a major leap in biodiversity innovation.
In fact, the same cloning techniques used here have already helped reproduce two litters of red wolves, one of North America’s most endangered species.
Some experts remain skeptical. Christopher Preston, a bioethics professor at the University of Montana, notes that Colossal has taken steps to minimize unintended genetic consequences. However, he questions whether these animals could or should return to natural ecosystems.
“It’s hard to imagine dire wolves ever being released and taking up an ecological role,”
— Christopher Preston, University of Montana
Science or Philosophy?
Another major debate revolves around what qualifies an animal as truly “de-extinct.” According to Colossal’s team, the new pups are 99.9% gray wolf genetically—but visually and behaviorally, they resemble dire wolves.
Love Dalén, an evolutionary genomics expert from Stockholm University who consulted on the project, explained it this way:
“This is really a philosophical question. It carries dire wolf genes and looks like one. That’s more than we’ve seen in 13,000 years—and that’s pretty cool.”
Colossal refers to them as “proxy species”—organisms engineered to reflect the observable traits of extinct ancestors rather than perfect genetic replicas.
What’s Next?
Colossal’s long-term goal isn’t just to impress the world with science. The company envisions rewilding landscapes and restoring lost biodiversity through animals like mammoths and dire wolves. These efforts could help revive entire ecosystems.
For now, these three pups are the latest example of what can happen when ancient DNA meets modern science. Whether they stay within sanctuaries or someday roam the wild remains uncertain. But one thing’s clear: the line between fiction and reality is fading fast.
Official Source: Colossal Biosciences