https://time.com/7274542/colossal-dire-wolf/

The Return of the Dire Wolf

Romulus and Remus are doing what puppies do: chasing, tussling, nipping, nuzzling. But there’s something very un-puppylike about the snowy white 6-month olds—their size, for starters. At their young age they already measure nearly 4 ft. long, tip the scales at 80 lb., and could grow to 6 ft. and 150 lb. Then there’s their behavior: the angelic exuberance puppies exhibit in the presence of humans—trotting up for hugs, belly rubs, kisses—is completely absent. They keep their distance, retreating if a person approaches. Even one of the handlers who raised them from birth can get only so close before Romulus and Remus flinch and retreat. This isn’t domestic canine behavior, this is wild lupine behavior: the pups are wolves. Not only that, they’re dire wolves—which means they have cause to be lonely.

The dire wolf once roamed an American range that extended as far south as Venezuela and as far north as Canada, but not a single one has been seen in over 10,000 years, when the species went extinct. Plenty of dire wolf remains have been discovered across the Americas, however, and that presented an opportunity for a company named Colossal Biosciences.

Relying on deft genetic engineering and ancient, preserved DNA, Colossal scientists deciphered the dire wolf genome, rewrote the genetic code of the common gray wolf to match it, and, using domestic dogs as surrogate mothers, brought Romulus, Remus, and their sister, 2-month-old Khaleesi, into the world during three separate births last fall and this winter—effectively for the first time de-extincting a line of beasts whose live gene pool long ago vanished. TIME met the males (Khaleesi was not present due to her young age) at a fenced field in a U.S. wildlife facility on March 24, on the condition that their location remain a secret to protect the animals from prying eyes.

—-

This is incredible. We were talking about this a few years back as one if the potential species to de-extinctify.
When can I get my stripy Tasmanian boys backm

Are they really dire wolves though, or a new type of wolf incorporating some characteristics of the extinct animal?

Bubblecar said:

Are they really dire wolves though, or a new type of wolf incorporating some characteristics of the extinct animal?

A fair question and one I’m not qualified to answer.

dv said:

Bubblecar said:

Are they really dire wolves though, or a new type of wolf incorporating some characteristics of the extinct animal?

A fair question and one I’m not qualified to answer.

Whats the point? They can’t repopukate the wilds with them without severely upsetting the ecosystem…

Bubblecar said:

Are they really dire wolves though, or a new type of wolf incorporating some characteristics of the extinct animal?

https://www.livescience.com/animals/extinct-species/dire-wolves-are-back-from-extinction-thanks-to-genetically-engineered-pups

Basically they took DNA which made them “dire wolves”, distinct from any other kind of wolf, spliced those characteristics into grey wolf DNA, and used dogs as surrogates. So no, they’re not the same direwolves that existed way back when.

dv said:

https://time.com/7274542/colossal-dire-wolf/

The Return of the Dire Wolf

Romulus and Remus are doing what puppies do: chasing, tussling, nipping, nuzzling. But there’s something very un-puppylike about the snowy white 6-month olds—their size, for starters. At their young age they already measure nearly 4 ft. long, tip the scales at 80 lb., and could grow to 6 ft. and 150 lb. Then there’s their behavior: the angelic exuberance puppies exhibit in the presence of humans—trotting up for hugs, belly rubs, kisses—is completely absent. They keep their distance, retreating if a person approaches. Even one of the handlers who raised them from birth can get only so close before Romulus and Remus flinch and retreat. This isn’t domestic canine behavior, this is wild lupine behavior: the pups are wolves. Not only that, they’re dire wolves—which means they have cause to be lonely.

The dire wolf once roamed an American range that extended as far south as Venezuela and as far north as Canada, but not a single one has been seen in over 10,000 years, when the species went extinct. Plenty of dire wolf remains have been discovered across the Americas, however, and that presented an opportunity for a company named Colossal Biosciences.

Relying on deft genetic engineering and ancient, preserved DNA, Colossal scientists deciphered the dire wolf genome, rewrote the genetic code of the common gray wolf to match it, and, using domestic dogs as surrogate mothers, brought Romulus, Remus, and their sister, 2-month-old Khaleesi, into the world during three separate births last fall and this winter—effectively for the first time de-extincting a line of beasts whose live gene pool long ago vanished. TIME met the males (Khaleesi was not present due to her young age) at a fenced field in a U.S. wildlife facility on March 24, on the condition that their location remain a secret to protect the animals from prying eyes.

—-

This is incredible. We were talking about this a few years back as one if the potential species to de-extinctify.
When can I get my stripy Tasmanian boys backm

soon soon.

Divine Angel said:

Bubblecar said:

Are they really dire wolves though, or a new type of wolf incorporating some characteristics of the extinct animal?

https://www.livescience.com/animals/extinct-species/dire-wolves-are-back-from-extinction-thanks-to-genetically-engineered-pups

Basically they took DNA which made them “dire wolves”, distinct from any other kind of wolf, spliced those characteristics into grey wolf DNA, and used dogs as surrogates. So no, they’re not the same direwolves that existed way back when.

Yes, they are human-bred hybrid animals. But the popular science press (and many scientists themselves) seem intent on portraying this sort of thing as genuine “resurrection”.

Bicycly I’ll await rebuttals and/or confirmations.

That’s better.

I too am actually grey with superficial dire characteristics

dv said:

I too am actually grey with superficial dire characteristics

Did you dire it grey?

Tamb said:

dv said:

I too am actually grey with superficial dire characteristics

Did you dire it grey?

^

Dyer Wolves

dv said:

https://time.com/7274542/colossal-dire-wolf/

The Return of the Dire Wolf

//

This is incredible. We were talking about this a few years back as one if the potential species to de-extinctify.
When can I get my stripy Tasmanian boys backm

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-04-13/dire-wolf-extinction-tasmanian-tiger-thylacine-dunnart-/105155050