Advertisement
If you have a new account but are having problems posting or verifying your account, please email us on hello@boards.ie for help. Thanks :)
Hello all! Please ensure that you are posting a new thread or question in the appropriate forum. The Feedback forum is overwhelmed with questions that are having to be moved elsewhere. If you need help to verify your account contact hello@boards.ie

Bringing back extinct species

Options
13»

Comments

  • Options
    #62
    764dak
    Registered Users Posts: 1,847 ✭✭✭764dak


    Why only birds and mammals? What about those Central American frogs that have gone in the last three decades?


  • Options
    #63
    OpenYourEyes
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 3,068 Mod ✭✭✭✭OpenYourEyes


    764dak wrote: »
    Why only birds and mammals? What about those Central American frogs that have gone in the last three decades?

    I'd imagine they'd be one of the first things to be brought back given that there'd be recent dna available, little or no people problems, plenty of habitat etc - although most amphibian species are being put closer to extinction by the spread of a fungus to the best of my knowledge - so probably best not to release them until we can tackle that problem


  • Options
    #64
    Adam Khor
    Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 5,279 Mod ✭✭✭✭Adam Khor


    OpenYourEyes wrote: »
    I'd imagine they'd be one of the first things to be brought back given that there'd be recent dna available, little or no people problems, plenty of habitat etc - although most amphibian species are being put closer to extinction by the spread of a fungus to the best of my knowledge - so probably best not to release them until we can tackle that problem

    According to Wikipedia, conservationists have focused on that fungus too much, as there are some species of amphibian that have been proven immune to the fungus, yet are dying just like the rest...

    Considering how sensitive amphibians are to water pollution I wouldn´t be surprised if that was the actual cause of the global die out... water-based insects that can only survive in clean water are also becoming scarcer :(


  • Options
    #65
    Galwayguy35
    Registered Users Posts: 16,336 ✭✭✭✭Galwayguy35


    Is it really being seriously considered to bring back animals that have been extinct for thousands of years?

    It's sad when any species disappears but it wasn't really the fault of humans that these animals are gone and it's a very different world now to when they were here.


  • Options
    #66
    Adam Khor
    Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 5,279 Mod ✭✭✭✭Adam Khor


    Galwayguy35 wrote: »
    Is it really being seriously considered to bring back animals that have been extinct for thousands of years?

    It's sad when any species disappears but it wasn't really the fault of humans that these animals are gone and it's a very different world now to when they were here.

    Thing is some of those animals did go extinct because of human activity (dodo, moa, etc), and probably plenty of megafauna too (mammoth, giant sloth, etc, even though some say it was a combination of climate change AND overhunting by humans). Of course you couldn´t blame those prehistoric humans for being ecologically irresponsible because they simply didn´t know better, but some people use this as an argument for the cloning of extinct animals ("we have the chance to fix the damage done by our ancestors").

    I agree with you, tho... its a very different world now, and not precisely one very welcoming to large, dangerous animals. If we asked mammoths or sabertooths if they wanted to come back to a world in which elephants are poisoned in mass to get their ivory, and big cats are hunted by the hundreds to turn their bones into wine, I think they'd rather stay dead...:(


  • Advertisement
  • Options
    #67
    robp
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 1,934 ✭✭✭robp


    Galwayguy35 wrote: »
    Is it really being seriously considered to bring back animals that have been extinct for thousands of years?

    It's sad when any species disappears but it wasn't really the fault of humans that these animals are gone and it's a very different world now to when they were here.

    I don't think the technology is ready to produce a population which could sustain itself. To attempt it at all is still a very expensive process. I think there are several species which went extinct in the last 500 years which would take priority before any very ancient animal.


  • Options
    #68
    recedite
    Closed Accounts Posts: 13,993 ✭✭✭✭recedite


    In the end, money talks. People would pay a lot of money to go see a live sabre tooth, mammoth or dodo; these are iconic animals.
    Miscellaneous rainforest frogs...not so much.


  • Options
    #69
    robp
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 1,934 ✭✭✭robp


    recedite wrote: »
    In the end, money talks. People would pay a lot of money to go see a live sabre tooth, mammoth or dodo; these are iconic animals.
    Miscellaneous rainforest frogs...not so much.

    That maybe true but even if its possible the sheer cost of bringing back a species like a sabre tooth tiger would be very prohibitive. Little of the coverage mentions this.


  • Options
    #70
    OpenYourEyes
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 3,068 Mod ✭✭✭✭OpenYourEyes


    robp wrote: »
    That maybe true but even if its possible the sheer cost of bringing back a species like a sabre tooth tiger would be very prohibitive. Little of the coverage mentions this.

    Don't forget that in the earlier stages money will be pumped into this to see if it's possible to do on an animal recently extinct, then one extinct about a thousand years ago, then a few thousand etc etc. Once the technology is extablished the costs will come down, and I'm sure there's a few eccentric billionaires that wouldn't mind having their own wildlife park with a few sabre-tooths walking around it! The costs are obviously an issue, but I don't think they're as big an issue as you're making it. Similarly the ethics are an issue, but i'm not sure as much heed will be paid to them as there should be.


  • Options
    #71
    Capercaille
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,077 ✭✭✭Capercaille


    Work is currently being done to bring back Passenger pigeon.


  • Advertisement
  • Options
    #72
    Galwayguy35
    Registered Users Posts: 16,336 ✭✭✭✭Galwayguy35


    robp wrote: »
    That maybe true but even if its possible the sheer cost of bringing back a species like a sabre tooth tiger would be very prohibitive. Little of the coverage mentions this.

    And what kind of life would it have, probably living out it's life in an enclosed area.

    It's ancestors lived how wild animals should, it's time was up and I think it should be left in the past.


  • Options
    #73
    robp
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 1,934 ✭✭✭robp


    OpenYourEyes wrote: »
    Don't forget that in the earlier stages money will be pumped into this to see if it's possible to do on an animal recently extinct, then one extinct about a thousand years ago, then a few thousand etc etc. Once the technology is extablished the costs will come down, and I'm sure there's a few eccentric billionaires that wouldn't mind having their own wildlife park with a few sabre-tooths walking around it! The costs are obviously an issue, but I don't think they're as big an issue as you're making it. Similarly the ethics are an issue, but i'm not sure as much heed will be paid to them as there should be.

    Don't get me wrong I think it will happen to some extent but I don't see private companies getting involved soon due to the cost. DNA is becoming more and more studied but look at the huge effort it took to crack the Neanderthal genome. ~65 researchers on the original paper with a 5 million budget. That is based on 3 neanderthals and so full of errors I doubt it would work for cloning. Also although I think individuals may be produced I am a doubting Thomas regarding whether healthy breeding populations could be produced.


  • Options
    #74
    Adam Khor
    Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 5,279 Mod ✭✭✭✭Adam Khor


    Capercaille wrote: »
    Work is currently being done to bring back Passenger pigeon.

    Have any more info on this? I remember reading that the passenger pigeon was once the most common bird in North America (and maybe the world) so I suposse there must be lots of material to work with...
    Galwayguy35 wrote: »
    And what kind of life would it have, probably living out it's life in an enclosed area.
    It's ancestors lived how wild animals should, it's time was up and I think it should be left in the past.

    Sadly, I doubt anyone would care much about the animal's own welfare...

    One could also argue that the conditions in which wild animals live today are nothing like wild animals "should" live. Consider large animals in Africa, most of them live in game reserves and national parks, under constant attack by poachers, and shot or poisoned as soon as they leave the limits of said parks...


  • Options
    #75
    Capercaille
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,077 ✭✭✭Capercaille


    Adam Khor wrote: »
    Have any more info on this? I remember reading that the passenger pigeon was once the most common bird in North America (and maybe the world) so I suposse there must be lots of material to work with...
    http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg21829230.100-peaceful-passenger-pigeon-waits-for-resurrection.html#.UelgwW3hdQx

    http://longnow/revive/projects/


  • Options
    #76
    Adam Khor
    Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 5,279 Mod ✭✭✭✭Adam Khor


    Capercaille wrote: »
    http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg21829230.100-peaceful-passenger-pigeon-waits-for-resurrection.html#.UelgwW3hdQx

    http://longnow/revive/projects/

    Thank you :>

    I found this quote a bit disturbing for some reason:
    "In the rare case of unwelcome ecological disruption, we know the vulnerabilities of the formerly extinct animals, so we know exactly how to reduce their numbers or eliminate them again."

    I do believe this is exactly why some people accuse scientists of "Playing God". Even so, I kinda like the idea of seeing this species brought back if only for sentimental reasons...


  • Options
    #77
    Martonio
    Registered Users Posts: 74 ✭✭Martonio


    http://www.ted.com/talks/stewart_brand_the_dawn_of_de_extinction_are_you_ready.html

    Check this out. It is a good talk and just because we can do it, should we. I also would like to see some of these long dead animals however is it going to be just another animal for the rich and poachers to hunt back into extinction?


  • Options
    #78
    mr lee
    Closed Accounts Posts: 332 ✭✭mr lee


    jesus?


Advertisement