The process of reviving extinct species via cloning was present in science-fiction long before it became a reality, with the most famous example by far being Michael Crichton's novel (and subsequent film) Jurassic Park. Although the novel contained a number of inaccuracies--for instance, DNA has a half-life of less than half a million years, which makes cloning dinosaurs impossible--it served as the inspiration for a number of so-called "de-extinction" projects in the 21st century.
The first extinct animal ever cloned was a Pyrenean ibex in 2003; unfortunately the clone lived for only a few minutes before dying. It was not until 2024 that a true success was had with the cloning of an extinct animal. The animal in this case was the Australian gastric-brooding frog, a species that had been extensively researched prior to its extinction in 1985 due to its ability to regulate its own stomach acid. The cloning project was intended partly for medical purposes as well as conservation, as the frog's unique abilities were seen as a source of a possible cure for stomach ulcers.
The first extinct mammal successfully cloned, the Thylacine or Tasmanian tiger, was also from Australia, and was revived in 2028 by the same team of scientists responsible for the revival of the gastric-brooding frog. However, at the time de-extinction was still seen by most people, even many scientists, as a curiosity rather than a serious form of conservation. It was not until 2029, with the publication of Peter Shay's influential postnaturalist book Humanity's Garden, that de-extinction became accepted as a tool for saving the Earth's declining biodiversity.
A number of de-extinctions followed, including the pig-footed bandicoot (2036), the giant hutia (2036), the aurochs (2037), the bluebuck (2037), the Caribbean monk seal (2041), and the Steller's sea cow (2043). It was also around this time that the technology to re-create birds and reptiles was perfected, allowing for the revival of the passenger pigeon (2042), the Carolina parakeet (2044), the dodo (2044), the Labrador duck (2045), and the great auk (2047). Because true cloning is impossible for animals that hatch from eggs, the de-extinction of birds and reptiles is instead accomplished through using preserved DNA samples as a guide for restructuring the DNA of extant animals. Following the re-creation of suitable habitat during the Refreeze, a number of animals that had died out at the end of the last ice age were also revived, including the woolly mammoth in 2066.
By the mid-22nd century, as genetic engineering became much more commonplace, an estimated 70% of all vertebrate species killed off by humans in the past 12,000 years were eventually revived, along with a number of invertebrates.As technology advanced a number of longer-extinct species were recreated to the best of capabilities developed.
Major projects and Notable Species[]
| Common name\scientific name | Orig. Extinction Date | De-extinction Date | Range | Image | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Xerces Blue Butterfly
Glaucopsyche xerces |
1943 AD | 2026 | San Francisco Peninsula | -- | |
| Cave Lion
Panthera spelaea |
13,000 BC | 2044 | Pleistocene Park | -- | |
| Cave Bear
Ursus spelaea |
24,000 BC | 2052 | Pleistocene Park | -- | |
| Woolly mammoth Mammuthus primigenius |
4,000 BCE |
2066 | Pleistocene Park | -- | |
| Floreana giant tortoise
Chelonoidis niger niger |
1840 AD |
2066 | Galapagos Islands | -- | |
| Cave hyena Crocuta crocuta spelaea |
10,000 BC | 2066 | Pleistocene Park | -- | |
| Woolly rhinoceros Coelodonta antiquitatis |
9,450 BCE |
2068 | Pleistocene Park | -- | |
| Tasmanian Tiger/Thylacine Thylacinus cynocephalus |
1936 AD | 2028 | Tasmania | -- | |
| Crescent nail-tail wallaby Onychogalea lunata |
1956 AD | 2034 | Tasmania | -- | |
| Pig-footed bandicoot Chaeropus ecaudatus |
1950 AD | 2036 | Tasmania | -- | |
| Gastric-brooding frog Rheobatrachus silus |
1985 AD | 2024 | Tasmania | -- | |
| Dwarf emu Dromaius baudinianus |
1827 AD | 2043 | Tasmania | -- | |
| Saber-toothed cat
Smilodon populator |
10,000 BC | 2068 | Amazon Basin | -- | |
| Hippidion Hippidion principale |
10,000 BC | 2072 | Amazon Basin | -- | |
| Macrauchenia Macrauchenia boliviensis |
10,000 BC | 2077 | Amazon Basin | -- | |
| South American ground sloth Mylodon darwini |
10,000 BC | 2069 | Amazon Basin | -- | |
| Asian giant tortoise Megalochelys atlas |
10,000 BC | 2064 | Yangtze River | -- | |
| Chinese paddlefish Psephurus gladius |
2007 AD | 2042 | Yangtze River | -- | |
| Giant tapir Tapirus augustus |
10,000 BC | 2057 | Yangtze River | -- | |
| Yangtze river dolphin Lipotes vexillifer |
2007 AD | 2059 | Yangtze River | -- | |
| Eyles's harrier Circus teauteensis |
1600 AD | 2062 | New Zealand South Island | -- | |
| Haast's eagle Hieraaetus moorei |
1400 AD | 2066 | New Zealand South Island | -- | |
| Moas Dinornithidae sp. |
1400 AD | 2063 | New Zealand South Island | -- | |
| Adzebill Aptornis defossor |
1400 AD | 2066 | New Zealand South Island | -- | |
| New Zealand Goose Cnemiornis calcitrans |
1400 AD | 2065 | New Zealand South Island | -- | |
| American lion Panthera atrox |
10,000 BC | 2067 | Great Plains | -- | |
| Irish Elk
Megaloceros giganteus |
8,000 BC | 2072 | Britain | -- | |
| Elephant Bird
Vorombe titan |
1500 AD | 2078 | Madagascar | -- | |
| American cheetah Miracinonyx trumani |
10,000 BC | 2035 | Great Plains | -- | |
| Columbian mammoth Mammuthus columbi |
10,000 BC | 2047 | Great Plains | -- | |
| Long-horned bison Bison latifrons |
10000 BC | 2041 | Great Plains | -- | |
| Honeycreepers Drepanidinae sp. |
10,00 AD | 2084 | Hawaii Big Island | -- | |
| Flightless ibis Apteribis brevis |
10,00 AD | 2087 | Hawaii Big Island | -- | |
| Laysan rail Zapornia palmeri |
1944 AD | 2067 | Hawaii Big Island | -- | |
| Stilt-owls Grallistrix sp. |
1000 AD | 2088 | Hawaii Big Island | -- | |
| Maclear's Rat
Rattus macleari |
1903 AD | 2088 | Christmas Island | ||
| Toxodon
Toxodon darwini |
5000 BC | 2083 | Amazon Basin | -- | |
| Moa-nalos Thambetochen sp. |
1000 AD | 2085 | Hawaii Big Island | -- | |
| Great Auk
Pinguinus impennis |
1852 AD | 2047 | Britain | ||
| Giant Lemur
Archaeoindris fontoynontii |
350 BCE | 2045 | Madagascar | ||
| Sloth Lemur
Palaeopropithecus ingens |
1200 AD | 2077 | Madagascar | ||
| Malagasy Hippopotamus
Hippopotamus lemerlei |
1000 AD | 2080 | Madagascar | ||
| Giant Fossa
Cryptoprocta spelea |
1400 AD | 2079 | Madagascar | ||
| Vaquita Porpoise
Phocoena sinus |
2022 AD | 2036 | Gulf of California | ||
| Asian straight-tusked elephant
Palaeoloxodon namadicus |
24,000 BC | 2099 | Asia | -- |