De-extincting the dodo: Why scientists are planning to bring back the bird to Mauritius
- December 9, 2023
- Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
- Category: DPN Topics
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De-extincting the dodo: Why scientists are planning to bring back the bird to Mauritius
Subject: Environment
Section: Biodiversity
Context:
- An ambitious new project promises to bring the extinct dodo back to life and re-introduce it in its once-native habitat in Mauritius. It is a collaboration between genetic engineering company Colossal Biosciences and the Mauritian Wildlife Foundation.
About Dodo:
- The dodo (Raphus cucullatus) is an extinct flightless bird that was endemic to the island of Mauritius, which is east of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean.
- The dodo’s closest relative was the also-extinct and flightless Rodrigues solitaire.
- The two formed the subfamily Raphinae, a clade of extinct flightless birds that were a part of the family which includes pigeons and doves.
- The closest living relative of the dodo is the Nicobar pigeon.
Why dodos went extinct?
- They became extinct mainly due to humans and animals introduced by them in Dodo’s native environment.
- Dutch colonists first landed in Mauritius in 1598. Dodos disappeared around 80 years later. Not only did the Dutch hunt the meaty bird, but the animals they brought with them — dogs, cats, rats, etc.— wreaked havoc on the defenceless dodos and their eggs.
How geneticists plan to bring the Dodo back:
- Accurate and complete genetic information is required to re-introduce an extinct species. This is known as a species’ genome — each genome contains all of the information needed to build that organism and allow it to grow and develop.
- Scientists have successfully sequenced the entire genome of the dodo.
- Primordial germ cells (PGCs) are basically embryonic precursors of a species’ sperm and egg.
- Why reintroducing Dodo?
- Reintroducing the dodo to Mauritius can help restore its fragile ecosystem. The bird’s large beak indicates that it consumed large-seeded fruits, and thus played a role in the seeds’ dispersal.
- The technology would also help to conserve and restore other avian populations.
- Challenge in re-introduction- For dodos to survive, invasive species including rats, feral cats, pigs and dogs, monkeys, mongooses, and crows may need to be “excluded, rehomed or even controlled.
Source: Indian Express