Jurassic Bark

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218 – May, 2025

By Caroline Coile

A canid was the world’s first domesticated animal. And now, a canid is the world’s first de-extincted animal. Sort of.

The dire wolf (Aenocyon dirus) existed throughout North America until it became extinct around 12,500 years ago. The reasons for its extinction were probably a combination of climate change that reduced its herb-eating prey, plus competition from smaller canids. The dire wolf was similar to slightly larger in size to the gray wolf. It was initially classified as a member of the genus Canis but later determined it had sufficient differences to warrant its placement in a separate genus, Aenocyon (aeno= terrible; cyon = dog). Its fossilized remains have been known since the 1860s, when the first were discovered in Indiana.

In early April 2025, history was made when scientists from Colossal Biosciences announced they had used cloning and gene editing to produce the first dire wolves seen in more than 12,000 years. They did this by first analyzing the entire dire wolf genome, which they were able to extract from two samples: a 13,000-year-old tooth and a 72,000-year-old ear bone. They then compared the dire wolf genome to the grey wolf genome, identifying the differences in them that were responsible for the dire wolf’s different morphology compared to the gray wolf. Once those differences were found, the scientists edited the genetic code of the gray wolf in those regions so they matched up with the dire wolf codes. In the end, they re-wrote 14 key gene sequences that were responsible for 20 differing traits they believe make the dire wolf different from the gray wolf.

Using these modified genomes, they produced 45 embryos that were implanted into the wombs of two surrogate dogs. Both dogs produced one puppy each, and a later surrogate also produced a puppy. Brothers Romulus and Remus were born in October 2024, and sister Khaleesi (a tribute to the “dire wolves” seen in Game of Thrones) was born in February 2025. All three appear to be healthy, and all three appear to fit the idea of what a dire wolf puppy should look like–although nobody has ever seen one before, so that part is conjecture.

But is it Really a Dire Wolf?

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218 – May, 2025

Short URL: http://caninechronicle.com/?p=326053

Posted by AnthonyA on May 21 2025. Filed under Current Articles, Featured. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.