2/26/2024 0 Comments Dodo bird extinct artEach of these invasive species had a hand in rapidly decimating the dodo population. The Dutch sailors brought with them rats, goats, pigs, deer, and macaques. This introduction of one species was not an exclusive, negative interaction. The dodo had no natural predators on the island and had no reason to fear humans. When Dutch sailors arrived on the island in 1598, they found the dodo bird to be an effortless meal. The majority of these species are endemic to Mauritius, making it even more extraordinary. Adorned with white sand beaches, roaring waterfalls, placid lagoons, and enormous mountains, over 600 indigenous species call Mauritius home. But east of Madagascar, on the subtropical island of Mauritius, the dodo bird called paradise home. And maybe that’s a critical point that humanity needs to consider.įor a long time, the dodo bird was widely believed to be a mythical creature, a cryptid of seafaring sailors. The dodo’s utility to human beings is less clear. For both of these species, their practicality is clearer as they will serve critical roles as ecosystem engineers the mammoth maintaining and restoring the permafrost and the thylacine reversing the trophic downgrading of Australia’s and Tasmania’s ecosystems. These perceptions suggest a nuanced distinction in the motivations behind this North Star compared to those of the woolly mammoth and the thylacine. “Go the way of the dodo” or “As dead as a dodo” Some of the public’s reactions to this dodo de-extinction goal centered around a handful of poignant themes:ĭo we need it? Can we eat it? What benefit will it provide to humans?Įven the common idioms and phrases that the culture associates with dodos are less than remarkable: A deeper understanding of birds, animal pathology, and what allows them to survive disease is essential to overcoming these current wildlife health emergencies.ĭetections of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in Mammals, Map from USDAĪs with the other species groups Colossal has announced, the Avian Genomics Group announced its moonshot de-extinction species to serve as the North Star of its scientific work: the dodo bird. And these stressors have not been isolated to bird populations as the avian flu has now been recorded as negatively impacting sea lion and grizzly bear populations. This group would focus on expanding humanity’s current understanding of the Aves class while also addressing major problems in birds–across de-extinction, conservation, and rewilding.Īnd it could not have come at a better time as there has been tremendous stress on bird populations around the world which have been surviving rampant parasitic infections, unknown diseases, and the worst outbreak of avian flu this century. In conjunction with the funding, Colossal also announced the launch of its Avian Genomics Group. This funding round of $150M was a vote of financial confidence that the company was well on its way to achieving its scientific milestones and would continue to catalyze significant progress across the woolly mammoth and thylacine de-extinction projects as well as existing and planned conservation efforts. In February of 2023, Colossal Biosciences announced its Series B funding.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |