In another miracle of science, Scientist have managed to bring back the dire wolf, a species which had been extinct for more than 12000 years, through the use of genetic engineering. The two revived pups that have caught the whole scientific community by storm have been named as “Romulus” and “Remus”, after the mythical founders of the Italian capital city of Rome.
The two newborn puppies are just six months old, but they already measure nearly four feet and weigh over 36 kg. These species had recently become a part of Pop culture, owing to their introduction to the public in the viral HBO series “Game of Thrones”.
Meet Romulus and Remus—the first animals ever resurrected from extinction. The dire wolf, lost to history over 10,000 years ago, has returned. Reborn on October 1, 2024, these remarkable pups were brought back to life using ancient DNA extracted from fossilized remains.
Watch… pic.twitter.com/XwPz0DFoP5
— Colossal Biosciences® (@colossal) April 7, 2025
How did the scientists managed to bring the dire wolves back into the world
As per a report by CNN, Texas-based Colossal Biosciences— the company behind their revival—used ancient DNA, cloning, and gene editing to create the dire wolf pups. To bring the dire wolf back to life, scientists used DNA from its closest living relative—the gray wolf. Once a dominant predator across North America, the dire wolf was larger than the gray wolf, with thicker fur and a more powerful jaw.
“This idea—that we can simply take a vial of blood, isolate EPCs, culture them, and clone with impressive efficiency—could be a real game changer,” said George Church, co-founder of Colossal and professor of genetics at both Harvard University and MIT, in an interview with Time magazine.
Elon Musk reacts to this development on social media
Billionaire Elon Musk responded to the news by sharing his own wishlist. Posting on X he said, “Please create a miniature pet woolly mammoth,” while reposting his earlier message on this development.
Please make a miniature pet wooly mammoth https://t.co/UxoIWmzq6h
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 7, 2025
What is next for these newborn Dire wolves ?
According to Texas based company Colossal Biosciences who managed to pull off this miraculous task, the newborn pups will now be fed through a from a surrogate for a few days, after which the Colossal team started feeding them from bottle. As per the company, these pups are now living as healthy young dire wolves.
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However, the pups behave quite differently from modern wolf species. According to Time, they show none of the playful excitement that typical wolf pups display around humans. Romulus and Remus tend to keep their distance, often retreating when someone approaches. Even one of their primary handlers, who has cared for them since birth, can only get so close before the pups recoil. This behavior is believed to reflect the nature of dire wolves—they are instinctively solitary creatures.
What does the Company involved in this task say about this miraculous achievement
“This major breakthrough is just the beginning, proving that our comprehensive de-extinction technology truly works,” said Ben Lamm, co-founder and CEO of Colossal Biosciences, in a press release. “Using DNA from a 13,000-year-old tooth and a 72,000-year-old skull, our team successfully created healthy dire wolf puppies”, he sa
The dire wolves are currently housed on a 2,000-acre secured site at a confidential location, surrounded by 10-foot-high fencing and monitored around the clock by security personnel, drones, and live surveillance feeds. In total, three pups have been brought back—two males born on October 1, 2024, and a female on January 30, 2025.
According to the company, The dire wolf is just one of several species Colossal aims to bring back. Other planned revivals include the woolly mammoth, the dodo, and the Tasmanian tiger. While progress in these projects has been limited so far, the scientists remain optimistic.
