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Emerson McCormick

Mr. Smith

Honors Junior Literature

January 1, 2023

The Wooly Mammoth coming back from extinction revisions

Most scientists concede that climate change is one of the biggest threats that Earth

faces. However, some scientists believe they have come up with a creative solution; the Wooly

Mammoth. The Wooly Mammoth went extinct close to 4,000 years ago, due to the extreme rise

in temperature that dramatically reduced their habitat, and along with humans overhunting the

species. Genetically engineering the Wooly Mammoth back from extinction has the potential to

reduce the impact of climate change, but on the other hand, bringing back the species presents

both moral and societal consequences such as should humans play the role of God and what

diseases could possibly be reintroduced by the new species.

The Wooly Mammoth potentially coming out of extinction has the potential to bring

balance back to the carbon cycle by reducing the amount of carbon released in the atmosphere,

ultimately reducing the impact of climate change. Mammoths could graze on vegetation such as

grasslands and forests which would prevent overgrowth and reduce the possibility of wildfires.

Wildfires release large amounts of carbon into the atmosphere, which leads to an increase in

temperature (Julian Koplin). If Wooly Mammoth’s ate overgrown vegetation there would be less

chance of wildfires, subsequently reducing the amount of carbon byproduct that is currently

produced by wildfires. Even though the Wooly Mammoth has been extinct for thousands of

years, gene editing has made it theoretically possible to resurrect this animal back to life. A

Harvard University genetics professor named George Church, who focuses on gene
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sequencing, created a company named Colossal. The company's mission is to bring Wooly

Mammoths to the Arctic tundra. Colossal plans to take the closest living relative, the Asian

Elephant, and modify its genes within the nucleus of the cells. The genetically modified elephant

would evolve in an engineered endometrium, then be placed in an artificial womb. The company

modifies the gene by taking samples of the Asian elephant nucleus then modifies the cell by

adding Wooly Mammoth DNA (Clifford, Catherine). The idea of gene modification showcases

the possibility of a Wooly Mammoth being able to live on our planet once again and may be able

to mitigate the effects of climate change.

Two of the major concerns science has with bringing the Wooly Mammoth back from

extinction is their ability to survive on Earth and what their quality of life would be. The Wooly

Mammoth went extinct because of rising temperatures and over-hunting by humans (Hilfrank,

Elizabeth). Moreover, the habitat in which the Wooly Mammoth used to live is vastly different

from the one the species would need to occupy today. The current environment has a warmer

temperature and a smaller range, which brings into question if it is even possible for the Wooly

Mammoth to survive on their own in the wild without the assistance of humans. Although

reviving the Wooly Mammoth to address climate change remains a theoretical concept, it may

not even be possible for the Wooly Mammoth to survive independently on Earth. In addition to

the possibility of the Wooly Mammoth not being able to survive on Earth, many people question

the quality of life the animal would have. A blog post written on the Connect U.S dives into the

quality of life the Wooly Mammoth could experience: “The world has changed so much since

their time; with their habitat gone, all they could hope for is a life in zoos, and that would be

pathetic (Chief, Editor in).” Many feel the Wooly Mammoth would experience an extremely poor

quality of life, and it is morally wrong to genetically engineer an animal to live in a world in which

they couldn't survive independently. This very similar scenario is something that appeared in the

film Jurassic park. In the movie, humans were reintroduced to an extinct species which caused

mass chaos and unforeseen consequences. If this scenario is applied to a Wooly Mammoth, the
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species would be reintroduced to a world it hasn’t lived in for thousands of years, forcing the

animal to dwell in a smaller area, resulting in widespread pandemonium for society. Anytime you

bring a non-native species into a new environment there are environmental risks for both the

non-native species and animals already living in the environment. Around the world, cats have

been brought in to control rodent populations and inadvertently have threatened birds. The

Wooly Mammoth survival, impact to the environment and quality of life are areas that should be

considered when deciding whether to bring the animals back.

The risk of genetically engineering the Wooly Mammoth back to life has major

consequences for society. National Geographic held an interview with Ben Mezrich who is best

known for writing the book, The True Story of the Quest to Revive One of History's Most Iconic

Extinct Species. In the interview, the two discussed the possibility of using DNA remnants to

potentially help scientists bring back the mammoth. However, Mezrich states,“The material

within the carcasses has been degraded over 3,000 to 12,000 years due to radiation and bad

conditions (“We Could Resurrect the Woolly Mammoth”).” Having the only genetic evidence of

the Wooly Mammoth being thousands of years old presents countless risks for the environment

and society. Over time, DNA becomes more damaged, which could lead to errors and

complications when cloning or during the genetic engineering progress. To increase the

success, scientists prefer to use a well preserved sample because it provides a better blueprint

for the recreation process. Along with ancient DNA samples being a problem for scientists,

society needs to constitute the potential diseases that a Wooly Mammoth could carry.

Understanding the condition the Wooly Mammoth lived in before going extinct is crucial before

considering the consequence of bringing this species back to life. Dr Rebekah Rogers, who

researches mammoths at Berkeley, says the Wooly Mammoths had a “genomic meltdown”

before going extinct. A genomic meltdown is a harmful mutation that is caused by the

environment and an error within the genetic code. This makes it difficult for a species to survive,

and in some cases, can even lead to extinction. From looking at fossils of the Wooly Mammoth,
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scientists can see that the genomic meltdown caused one Wooly Mammoth to have many

diseases, lose their sense of smell, and change the texture of their coat (Briggs, Helen). Dr.

Rogers and many other scientists believe that bringing back to life the Wooly Mammoth could

devastate our ecosystem and bring back ancient diseases that could wipe out large populations

of living creatures of Earth. The potential devastation to society by bringing back the Wooly

Mammoth outweighs the potential climate benefit and therefore should not be done.

In theory, bringing back the Wooly Mammoth seems to be an innovative way to attack

climate change, nevertheless the negative moral and societal consequences outweigh the

benefits. Poor quality of life on Earth and the potential resurgence of ancient diseases

demonstrates the enormous danger of genetically engineered extinct animals back to life.