When did I see this headline? I was like, what? They’ve cloned a ferret. Are you kidding me? Like what did they use to clone it? Did they get its cells or what I don’t even know? But actually, this black-footed ferret has a double. This is one of the first species in the US that has been endangered.
A black-appendeged ferret that died more than thirty years ago now has a double after making use of its preserved cells. These couldn’t help but add in a touch of diversity into the endangered inbred population.
You must have heard about Dolly, the sheep. This is now Elizabeth Ann. That’s the name of the black-footed ferret. So strange, I’ll say.
These scientists have, using success, cloned a black-footed ferret that was endangered. They made use of preserved cells from this animal that died thirty years ago. That’s quite shocking, honestly. Before presently, they were not able to clone this animal before.
This advancement was indeed a milestone when they tried to keep these black-footed ferrets alive. The only native ferret of Northern America is this one. This species was first going over highly vast lands of the American West. They dwindled as ranchers and farmers got rid of their main prey. Prairie dogs. By the 70s, they were all thought to be dead. In 1981, a ranch dog took some scientists to a colony found in a property in Wyoming.
Those that survived remained the basis of the captivated breeding program managed by parts of the United States wildlife service available in Colorado. These animals have been reintroduced to eight states all through the great plains. Only about seven of the original wild animals remained. All of the ferrets that are alive are related closely. They have a wild population of about four hundred to five hundred. All of these were stated by Pete Gober, who’s a black-footed recovery coordinator for ferrets through this service.
What do you think is next for these scientists to clone?
Well, if they can clone a ferret, what’s next? It looks like these scientists are going for things that want to go extinct. Do you understand?. Like they are not cloning anything that there’s a high supply of. They just try to clone things that are either available in small numbers or are almost gone completely. I understand them now if this is the reason why they are cloning living things. So the next thing we should expect would be another almost extinct animal. Maybe that can start with bees or some types of birds I do not get to see flying around anymore. But things that are a lot available right now, like bats, I don’t think anyone would go making clones of these at all.
It would be nice to be walking down the street and see a clone of yourself, though. A Me without scars, now that’s going to be something.