How biologists plan to help the ivory-billed woodpecker make a comeback

A species of woodpecker could help push genetic science into new territory. Whether or not the ivory-billed woodpecker is extinct is still up for debate. Either way, a team of biologists are hoping to help the bird make a comeback.

A bioscience company announced on Tuesday, Oct. 1, it is launching a process they’re calling “de-extinction” with plans to reintroduce the bird species as early as 2025.

The technology is reportedly based in large part on cloning, but this process is solely for avian species. Researchers say that they will use the DNA of the woodpecker and its closest living relatives, then, with the help of computer modeling, scientists will “edit” the genetic makeup of the lost species.

The ivory-billed woodpecker is the largest known species of woodpecker to ever exist in the United States.

The bird sports a wingspan of more than two feet and a length of nearly a foot. The giant woodpecker once roamed large swaths of the United States from Texas and Florida to as far north as Illinois.

However, its population began to dwindle in the 1800s as settlements cleared out forests. By the late 19th century, sightings became so rare that the birds were displayed in museums or people’s private collections. The woodpecker was rediscovered in the 1920s, with the last uncontested sighting occurring in 1944.

Still, there are reports of sightings of the avian species throughout the years, with the last one reported in 2021. A researcher in the southern U.S. obtained a photo and recorded the acoustics of the bird, although the findings have to yet to be fully verified.

The U.S. company behind the groundbreaking experiment, Colossal Biosciences, is also attempting to bring back the wooly mammoth and dodo bird.

Critics of de-extinction efforts warn of the potential environmental impact and say the risks outweigh the benefits. However, Colossal Biosciences said it also looks at the role that animal could play in the ecosystem before reintroducing the species.