US firm advances plan to bring extinct dodo back to Mauritius

A US biotech company announced progress Wednesday toward resurrecting the extinct dodo, aiming to return the flightless bird to Mauritius, where humans drove it to extinction in the 17th century. Dallas-based Colossal Biosciences said it used a new AI platform, GenoMorph, to identify genetic changes behind the dodo's distinctive craniofacial traits, narrowing about 2,300 candidate targets for gene-editing. The company plans to edit genes in Nicobar pigeon cells, the dodo's closest living relative, and has expanded its pigeon colony to 36 birds. Colossal's de-extinction list also includes the woolly mammoth, thylacine, bluebuck antelope, and moa. The company is working with Mauritian scientists and the government on habitat restoration and invasive species removal, though no release sites or hatching timeframe have been announced.