Dire Wolves Are Back—Thanks to Gene Editing

The dire wolf is no longer just a creature of the past.

Using cutting-edge genetic engineering, scientists have created two hybrid wolves — named Romulus and Remus — by splicing ancient dire wolf DNA into the genome of modern gray wolves. These aren’t just symbolic tributes. They represent a bold step toward bringing extinct species back to life.

Dire wolves once roamed across the Americas, dominating the Ice Age alongside mammoths and saber-toothed cats before vanishing roughly 10,000 years ago. Now, thanks to Colossal Biosciences, a company at the forefront of the de-extinction movement, fragments of these apex predators are being reassembled with modern biotech.

With only 20 genetic edits across 14 genes, scientists have begun to unlock the dire wolf’s once-lost traits. It might not sound like much, but tiny DNA changes can lead to massive biological differences — just like how humans and chimpanzees share 98.8% of DNA yet are vastly different.

This project is part of a much larger mission: to restore extinct species and help rebalance ecosystems damaged by human activity. From the woolly mammoth to the woolly mouse, de-extinction is no longer science fiction — it’s happening now.