A representation of what the bluebuck looks like. (Photo: Colossal Biosciences).
Few people in South Africa will know about a bluebuck, because it became extinct in the 1800s. However, overseas scientists now want to revive this animal.
According to Colossal Biosciences, an American organization that gained fame for the giant wolf of Game of Thrones-fame that revived them, now also wants to give shape to the South African bluebuck.
The bluebuck (Hippotragusleucophaeus), which became extinct around 1800, is considered the first large African mammal to be wiped out in recorded history as a direct result of human activity.
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According to the company, with their headquarters in Dallas in the US state of Texas, work on the bluebuck project has already begun.
The bluebuck was known for its silvery bluish fur, distinctive facial pattern and curved horns. Species that still exist today and are related to the blue antelope are the hybrid chamois antelope and sable.
According to Colossal Biosciences, there is increasing concern about the state of goats worldwide. Data from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) shows 29 of the world’s box species are currently facing extinction.
Ben Lamm, co-founder and CEO of Colossal Biosciences, says the blue goat project is therefore an important extension of the company’s work.
A representation of what the bluebuck looks like. (Photo: Colossal Biosciences).
“The bluebuck represents a decisive step forward for Colossal Biosciences and conservation,” Lamm said in a statement. “This allows us to extend our work to a new group of mammals with different reproductive biology and timelines, while developing technology that can directly benefit the 29 endangered species.”
According to Lamm, the bluebuck was hunted out because of its unique fur and became extinct within only 34 years of its first scientific description.
A fully grown buck measured about 1.2 meters to the shoulder with horns that could grow to almost 56.5 cm long.
The revival project, which has already “achieved important technological breakthroughs” since 2024, will continue to combine advanced gene editing with reproductive technology.
DNA from bluebuck specimens (specimen) has already been obtained from the Swedish Museum of Natural History. Scientists will use the hybrid chamois goat as a cellular surrogate, a process that is already underway after an embryo has been grown in a laboratory.
Lamm expects successful births of bluebucks within the next few years instead of the next decades.
Meanwhile, the company is also working on projects to revive the woolly mammoth and the extinct dodo in the next two years.
Additional sources: CNN, The Guardian and Time.