Montana’s Gray Wolf Debate Gets a Prehistoric Twist

Scientists have just achieved something that is straight out of the fantasy world of Game of Thrones: three genetically modified wolf cubs resembling the long-extinct dire wolf have been born. They’re called Romulus, Remus, and Khaleesi. They were produced by Colossal Biosciences, the same company that wants to return woolly mammoths. By playing with the DNA of gray wolves and splicing it with genetic material derived from ancient dire wolf remains, they’ve produced beasts that are chunkier and more powerful than the already massive grey wolf.

Cool science? Sure. But should Montanans be nervous? Maybe.

More recently, a famous example of a protection-evolutionary balance comes in the form of the gray wolves that were reintroduced to Yellowstone in the ‘90s. It was intended to help restore balance in the ecosystem, and in some ways, it did. But the fallout was real. Ranchers throughout Montana recorded increases in livestock losses, animal herds moved, and arguments over wolf management remain heated today.

Now, imagine an enormous version of those wolves running around in the wilderness. I'm sure Game of Thrones fans would love it. That's a possible future scenario if this research continues to progress. And while the scientists say these dire wolf clones won’t be released into the wild (not yet), we’ve seen before how swiftly good intentions can escalate to unintended consequences.

Pro-wolf, anti-wolf, super-cute wolf or whatever you are, if you’re tired of debating wolves at the local bar, then the lesson is a straightforward one: there are always consequences to messing with nature. Before we go full Jurassic Park on Montana’s ecosystems, maybe we should take a pause and remind ourselves that we cannot "play God."