Back Bring and the Natural Context

We're talking about an animal that kind of looked like an orangutang. Wingspan over 10 feet in length. When it comes to its bite force, can't even imagine how strong the bite of this animal would be. Now, the reason that it went extinct was changes in the environment, which means that there could be DNA information out there. We could capture the genome and bring this giant back to life. De-extinction used to be science fiction, but as we now know, Colossal Biosciences has cracked that code and a few years ago brought back the direwolf.

Since they have also announced a couple of other species, including my favorite, the giant moa, the bluebuck, which is very exciting, the woolly mammoth, the dodo, and the thylacine. Thanks to Colossal for sponsoring this video, and make sure to follow their channels so you don't miss another breakthrough. Now, before I jump into my wish list, first I've got to give an honorable mention. You guys all know that I love Bigfoot, but did you know that there used to be a giant primate that walked the planet almost 200,000 years ago called Gigantopithecus? We're talking about an animal that kind of looked like an orangutang.

Probably more closer to the skunk ape than the actual Bigfoot itself. But I think it deserves an honorable mention because if there was ever a missing link between a prehistoric ape, Sasquatch, and humans today, great apes, I would say it has to be Gigantopithecus. Now, before I jump into my top five, first I just have to say we are eliminating dinosaurs from this list. As we know, dinosaur DNA does not exist. That's because any fossil remains of dinosaurs that exist on our planet today are rock. There is no DNA material,

meaning we will not have a Jurassic Park incident where dinosaurs are brought back genetically and can run a muck in a park. So, dinosaurs off the list. So, if you guys are ready, let's jump into Coyote Peterson's de-extinction wish list. So, while dinosaurs will not be on today's list, I have to say that coming in at number five is something pretty close to a dinosaur. The largest lizard to ever roam the planet, Megalania. This was basically a 20ft Komodo dragon. Now, the Komodo dragon is something that I got the chance to get up close and personal with

recently in Indonesia. Right here, I've got the replica of a Komodo dragon skull. And you look at those teeth, razor sharp and possibly laced with venom. And then you think about something easily three, if not four times the size of this. We're talking about a top predator. Now, this animal went extinct about 40,000 years ago, which is just beyond technically where we would find good DNA material. But the biggest problem is that there are very few bone or fossil elements of this lizard that exists today. So, while it's estimated that it could have

been as long as 20 ft in length, truth be told, it could have been bigger. Now, the reason that it went extinct was changes in the environment and competition with evolving man for resources. Those resources of course being prey species. So, if Colossal Biosciences is ever going to bring back a giant lizard, I'm putting Megalania as my number five pick. But number four, that's going to change the tone just a little bit. I love this one. The giant ground sloth. Talk about big. Talk about cute. Talk about cuddly. Capable of reaching lengths of

over 20 feet and weighing close to 4 tons. That is a huge animal. Now, they went extinct about 11,000 years ago throughout the range on the mainland. However, it's rumored that there were isolated populations in the Caribbean islands that went extinct only 5,000 years ago. Now, the reason I bring that up is that is just old enough where we could possibly find some DNA evidence, collect that genome sequence, and bring this animal back from extinction. As primarily herbivores, they help in not only disturbing soil, but being natural gardeners,

meaning that they're dispersing seeds throughout their droppings. So, what do you think, colossal? Giant, cute, cuddly, and good for the ecosystem? I think the giant sloth should definitely be on the de-extinction list. Okay, soaring in at number three is the Haast's eagle. This is the largest eagle to ever inhabit our planet. Wingspan over 10 ft in length, making it bigger than the California condor. Now, they went extinct around the mid400s, just about the same time that the giant moa went extinct, and they also existed in

New Zealand. So, why would we bring back the Haast's eagle from extinction? That's a great question and the reason would be if you bring back the moa, you don't want to have these birds overrunning the South Island of New Zealand. So, if you bring back a natural predator, now you've got a balance and bada bing, bada boom, you've got two really cool birds brought back from the grave that could be quite the attraction to the South Island of New Zealand. So, what do you think, Colossal? Bring back the largest eagle to ever fly the skies? Be pretty cool. All right,

guys. We've talked about a giant lizard. We've talked about a giant sloth, a giant eagle, but coming in at number two is a giant bear, the short-faced bear, also known as the bulldog bear. Now, this animal went extinct 11,000 years ago due to climate change and competition with humans. And that 11,000 years means that there could be some genetic material we could extract, get that genome sequence, and bring this giant back to life. Bears are fast. I mean, I've been up on the Katmai coast and I've seen coastal brown bears running at top speed, but this bear, the

short-faced bear, was capable of reaching speeds of close to 40 miles an hour. We're talking horse speed. So, you can imagine a 2,000lb animal barreling down on you. Woo, that would be scary. Yahoo! We are talking about a big bear. So, would they ever bring the short-faced bear back from extinction? H I'm probably going to say no. Considering the fact that we've also already got a lot of big bears on the planet, I can't see a good reason for bringing this one back. But if this was a species that were to be reintroduced into the environment, they would make great

balancers of the ecosystem. Not only to control ungulate populations, but also as seed dispersers. So just like the bears that exist today, they kind of serve the same ecological role. However, given the fact that bears are quite a threat to humans, I don't imagine Colossal is going to put this on their list. But one can always wish because an 11 foot tall 2,000lb bear, I'd sure like to see it. All right, guys. This is it. My number one deextinction wishlist animal. You probably have never heard of this species. Meiolania, the giant turtle tank. You guys know that

I absolutely love snapping turtles. So, of course, I had to save number one for being a turtle. But we're not just talking about any turtle. We're talking about like the ultimate combination of a tortoise and a snapping turtle combined into one. This is an 8 foot long, 1,000 lb behemoth with a skull that looked like a mix between a snapping turtle and a dragon. a shell that is gnarled and spiked, similar to an alligator snapping turtle, and a clubbed tail. This thing was roaming the grasslands only 2,000 years ago, guys, which means that there could be

DNA information out there. We could capture the genome and bring this giant back to life. Now, like a tortoise, it was a grazer, so it be constantly moving throughout the ecosystem, eating different types of plants. So, it doesn't necessarily cause any sort of threat to humans when it comes to its bite force. Can't even imagine how strong the bite of this animal would be. However, it probably would not be typically aggressive like a snapping turtle. So, it means that unless you just got your fingers too close accidentally, and we're not even talking

fingers, we're talking like your whole arm. This thing could bite your arm off, that it's probably a turtle that would be completely safe to have in the environment. So, you've got to ask yourself, well, why would we bring a giant turtle like this back? We've already got the Galapagos tortoise and several other large tortoise species out there roaming around. Like those species, this would be a great disperser of seeds and something that helps to manicure ecosystems. So, I think it's a pretty good argument for bringing this back. I mean, it's kind of like giant

gardener, a giant lawn mower. And not to mention the fact that if we had turtles of this size, you could probably put a saddle on it and ride it. This is me hugging a tortoise. Oh, let me see if I can hear her a heartbeat. No, nothing inside of that solid bone carapace. So, there you have it, guys. The largest lizard to ever walk our planet, a giant cute and cuddly sloth, an eagle with a wingspan of over 10 ft in length, a bulldog-faced scavenger bear, and a true tank of a turtle. Big thanks to Colossal Biosciences for sponsoring this episode. And make sure to subscribe to their YouTube channel so you can follow along for updates on all of their exciting

projects. I'm Coyote Peterson. Be brave. Stay wild. We'll see you on the next adventure.