US Scientists Announce First Successful Clone of Endangered Animal
2021-02-25
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1American scientists recently announced the first cloning of an endangered animal native to the United States.
2A black-footed ferret was created from the cells of an animal that died over 30 years ago.
3Officials from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said the ferret, named Elizabeth Ann, was born December 10.
4She is a genetic reproduction of a black-footed ferret named Willa who died in 1988.
5Willa's remains were frozen in the early days of genetic technology.
6Such use of cloning aims to one day bring back animal species that have died out.
7The black-footed ferret project is part of a wider effort to build up the population of the endangered animal.
8Noreen Walsh is the director of the National Black-footed Ferret Conservation Center in Northern Colorado.
9The center is part of the Fish and Wildlife Service.
10In announcing the successful cloning, she said in a statement "it provides a promising tool for continued efforts to conserve the black-footed ferret."
11Black-footed ferrets are easily recognized by the dark markings on their feet and around the eyes.
12They hunt and feed on prairie dogs.
13Even before the cloning, the animals were a conservation success story.
14They were thought to have died out because of the loss of prairie dog populations they depend on.
15The prairie dogs were shot and poisoned by animal farmers seeking to create a better land environment for raising cows.
16But in 1981, a black-footed ferret was discovered in the state of Wyoming.
17Scientists then gathered the remaining population for a captive mating program.
18Thousands of ferrets have been released in the western U.S., Canada and Mexico since the 1990s.
19But a lack of genetic diversity presents an ongoing risk to the population.
20All ferrets brought back so far came from just seven closely related animals.
21This genetic similarity puts the ferrets at risk for developing serious health problems.
22When Willa died, the Wyoming Game and Fish Department sent her tissues to a "frozen zoo" operated by San Diego Zoo Global.
23The zoo keeps cells from more than 1,100 species and subspecies worldwide.
24In the future, scientists hope to make changes to those genes to help cloned animals survive.
25"With these cloning (methods), you can basically freeze time and regenerate those cells," said Pete Gober.
26He leads the black-footed ferret recovery effort for the Fish and Wildlife Service.
27He added that while reaching that level of genetic engineering might take a long time, he is hopeful it will be possible.
28I'm Bryan Lynn.
1American scientists recently announced the first cloning of an endangered animal native to the United States. A black-footed ferret was created from the cells of an animal that died over 30 years ago. 2Officials from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said the ferret, named Elizabeth Ann, was born December 10. She is a genetic reproduction of a black-footed ferret named Willa who died in 1988. Willa's remains were frozen in the early days of genetic technology. 3Such use of cloning aims to one day bring back animal species that have died out. The black-footed ferret project is part of a wider effort to build up the population of the endangered animal. 4Noreen Walsh is the director of the National Black-footed Ferret Conservation Center in Northern Colorado. The center is part of the Fish and Wildlife Service. In announcing the successful cloning, she said in a statement "it provides a promising tool for continued efforts to conserve the black-footed ferret." 5Black-footed ferrets are easily recognized by the dark markings on their feet and around the eyes. They hunt and feed on prairie dogs. 6Even before the cloning, the animals were a conservation success story. They were thought to have died out because of the loss of prairie dog populations they depend on. The prairie dogs were shot and poisoned by animal farmers seeking to create a better land environment for raising cows. 7But in 1981, a black-footed ferret was discovered in the state of Wyoming. Scientists then gathered the remaining population for a captive mating program. Thousands of ferrets have been released in the western U.S., Canada and Mexico since the 1990s. 8But a lack of genetic diversity presents an ongoing risk to the population. All ferrets brought back so far came from just seven closely related animals. This genetic similarity puts the ferrets at risk for developing serious health problems. 9When Willa died, the Wyoming Game and Fish Department sent her tissues to a "frozen zoo" operated by San Diego Zoo Global. The zoo keeps cells from more than 1,100 species and subspecies worldwide. 10In the future, scientists hope to make changes to those genes to help cloned animals survive. 11"With these cloning (methods), you can basically freeze time and regenerate those cells," said Pete Gober. He leads the black-footed ferret recovery effort for the Fish and Wildlife Service. He added that while reaching that level of genetic engineering might take a long time, he is hopeful it will be possible. 12I'm Bryan Lynn. 13The Associated Press reported this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the report for Learning English, with additional information from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Caty Weaver was the editor. 14We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page. 15_______________________________________________________________ 16Words in This Story 17clone - v. to make an exact copy of a person, animal or plant 18species - n. a group of animals or plants that are similar 19conserve - v. to protect animals, plants and natural resources 20diversity - n. a situation in which many different kinds of things or people are included in something 21regenerate - v. form or create again