Scientists have announced the first successful cloning of an endangered species in the United States: a black-footed ferret.
The animal, named Elizabeth Ann, was born on December 10 and was announced Thursday. Willa, the ferret that served as a genetic source for Elizabeth Ann, died in 1988 and remained frozen while the cloning research was just beginning.
Success gives conservationists hope to see other species returned to nature, although the process requires patience. The lawsuit required the use of a domesticated ferret and a second clone did not survive.
In this photo provided by the US Fish and Wildlife Service is Elizabeth Ann, the first cloned black-legged ferret and the first endangered species in the cloned USA, at 50 days of age on January 29, 2021. Scientists cloned the first species threatened from the USA, a black-footed ferret duplicated from the genes of an animal that died more than 30 years ago. They hope that the stealthy predator named Elizabeth Ann and her descendants will improve the genetic diversity of a species once considered extinct, but bred in captivity and successfully reintroduced into the wild. (US Fish and Wildlife Service via AP)
Other species that could benefit from cloning include a Mongolian wild horse, which was cloned and born last summer in a Texas facility, and the extinct passenger pigeon.
“Biotechnology and genomics data can really make a difference in the field with conservation efforts,” said Ben Novak, chief scientist at Revive & Restore, a nonprofit organization focused on biotechnology that coordinated the cloning of ferrets and horses.
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Black-footed ferrets are a type of weasel easily recognized by dark-eyed marks that resemble a thief’s mask. Charismatic and nocturnal, they feed exclusively on prairie dogs, while living in the middle of the vast colonies of rodents’ dens.
The lack of genetic diversity is a concern for scientists, however: genetic similarity would make new ferrets potentially susceptible to intestinal parasites and diseases like wild plague.
In this photo provided by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is Elizabeth Ann, the first cloned black-legged ferret and the first cloned U.S. endangered species, at 48 days of age on January 27, 2021. Scientists cloned the first threatened species in the US, a black-footed ferret duplicated from the genes of an animal that died more than 30 years ago. They hope that the stealthy predator named Elizabeth Ann and her descendants will improve the genetic diversity of a species once considered extinct, but bred in captivity and successfully reintroduced into the wild. (US Fish and Wildlife Service via AP)
When Willa died, the Wyoming Fish and Game Department sent her tissues to a “frozen zoo” run by the San Diego Zoo Global that maintains cells for more than 1,100 species and subspecies worldwide. Eventually, scientists may be able to modify these genes to help cloned animals survive.
“With these cloning techniques, you can basically freeze time and regenerate these cells,” said Gober. “We are far from that now when it comes to moving the genome to check for any genetic resistance, but that is a possibility in the future.”
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A black-footed ferret breeding facility at the Fish and Wildlife Service in Fort Collins, Colorado, is looking after Elizabeth Ann.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.