#15 Science in History
06 January 2000
On this day in 2000, the Pyrenean ibex became the first mammal species to go extinct due to human influence.
The medium-sized wild goat, also known as the bucardo, lived among the cliffs and rocky slopes of the Pyrenees Mountain range in Northern Spain. It faced numerous threats throughout its existence - habitat loss (through farming and development) and poaching being the main causes of its decline. Inbreeding and disease also caused a drop in the animals' numbers.
Efforts to conserve the Pyrenean ibex were made in the late 1900s, but they were unsuccessful. The last known individual of the subspecies, a 13-year-old female named Celia, was found injured in the mountains in 1999. She was taken to a wildlife rehabilitation centre but died later, and the Pyrenean ibex was officially declared extinct.
In 2009, scientists announced that they had successfully resurrected the ibex through a process known as ‘de-extinction’. DNA from the last known individual of the subspecies, Celia, was implanted into a domestic goat egg with its own DNA removed. The resulting embryo was then implanted into a surrogate mother goat, who gave birth to a cloned Pyrenean ibex.
Named Celia, after the last known individual, the clone lived for seven minutes before it died due to respiratory failure.
The Pyrenean ibex serves as a reminder of the consequences of human actions and the importance of conservation.
