Science breakthrough as biotech company announces progress toward resurrecting the extinct dodo

The closest living relative to the dodo is the Nicobar pigeon.

Colossal plans to gene-edit the bird to give the pigeon - native to some Southeast Asian islands - the traits of its extinct relative.

The company claims it is in the final stages of dodo genome analysis and has made an advance which should shorten the time needed to test whether a genetic edit produces the desired trait.

But the company, which says it is committed to "de-extinction" has not set out a timeframe for hatching a revived dodo.

Last year, the firm said it had brought back the dire wolf by editing the genes of the gray wolf.

The three wolves - named Romulus, Remus, and Khaleesi - are now said to be thriving.

The biosciences firm, based in Dallas, is also planning to revive the bluebuck antelope, the woolly mammoth, the thylacine, also called the Tasmanian tiger, and the moa, a 12-foot tall giant bird.

If the dodo is successfully revived, it would be returned to its home, the native Indian Ocean island of Mauritius.

Just decades after humans arrived on Mauritius, the bird was turned extinct.

Ben Lamm, Colossal's CEO, told Reuters: "The dodo is the world's best-known symbol of extinction caused by people.

"It disappeared within decades of humans arriving on Mauritius, largely because of the introduction of invasive species like rats and other animals they brought.

"Bringing it back shows extinction doesn't have to be permanent."

The flightless bird, which was around 3" tall and weighed up to 50 pounds, was entirely endemic to Mauritius.

Humans last saw it in 1662, but it has remained alive in popular culture, including in Lewis Carroll's book "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland".

Mr Lamm added: "The big hurdles ahead are proving which genetic changes really matter, making many of those edits in a bird and passing them to the next generation, and preparing a safe home for dodos on Mauritius."

The company is now working with Mauritian scientists, conservation groups and the Government to determine what returning the dodo to its native lands may look like, Mr Lamm said.

He added: "Getting Mauritius ready for dodos also means removing invasive predators and restoring habitat, which helps the native species living there now.

"No release sites will be chosen until the ecological work and community consultation are finalised, but it is Colossal's goal to put our dodos back into their natural habitats in Mauritius."