Cloning: An Option for Endangered Species Conservation
Review of the Literature
Geneticists know that the technology of cloning lies in the palm of their hands, and its
use on domestic animals and now endangered species has already proven successful (“Endangered
Species”; Fields-Meyer and Seaman;Holt et al.; Lanza et al.; Trivedi). The question I ask now is
this: Will cloning be used in the conservation of endangered species? This very question has
sparked debate between the scientific community and many conservationists. Contrary to the
values set forth by many conservationist groups, my research suggests that the cloning of
endangered species is, in fact, a viable option in their preservation and repopulation. Most of the
sources I have used in my research have supported the idea of using cloning to rebuild animal
populations or at least obtain viable DNA from endangered animals. The prominent scientists
Betsy Dresser, Robert Lanza, and Philip Damiani of the Advanced Cell Technology laboratories in
Worcester, Massachusetts, expressed their optimism about cloning endangered species in the
article "Cloning Noah's Ark." Dresser and Lanza were also quoted in several online news sources
I used as well. They conclude that "Biotechnology might offer the best way to keep some
endangered species from disappearing from the planet" (Lanza et al). As my research suggests,
cloning endangered species will surely have its benefits in keeping these populations alive, an
option which conservationists cannot deny.
These scientists I have mentioned do not ignore opposition to their scientific claims
from conservationists skeptical of the uses of cloning and leery that it usage will deter humans
from restoring natural habitats. Instead, the scientific researchers have taken each of these
criticisms and, in a sense, knocked them down, providing economic and scientific evidence to back
up their own claims. The Advanced Cell Technology's article "Cloning Noah's Ark" along with
William Holt and colleagues' article on cloning endangered species both do an excellent job of
presenting the negative aspects associated with this new technology which concerns many
conservationists, but assure their audience that the benefits emerging from cloning endangered
species certainly outweigh the costs. As Betsy Dresser stated in a National Geographic article
discussing the first successfully cloned endangered species, "Saving habitat may not be enough,
any tool for saving endangered species is important...Cloning is just another reproductive tool,
like in-vitro fertilization" (Trivedi). Placed in this context, Dresser never claims that conserving
habitats will not work or should be abandoned, but simply suggests that saving an animal’s
environment may not be enough. Increasing the numbers in a given population is just as important
and cloning may be one of the only options some species have left to survive.
Moreover, while critics argue that...
