Dire Wolf Clones

Science has brought back the Dire Wolf from extinction after over a dozen millennia.

They did this by reconstructing the wolf's genome from ancient DNA, identifying versions of genes seen only in dire wolves and not in the extinct carnivores' living relatives.

The team then tweaked DNA from modern-day gray wolves (Canis lupus) to include these unique gene variants. They inserted the DNA into denucleated gray wolf egg cells and allowed them to mature in the lab before introducing them into surrogate dogs' wombs. Three embryos successfully implanted in three surrogate dogs, leading to the births of snowy white pups named Romulus, Remus and Khaleesi.

Soooo... Half clone, half genetic engineering. Just like Jeff Goldblum warned us about.

World's oldest puppies. Cute. Was this a good idea? Would this money and effort be better spent keeping Rhinos or Elephants or Bees from extinction?

What animals would you clone? Something old, like Mammoths? Something long gone by human hands, like the Thylacine? Something slipping away in modern times, Galapagos tortoises? Something personal?