New Zealand director Peter Jackson (The Lord of the Rings, Braindead) is supporting an ambitious project to revive the South Island giant moa. Together with the US biotech firm Colossal Biosciences, the Ngāi Tahu Research Centre, and the Canterbury Museum, the flightless bird that went extinct in the 14th or 15th century is to be genetically “brought back” within a decade. However, there has been significant criticism from the scientific community.
Moas from the lab?
The idea: genetic material from the moa is to be extracted from well-preserved bone samples in order to create a “moa-like” creature through genetic modifications in a closely related animal—presumably the emu. The project promises the first “moa chicks” within five to ten years. The vision: an ecotourism conservation area on the land of the Māori tribe Ngāi Tahu, where the animals could eventually live.
The project aims to collect and preserve not only the South Island giant moa but also genetic material from eight smaller moa species (such as the bush moa, eastern moa, or coastal moa). Some of these were barely larger than turkeys. The goal is to build a comprehensive biobank with genetic diversity for future research and biodiversity conservation.
Experts warn of genetic illusion
(© Gallimimus wikipedista., CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons)
Zoologist Philip Seddon from the University of Otago is not impressed by the vision: “Extinction really is forever. There is currently no genetic engineering pathway to fully restore a lost species—especially not one that has been absent from its ecological and evolutionary context for centuries.” The end product would be nothing more than a genetically engineered surrogate creature.
Nic Rawlence, head of the paleogenetics lab at Otago, is even more blunt: the technology is simply not mature enough. “No moa will be brought back; instead, a genetically modified emu will be created” that might outwardly resemble a moa. Furthermore, there is hardly any suitable habitat, let alone plans for a stable population with genetic diversity. Rawlence emphasizes that it would take at least 500 genetically diverse animals to establish a viable population in the wild. “Bringing back a few moas and putting them in a wildlife enclosure for ecotourism is not conservation.”
The moa as a symbol of hope?
(© George Edward Lodge, No restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons)
The team at Colossal Biosciences, known for similar projects involving the mammoth, dodo, thylacine, and ivory-billed woodpecker, sees the moa revival as a “holy grail” of biotechnology—with benefits for research, conservation, and education: “I am one hundred percent confident that the moa will become a reality, because the necessary tools and technologies exist. We are just advancing them further,” explains CEO Ben Lamm.
Peter Jackson emphasizes the emotional and cultural significance of the moa for New Zealand: “For as long as I can remember, the moa has been a proud part of New Zealand’s history. It was the largest bird that ever existed. As a schoolchild, it was simply exciting to hear that we once had the world’s largest bird.” The moa is a firm part of the national identity—from school textbooks to the uniforms of New Zealand soldiers in World War I, who wore a moa badge.
The Canterbury Museum, which holds the world’s largest collection of moa fossils, also supports the project. Senior curator Paul Scofield speaks of a groundbreaking project that could strengthen Māori communities economically and culturally, provided it is truly indigenously led. Initial new excavations are now set to yield fresh, better-preserved genetic material.
Not Jurassic Park, but a different biological path
Ben Lamm emphasizes that the genetic restoration of birds differs biologically from that of mammals, such as the North American dire wolf project. In parallel, Colossal is already working with Australian scientists to conserve endangered bird species.
The project has nothing to do with fictional scenarios like Jurassic Park: “We are not talking about dinosaurs that have been gone for 65 million years, but about species whose extinction occurred only a few centuries ago.”
Lamm also highlights that the moa project breaks new organizational ground—through the leading role of the indigenous population: the Ngāi Tahu Research Centre directs the project, with Colossal seeing itself merely as a technical partner and supporter. This collaboration could serve as a model for future conservation projects with the Ngāi Tahu.
Māori perspective: Between past andfuture
For the Ngāi Tahu, one of the largest Māori tribal groups in New Zealand, the project is far more than a biotechnological experiment. According to Mike Stevens, director of the Ngāi Tahu Research Centre, it is also about cultural healing and strengthening identity: “We come from a history of loss. Now it is about moving from a place of resentment to a place of growth.”
Stevens points out that the first Polynesian settlers not only hunted the moa but through this collective experience also formed a new, structured society that later became Māori culture. “If we understand the moa better, we also understand ourselves better.”
Insights into a lost world?
Natural historians like Paul Scofield also see an opportunity through the project to learn more about New Zealand’s prehistoric ecosystem. The giant moa was a “fairly strange animal,” says Scofield—in part because the males were only half the size of the females and raised the young alone. Its influence on New Zealand’s forests has so far only been discussed theoretically. The project could help test these hypotheses experimentally.
De-extinction as a trend
The project joins a series of similar ventures in which Colossal Biosciences aims to technically recreate extinct animals. But critics point to the example of the “brought-back” dire wolf: according to the company’s own claims it was a “de-extinction success,” until Colossal biologist Beth Shapiro later conceded that they were in fact modified gray wolves with 20 genetic changes.
With the moa as well, Seddon warns, the press release from Colossal Biosciences contains no indication whatsoever that the result will be a mere ecological equivalent or surrogate creature. The revival remains a technological vision and not the return of an extinct species.
Background: The South Island giant moa (Dinornis robustus)
- flightless giant bird with pronounced sexual dimorphism
- Size: up to 3.6 m tall (standing, with neck extended) – the largest of all moa species
- Weight: up to 250 kg
- Habitat: forests and scrubland of New Zealand’s South Island
- Extinction: probably in the 14th or 15th century through human hunting (alleged sightings of the flightless bird are documented into the 1990s)
Sources
- Bloom, D. (8. Juli 2025). Peter Jackson, Maoris, Colossal to de‑extinct world’s largest bird. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/dbloom/2025/07/08/peter-jackson-maoris-colossal-to-de-extinct-worlds-largest-bird/
- RNZ. (9. Juli 2025). Sir Peter Jackson backs project to de-extinct moa, experts cast doubt. Radio New Zealand. https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/566386/sir-peter-jackson-backs-project-to-de-extinct-moa-experts-cast-doubt
About the author: Doreen Fräßdorf
Doreen Fräßdorf is the author and publisher of artensterben.de. She researches and writes about extinct and endangered species in the modern era, with a focus on red lists, scientific studies, historical sources, and current conservation efforts. The goal is a clear, evidence-based overview of biodiversity loss and species protection.
She is also the author of a non-fiction book about extinct modern-era mammals.
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