Meet Khaleesi: First female dire wolf brought back to life after 12,000 years

Scientists brought back dire wolves from extinction in late 2024 and now their pack is growing as a female dire wolf has also been revived.

The animal which went extinct 12,000 years ago was made famous via the iconic HBO series Game of Thrones.

The female dire wolf named Khaleesi is currently six months old and her brothers, Romulus and Remus, are now approaching one year old.

An American biotechnology and genetic engineering company Colossal Biosciences is behind the revival of ice age species.

The female has been named after the character “Khaleesi”, played by Emilia Clarke, in Game of Thrones.

An adorable new video shows the growing pack of wolves as Khaleesi has been finally introduced to male pups, who have grown to be much larger than grey wolves of similar age, as their handlers watch carefully.

The revival of the ice age species via genetic engineering was a complex process as the Colossal Biosciences constructed the dire wolf genome found in fragments of bone.

The Grey wolf embryo was genetically modified to look like a dire wolf and implanted in a surrogate dog mother, which gave birth to the animal.

Romulus and Remus were born in October 2024 and they have grown rapidly reaching over 40kg of weight in just six months.

In an interview with USA Today, the CEO of Colossal Biosciences Ben Lamm said, “We are working through socialisation and the introduction of Khaleesi into the pack.”

He added that we don’t want these wolves to be lap dogs and fortunately they have started behaving more and more like wolves.

The company is actively working for the revival of other extinct animals as well including, woolly mammoth and a 12-foot New Zealand bird.