Dire wolf brought back from extinction after 13,000 years: Should scientist bring back extinct animals?

The dire wolf, made famous in the hit HBO series "Game of Thrones," has been genetically-engineered by scientists in the U.S. after going extinct more than 12,500 years ago. 

The birth of three wolf pups, named Romulus, Remus and Khaleesi, is the world’s first "de-extinction," according to the company that aims to bring back lost species.

Here’s what to know:

What we know:

Scientists at Colossal Biosciences learned about specific traits that dire wolves possessed by examining ancient DNA from fossils. The researchers studied a 13,000 year-old dire wolf tooth unearthed in Ohio and a 72,000 year-old skull fragment found in Idaho, both part of natural history museum collections.

Then the scientists took blood cells from a living gray wolf and used CRISPR to genetically modify them in 20 different sites, said Colossal's chief scientist Beth Shapiro. They transferred that genetic material to an egg cell from a domestic dog. When ready, embryos were transferred to surrogates, also domestic dogs, and 62 days later the genetically engineered pups were born.

The three wolf pups, which range in age from three to six months old, have long white hair, muscular jaws and already weigh in at around 80 pounds — on track to reach 140 pounds at maturity, researchers said in a statement on Monday.

They’re currently living on a 2,000+ acre, undisclosed yet secure location that’s certified by the American Humane Society and registered with U.S. Department of Agriculture, Colossal said. It employs 10 full time animal care staff to support the wolves, which are continuously monitored "through on-site live cameras, security personnel, and drone tracking to ensure their safety and welfare."