Noah's New Ark

The imminent birth of a cloned gaur signals a new approach to preservation

Noah's Ark has set sail again, crossing stormy scientific waters and buffeted by winds of controversy. Unlike the Old Testament vessel, however, today's metaphorical ark is not carrying threatened animals two by two to safety. Rather, if it lives up to its billing, it could produce potentially unlimited numbers of endangered creatures.

In the updated story, though, Noah is not the skipper of the rescue project. Instead, it's the name given in advance to the clone of a dead gaur, an endangered wild ox found in India, Bangladesh and Southeast Asia. The new Noah is expected to be born any day...

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