Future trajectory
Managers intend to increase the amount of herbivores on the grassland to 20 mammals per square kilometre (Fowler, 2007). The next step following the “hyper-accumulation” of herbivores is to acclimate and reintroduce Siberian tigers (Panthera tigris altaica) into the area (Fowler, 2007; Zimov 2005). Siberian tigers have reportedly been observed in the Yakutia region in the past, though they are currently restricted to the Amur River basin region (Zimov, 2005). This large carnivore species will control the populations of both ungulates and smaller predators within the park (Zimov, 2005). One of the largest issues faced by managers in respect to importing both herbivores and carnivores is ensuring that they become acclimated to the cold temperatures and have sufficient access to food sources (Pleistocene Park, n.d.).
There is also the possibility of the reintroduction of the currently extinct mammoth onto the site, using cloning biotechnology. Scientists of The Mammoth Creation Project are exploring the possibility of cloning a mammoth from frozen material collected in the Siberian permafrost (Fletcher, 2014; Lovgren (a.), 2005). If a mammoth was successfully cloned by this group of scientists, they have selected Pleistocene Park as the location where this individual or group of mammoths would live and be studied (Lovgren (a.), 2005). To clone a mammoth, they must first retrieve sperm from a mammoth frozen in tundra, which can then be used to impregnate a female elephant (Lovgren (b.), 2005). By repeating the procedure over generations, scientists would eventually create an animal that is mostly mammoth (Lovgren (b.), 2005).
There is also the possibility of the reintroduction of the currently extinct mammoth onto the site, using cloning biotechnology. Scientists of The Mammoth Creation Project are exploring the possibility of cloning a mammoth from frozen material collected in the Siberian permafrost (Fletcher, 2014; Lovgren (a.), 2005). If a mammoth was successfully cloned by this group of scientists, they have selected Pleistocene Park as the location where this individual or group of mammoths would live and be studied (Lovgren (a.), 2005). To clone a mammoth, they must first retrieve sperm from a mammoth frozen in tundra, which can then be used to impregnate a female elephant (Lovgren (b.), 2005). By repeating the procedure over generations, scientists would eventually create an animal that is mostly mammoth (Lovgren (b.), 2005).