America

we should coin endangered species that can be the redeeming product in their own right.

The tragedy of the American chestnut is a minor obsession of mine, which is why this 2020 NYT Magazine story made me so hopeful about science and genetic engineering.

It's not quite the fake dire wolf example, but scientists are crossbreeding remaining American chestnuts with Asian cousins that are hardier against the scourge that wiped out the tree in the first place.

The tragedy of the American chestnut is a minor obsession of mine, which is why this 2020 NYT Magazine story made me so hopeful about science and genetic engineering.

It's not quite the fake dire wolf example, but scientists are crossbreeding remaining American chestnuts with Asian cousins that are hardier against the scourge that wiped out the tree in the first place.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/30/magazine/american-chestnut.html

Black Walnut has a similar story.  Very sad.  It seems almost impossible to protect species without broad commercial support from global pests.  In citrus we have Citrus Greening disease but we’ve poured millions of dollars into prevention to protect crops.  Nobody is doing that for chestnut & walnuts

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I didn’t know about this. Heartbreaking. I have noticed there are far fewer of them around on Long Island where I grew up than when I was a kid.

Black Walnut has a similar story.  Very sad.  It seems almost impossible to protect species without broad commercial support from global pests.  In citrus we have Citrus Greening disease but we’ve poured millions of dollars into prevention to protect crops.  Nobody is doing that for chestnut & walnuts https://ucanr.edu/blog/bug-squad/article/sign-times-why-black-walnut-tree-dying

co-founder/ink-slinger at publicdomain.media / formerly HuffPost / fan of trout, wood grain & Blues hockey / chrismdangelo.com / Signal: cmdangelo.33

my in-laws have one of the hybrid chestnuts up in NH...every time I'm up there I visit that tree

the fascinating thing about endangered flora is how many American forests have shifted species due to climate change.

unfortunately, there's also invasive species, but it would so awesome if we manage to quarantine species to nurseries at scale.

I'm all for GMO, but there's also an argument for retaining heritage.