GAINESVILLE, Fla. (WCJB) -
They've been gone for a thousand years, but a Florida Museum of Natural History researcher is bringing them back to life.
Figuratively, of course.
The first ever genetic data from an extinct bird has been extracted by a bone found in the Bahamas.
Post-doctoral researcher Jessica Oswald pulled almost 99% of the genes of a "Creighton's Caracara" from a femur found in a deep sinkhole.
A lack of oxygen in the depths of the water preserved the fossil.
Recovering DNA is difficult in birds because their hollow bones decay quickly.
