Has China successfully cloned dinosaurs? Here’s the truth

Hyderabad: A video of dinosaurs that appear real is doing the rounds on social media. It is being claimed that China has successfully cloned dinosaurs.

The text on the viral video reads, “China 1st it was coronavirus now they’re cloning dinosaurs.” The voice over states: “‘For instance, this video was leaked a year ago by an anonymous source in China showing a baby triceratops dinosaur that was placed on a stretcher to monitor its vitals. The source reported that scientists were using DNA and tissue remains of an actual dinosaur, and making its clone copies. Once the leak got mainstream, Chinese authorities refused to comment on the leak. Considering the fact that dinosaurs went extinct millions of years ago, this footage has grabbed a lot of attention and received a lot of attention from most who are seeking answers.”

Let’s find out the truth behind the video.

Fact Check

NewsMeter found that the dinosaurs in the viral video are puppets.

On performing a simple reverse image search, we found that in late September 2020, Jurassic Outpost, a fan website for the dinosaur movie franchise, tweeted the same video with the caption urging people to “check out this young Parasaurolophus new to Jurassic World the Exhibition!”

Although the baby dinosaurs look convincingly real in the viral video, they are just puppets and the man can be seen using his right hand to control them. An Australia-based technology company who designed the animatronic puppet with the technology used in theme parks. These types of puppets are more like robots but way more realistic. So, you need not worry. Dinosaurs aren’t coming back to life.

Further, we also found a video on “Jurassic World: The Exhibition” Facebook page announcing its opening in Chengdu, China. It shows a similar dinosaur puppet.

Moreover, we could not find any credible report or research done on the successful cloning of dinosaurs either in China or anywhere else. Hence, we conclude that the claim is false.