SEOUL - South Korea's stem cell scientist Hwang Woo-suk has succeeded in cloning endangered coyotes in a project sponsored by a provincial government, the local government of Gyeonggi Province said in a statement on Monday.

Hwang donated the eight cloned coyotes to a wildlife protection center in Pyeongtaek, south of Seoul, in a ceremony presided by Gyeonggi province governor Kim Moon-soo.

Hwang succeeded in cloning the eight coyotes by transferring the nucleus of somatic cells from a donor coyote to a dog's eggs.

The eight coyotes are the world's first cloned coyotes using somatic cells, according to the statement.

Hwang was once praised as a national hero in South Korea after he claimed to be the first to successfully clone human stem cells.

However, he fell into disgrace in 2005 when he was found to have manipulated key data in his studies on cloning stem cells.

Gyeonggi Province plans to donate some of the cloned coyotes to zoos overseas in an effort to contribute to preserve endangered animals.