wash post article

[guppychao]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/conte...687.html?sub=AR

[Highland Reefer]

After freezing the coral tissues at 176 degrees below zero, are they able to survive and regenerate?

[OUsnakebyte]

After freezing the coral tissues at 176 degrees below zero, are they able to survive and regenerate?

 

I'm guessing this is cyropreservation, and it works quite well with many different species. Dr. Mary Hagedorn, a Smithsonian reproductive scientist, joined SECORE two years ago, and this is her specialty. Last August she and her team were able to freeze elkhorn coral sperm and successfully thaw it and have it still be viable. This was the first time anyone had ever done this with Acroporid sperm. I actually stumbled on them in the middle of the night after my 3am larvae-stirring shift (just checking in to see what they were doing), and they had just brought the sperm out of cryo. As we were watching the sperm swim around on the scope, it was very cool to get the "first time on Planet Earth" type feeling.

 

 

About the rest of the article - I appreciate what they are trying to do, but it sounds like treating the symptom and not the problem. I agree the problem is monumental - the 800 lbs gorilla in the room, and is not easily tackled. I do have concerns/thoughts though:

 

- Not every species of coral will host with every species of zoox. Some coral will readily take almost any zoox, while others are more specific. They know this; and it will be interesting to see what "combinations" they can make.

 

- I'm not sure what they are planning to do, but... if you are taking "heat tolerant" zoox from one area - say, Saudi Arabia, and translocating it to Raja Ampat, Indonesia, now you have invasive species problems. How many times has this failed in the past? "Australian" cane toad, anyone? Again, I don't if they plan to do this, but... a concern nonetheless. Again, I'm sure, or would at least hope, they have thought of this.

 

Cheers

Mike

Edited February 19, 2008 by OUsnakebyte