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J
ust as seed banks have been developed to
protect the future of food, the Global Coral
Repository will collect biopsies of various
coral species to protect our oceans’ future.
The Haereticus Environmental Laboratory
is a nonprofit organization dedicated to
improving environmental restoration efforts
through research. Scientists there have
developed a technology that enables coral
propagation from near-microscopic tissue
biopsies. These samples can be cultured and
grown into adult coral in a process that can
spawn millions of offspring from a single
sample of genetic material.
Along with the propagation technology,
scientists at Haereticus have also developed
methods of cryogenically freezing coral samples,
preserving them in a living and reproductively
viable state. A series of international repositories
will store the samples, ensuring the more than
5,000 known coral species are protected. The
first repository is at the Haereticus lab in Virginia; the next
will be at Oxford University and is expected to be operational
in 2012. The hope is that more repositories will be developed
around the world in the near future. The collection process is
projected to take about 40 years.
Not only do these repositories provide an opportunity to
preserve earth’s coral species, they will also allow researchers
to investigate the factors contributing to coral decline,
learn how to conserve existing coral populations, propagate
archived species and restore impacted reefs. In addition, the
repositories create a global inventory of coral species and a
forensic database for use in cases where coral is transported
across international boundaries. “The repositories will
maintain a DNA fingerprint for every coral species as well as
a geographic identity for each specimen,” said Craig Downs,
executive director of the Global Coral Repository. “Using DNA
fingerprinting technology and specimen analysis, we should
be able to determine a specimen’s origin, aiding in the law-
enforcement efforts of the Convention on International Trade
in Endangered Species and other regulations.”
To be eligible for deposit, the samples must come from
healthy coral colonies, which divers can help identify.
According to Downs, each region will have a list of visual
characteristics divers can use to confirm reef health, including
coral coverage, species diversity and coral recruitment. “Divers
can provide photo documentation and GPS coordinates of
a candidate ‘healthy’ reef, which will significantly contribute
to the ultimate goals of the Global Coral Repository.” The
collection effort will begin in the Florida Keys.
For more information, visit www.CoralRepository.org.
— Maureen Halsema
24
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WINTER 2012
Cryogenically
Frozen Coral
Investing in the future of reefs
S T E P H E N F R I N K
New storage technology is allowing scientists to preserve
coral tissue samples for conservation and study.
DIVE SLATE
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