Free Public Lecture on Coral at Smithsonian's National Zoological Park

By Enica R. Thompson

Washington, DC - Warming and acidifying oceans are putting corals in irreparable danger. National Zoo scientists will discuss how they are preserving critical forms of corals to avoid extinction, and how they eventually plan to restore these species back into the wild.

The Zoo, collaborating with the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology and SECORE, created the world’s first coral genome repository where scientists have successfully cryopreserved the sperm of 450 individuals from the endangered Elkhorn coral.

Coral reefs are one of the world's greatest biological treasures. They are some of the oldest and most diverse ecosystems on the planet. Although they cover less than one-tenth of one percent of the Earth’s surface, one-quarter of all marine life depends on them. They are the ocean’s nurseries and feeding grounds. They also benefit our species. Millions of people and thousands of communities all over the world depend on coral reefs for food and to protect their coastal homes. They are a source of potential antibiotics, and medicines for cancer and HIV-AIDS.

However, around the world, they are facing grave threats. Colonies that have been flourishing for thousands of years are dying because of environmental damage, destructive fishing practices such as dynamite fishing and bottom trawling, pollution from industrial waste and other sources, and global warming, which causes bleaching—when zooxanthellae (symbiotic algae that live in coral and provide the animal with the organic products of photosynthesis, as well as the coral's color) are expelled, the coral colony dies and turns white.

FREE PUBLIC LECTURE EVENT —“Coral Conservation”— Thursday, Nov. 12 at 6:30 p.m., National Zoo, Visitor Center Auditorium. The distinguished panel includes experts working on all aspects of coral conservation, including the Zoo’s Dr. Mary Hagedorn and Mike Henley, as well as other scientists and conservationists from the University of Houston, the Henry Doorly Zoo, the Rotterdam Zoo, the National Marine Fisheries Service, Counterpart International, and the Coral Restoration Foundation. The lecture is sponsored by NOAA, Counterpart International, and the Smithsonian Institution.

To view Smithsonian's National Zoological Park's web pge on zoo and Aqarium Visitor, go to:  http://www.zandavisitor.com/forumtopicdetail-3223-Smithsonian's_National_Zoo