White abalone (Haliotis sorenseni) was the first marine invertebrate to land on the endangered species list, thanks to years of over-fishing and breeding habits that require dense populations. Researchers documented that the white abalone population was declining by about 14 percent each year. In the absence of a solution, the species would likely be doomed to extinction in the coming years.
White abalone are a free-spawning species, meaning the sperm and eggs are released into the ocean. To have a chance at fertilization, the two must come into contact. Given the shrinking number of white abalone in the wild, this is a huge challenge.Through a captive-breeding program, WHC staff at the Bodega Marine Laboratory and other partner institutions in the White Abalone Recovery Consortium have successfully spawned white abalone, monitored abalone health and genetic diversity and performed stocking studies to enhance growth and survival in the ocean. The goal of the program is to re-establish reproductive populations in the wild to bring white abalone back from the brink of extinction.
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