Extinction-climate crisis news is bad, but hope is not lost. Let’s celebrate 1 big environmental win: Global Animal DNA Vault dubbed “The Frozen Ark”!
WHAT IS “THE FROZEN ARK”?
🧬 Collects and stores (“biobanks”) genetic material of endangered animal species, to preserve them and re-inject diversity or resurrect them if they go extinct (“de-extinction”). It’s like the Global Seed Vault, but for animals!
🎗️ UK-based charity operating as global consortium with other biobanks (“Frozen Ark Consortium”), storing total 48,000 samples.
🧊 Biobanks are frozen collections (“cryobanks” or “frozen zoos”), which are expensive, energy-intensive, and vulnerable to power outages. Alternative storage methods are lava tubes on the moon (“Lunar Ark”) or bio-inspired options taking lessons from the small-yet-mighty Tardigrade.
WHY SHOULD YOU CARE?
🐾 We are racing against time because our Planet is in midst of the human-caused 6th Mass Extinction!
🦁 Samples must be collected from live animals and stored proactively, before animal populations crash. Why? To successfully re-introduce an extinct species, 50-500 samples are needed. Dead sampling from long-extinct species (e.g., Mammoth) can be done, but genetic material is usually damaged.
🙌 Biobanking works! Successes include re-introduction of the Black-Footed Ferret, listed as “extinct in the wild” in 1996.
HOW CAN YOU HELP?
🗣️ Talk about the extinction-climate crisis and Frozen Ark, to raise awareness of endangered species and their conservation.
WHAT IS “THE FROZEN ARK”?
🧬 Collects and stores (“biobanks”) genetic material of endangered animal species, to preserve them and re-inject diversity or resurrect them if they go extinct (“de-extinction”). It’s like the Global Seed Vault, but for animals!
🎗️ UK-based charity operating as global consortium with other biobanks (“Frozen Ark Consortium”), storing total 48,000 samples.
🧊 Biobanks are frozen collections (“cryobanks” or “frozen zoos”), which are expensive, energy-intensive, and vulnerable to power outages. Alternative storage methods are lava tubes on the moon (“Lunar Ark”) or bio-inspired options taking lessons from the small-yet-mighty Tardigrade.
WHY SHOULD YOU CARE?
🐾 We are racing against time because our Planet is in midst of the human-caused 6th Mass Extinction!
🦁 Samples must be collected from live animals and stored proactively, before animal populations crash. Why? To successfully re-introduce an extinct species, 50-500 samples are needed. Dead sampling from long-extinct species (e.g., Mammoth) can be done, but genetic material is usually damaged.
🙌 Biobanking works! Successes include re-introduction of the Black-Footed Ferret, listed as “extinct in the wild” in 1996.
HOW CAN YOU HELP?
🗣️ Talk about the extinction-climate crisis and Frozen Ark, to raise awareness of endangered species and their conservation.