'Sperm queen' inspires plan to rescue coral population

Talk about your weird jobs. Fish physiologist Mary Hagedorn is the world’s leading collector of coral sperm. Her immaculate collection comprises around one trillion individual sperm, enough to fertilize as many as a billion eggs. Already, 80 percent of the Caribbean’s coral has disappeared and other reefs around the world are expected to follow suit as oceans continue to warm. However, despite the grim outlook, Mary believes that one day, thanks to her frozen coral sperm and eggs, we might find a way to save it. After all, in 2009 another “sperm queen,” JoGayle Howard, brought the black-footed ferret back from the brink of extinction, Mary says. “Just a few individuals can get a species going again.” [Source]