OUR MISSION:
Raise funds to support our research into
male elephant reproduction to:
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Investigate basic male elephant sperm physiology and function
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Investigate alternatives and improvements to cryopreserving male elephant
spermatozoa to increase genetic diversity and ship semen worldwide
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Increase global awareness of the mass
extinction event currently taking place through our research and education efforts
Of
funds raised,
90% will directly fund our research, and 10% will be contributed to supporting
elephant conservation centers in Florida.
All money raised above our goal will go directly into a fund to support elephant conservation research. Our mission is to help save elephants from Extinction!
WHY SAVE ELEPHANTS?
Are you aware that many scientists claim that we are now living in the midst of the Earth's 6th Mass Extinction? In fact, species loss rates are said to be faster today than the last (5th) mass extinction which happened 65 million years ago when T. Rex went extinct. A species we all love and appreciate is the largest land mammal, the elephant. Some scientists claim they may be completely extinct in the wild in the next decade. In fact, recent census data of African elephants has shown a devastatingly smaller populations of elephants in the wild than previously thought.
STATUS OF ELEPHANTS
- Poachers have killed over 100,000 elephants in the last 3 years
-
Habitat loss and human conflict have decreased Asian elephant numbers by 50% over the last three generations and are still in decline today
- Over the last 100 years African elephant populations have gone from 10 million to 350,000 and Asian elephant populations have gone from 100,000 to 35,000-50,000 (WWF)
- Approximately one elephant is killed every 15 minutes for nothing more than their tusks
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To learn more about the global conservation statue of plant and animal species go to the International Union for Conservation of Nature
website
and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF)
website.
We NEED to help elephants. At current poaching and habitat loss rates, within our lifetime the fate of African and Asian elephants will be that of the Northern White Rhinoceros, which only have 3 living individuals left in the world.
Critical Role of Conservation and Zoos:
In a perfect world, elephants would live peacefully in the wild in Asia and Africa. There would be no deforestation, or habitat loss, no poachers or diseases transmitted by humans and livestock. Unfortunately, we do not live in that perfect world, and neither do elephants. Latest reports indicate there is only 23% of wilderness left on Earth to support wildlife.
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Zoos, conservation centers and research programs serve as critical roles in saving many species and need help in doing more for elephants. These programs house emergency populations of many species and in many instances, such as the Przewalski's Horse, Black-footed Ferret, California Condor and other species, have been saved due to their efforts. More importantly, many of these species have been reintroduced into their wild habitats by these same organizations.
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For more information on zoos and conservation centers and how they are important to the survival of many species please either visit the links noted above and read each animals story. or read this article on species saved due to zoo conservation efforts. Without your support efforts such as these would not be possible.
Who we are what we are doing to save elephants:
We are faculty and graduate students at the University of Florida, located in Gainesville, FL.
Danielle Arnold - Did her Master's Thesis at the University of Guelph in Canada studying "Successful Cryopreservation of Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) semen using simple techniques" and is now continuing her research in elephant sperm cryopreservation and basic sperm biology during her PhD at the University of Florida.
Dr. Chris Mortensen - Faculty member in the Department of Animal Sciences at the University of Florida. His research into reproductive function of horses has led to his current work into endangered species. He firmly believes domestic species such as horses are often excellent models to learn techniques such as semen preservation, or artificial insemination, which can in turn be used for endangered species.
Kylee Bush - Master's thesis student at the University of Florida, analyzing the composition and basic parameters of semen seminal plasma from various species, including elephants.
Angie Adkin - PhD student at the University of Florida, working on research addressing phytoestrogens in the diets of horses and white rhinos in order to help solve reproductive issues in captive white rhinos. Will also be playing a large role in assisting with the elephant sample analysis in our lab.
How our project will help to save elephants:
"Ex-situ" conservation projects like ours take place outside of the animals' natural habitats (in zoos and conservation centers) and involve international captive breeding programs to maintain a sustainable captive population and ensure we maintain genetic variation.
ART - Artificial Reproduction Techniques such as semen cryopreservation and artificial insemination can be used to save endangered species, however we still have a lot to learn when it comes to using these techniques with elephants.
Therefore our study:
- Will look at the basic biology and lipid profiles of elephant spermatozoa to better understand sub-fertile and non-fertile bull elephant semen samples
- Improve cryopreservation process of elephant spermatozoa to increase genetic diversity and increase elephant populations worldwide
- This will benefit the survival of elephants and our students' development as conservation scientists
- Future research will look at possible dietary supplements for bull elephants to increase spermatozoa motility and fertility
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Our lab has developed relationships with conservation groups both within the state of Florida and from around the world to investigate reproductive function in elephants. We are committed to blending science and education and to speak out on how we as scientists are tackling many issues.
Why we need your help and where your money will go:
Traditional funding sources for scientists are more focused on basic research, and rarely if ever fund "conservation" efforts. Funding from conservation agencies is strained and right now many scientists are debating on which species should take priority in saving, while letting others go extinct. Therefore, there is very little money to fund research into the conservation of many species.
- Your money is important to us to help us get our project off the ground and running.
- 10% of funds will go directly to elephant conservation
- 70% will help pay for our investigations to develop more effective protocols for preserving elephant semen and increasing the survival of our elephants.
- 20% of the funds will go to send PhD student Danielle Arnold to South Africa to work with world renown sperm physiologists to learn more sperm techniques to enhance this research project and for collection/assessment of samples. Finally, this travel will be critical in aiding further collaboration for future elephant research.
- Any funds raised above our stated goal will go directly to further studies into elephant conservation such as elephant behavior in captivity, dietary manipulation to optimize elephant fertility, evaluation of outreach programs to raise awareness of the plight of the elephant and many other species.
- The data generated from this study will aid global conservation efforts in unlocking some of the mysteries of the bull elephant
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Perks for you!
To show our appreciation for your support, we have some elephantastic gifts for you!
All donations > $25 will receive a photo of our team and a personalized thank you letter from the team! Other perks include team shirts with our logo, footprint canvases painted by a very special bull elephant named Luke, along with other paintings.
Sample T-Shirt:
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Bumper Stickers:
Sticker #1 (10"x3")
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Sticker #2 (3"X 3")
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We will update the projects progress through our social media accounts (Twitter: @UFwilddiscovery, Facebook: Wild Discoveries) and our
website.