Words From the Field: Green Abalone Restoration Project by Get Inspired! Inc.

Due to the generous support of an LBCF Fund Holder, local nonprofit, Get Inspired, is running on schedule in their efforts to save Green Abalone from extinction.  With the Green Abalone Restoration Project, the intention is to restore green abalone along the coast of Southern California with the help of the community and while educating millions of people. Get Inspired received their broodstock collecting permit in October 2015 from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. This process was highly regulated with background checks and licensing of all the volunteers who were going to assist. Throughout the month of November they were able to find and collect 40 large adult green abalone. They did 12 dives over a period of 4 weeks on a charter dive boat to find these animals.

Taking student groups into "wild places" to experience science using all of their senses.

Unfortunately, it looks as if the animals had literally been starving. There has not been any giant kelp (their primary food source) since 2014 on most reefs where they were found. The abalone are at least 8 years old and they had no gonads! On a gonad rating scale, they were rated 0-1 out of 3. That means that they have not had enough nutrition to put energy into developing eggs and sperm. Most likely, they have not spawned for 2 years and the population just declined again. Needless to say, it was very difficult to sex the abalone so they really don’t know how many of each sex they collected yet. But they hope to find out soon.

Green Abalone Restoration Project - Get Inspired

After each collection day, Get Inspired transported the animals down to Dana Point to the Ocean Institute (a project Partner). The abalone are being fed fresh kelp every day by Ocean Institute’s staff and volunteers in the hopes of getting their gonads to develop for this year’s spawning. It is thought that abalone generally spawn twice during the summer months so they are hopeful that they can spawn twice this summer in June and August.

Up Close Look of an Abalone

In January 2016 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) hosted an abalone workshop in Long Beach. Get Inspired presented the results of their pilot study on “Outplanting Large Adult Abalone as a Restoration Technique”. Everyone who is involved in abalone (all species) research in North America and some others from around the globe presented their latest research results. This workshop was meant to keep everyone up to date on the latest techniques in order to help abalone populations that are threatened and endangered worldwide but especially our own North American abalone species. No one had ever tried outplanting large adult green abalone before and Get Inspireds' study had the greatest success of any thus far. Everyone was optimistic about their plan to grow them up for 5 years before outplanting and they found another commercial operation that is doing the same thing in South Africa. They don’t have any results yet though. 
​
In May, Get Inspired will be transporting their abalone up to a commercial farm in Goleta, California, where they will be further conditioned for spawning using a special feed, lighting, and temperature to get them ready to release eggs and sperm. They will be making a video of all of the activities to share with their supporters. 

Visiting The Cultured Abalone Farm in Goleta, CA.

In the meantime, Get Inspired is doing all they can to raise funds to make this project ready to take off on the ground this summer. If you're interested in learning how to get involved or would like to support Get Inspired, visit their website at http://www.getinspiredinc.org/aboutus.html. 

Upcoming fundraiser events include a winetasting fundraiser, KelpFest, comedy night at the Improv, cocktail mixer, and some outdoor overnight nature events. 

To learn more about becoming a Donor Advised Fund Holder with LBCF, click here.

Feature adapted from Get Inspired Founder, Nancy Caruso