Supporting Global Conservation Improves Animal Care at Home 

From Minnesota’s native mussels to red pandas in Nepal, the Minnesota Zoo’s conservation efforts span the globe, powered by an unwavering commitment to the care and protection of wildlife and the natural world. One key driver of this work is the Ulysses S. Seal grant program, an industry-leading conservation initiative funded by the Minnesota Zoo Foundation and its donors. 

Named in honor of Ulysses S. Seal, one of the Zoo’s first pioneering conservationists, this program provides funding that allows Minnesota Zoo and Foundation employees to participate in conservation programs around the world. Since its launch in 2002, the program has awarded more than $600,000 to over 250 projects across 60 countries. One recent project is helping protect one of the most biodiverse ecosystems on Earth — coral reefs.  

Minnesota Zoo Aquarist Abby Tatreau joined researchers from the University of Minnesota’s BioHeat Mass Transfer Laboratory and the CARMABI Foundation in Curaçao to advance coral cryopreservation — an emerging technique to freeze and store coral cells for future restoration. As record ocean temperatures and disease threaten reefs, this work offers hope for preserving the genetic diversity of coral species that support one in four fish species in the ocean. 

By advancing cryopreservation techniques, Abby and her collaborators are helping to secure a future for coral reefs — and equipping the Minnesota Zoo with new knowledge and best practices that will help to enhance the care of aquatic life right here at the Zoo. Through initiatives like the Ulysses S. Seal grant program, the Zoo not only contributes to groundbreaking global conservation, but also continues to elevate its own standards of research, operations, and animal care.