The first time I held a white abalone, its muscular foot pressed into my palm, its shell lifted and two googly black eyes and flexible tentacles emerged. But even more remarkable than the oddly endearing appearance of this iconic sea snail is its survival.
In the 1960s and ’70s, white abalone—prized for their tender meat and iridescent mother-of-pearl shells—were overfished almost to extinction. Today, there are more in captivity than in their home waters off the coast of Baja. But a sudden cutoff of federal funding to the keystone breeding program has put this mollusk at risk—again.
In 2001, after the loss of an estimated 99 percent of the wild population, white abalone (Haliotis sorenseni, discovered by Roy Hattori) became the first marine invertebrates listed under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. As “broadcast spawners,” abalone release eggs and sperm into the sea, relying on proximity to reproduce. With too few in the ocean, the only hope for recovery lay in captive breeding and release.
A devastating bacterial disease called withering syndrome nearly wiped out the first cohort of captive-bred animals in Southern California. In 2011, the White Abalone Captive Breeding Program relocated to the Bodega Marine Laboratory (BML), where cooler waters and invertebrate health expertise offered a safer home.
BML’s white abalone team provided what former director Dr. Kristin Aquilino describes as “spa treatments,” including beeswax and coconut oil rubdowns to smother shell-boring organisms and ample amounts of kelp and other algae to eat. The pampered abalone thrived, but early attempts at spawning produced few viable embryos.
Over years of experimentation, the researchers have tested a “love potion” of hydrogen peroxide and seawater (to help trigger spawning), light/dark schedules, fertility hormones, cryopreserved sperm, a lipid-rich diet—even an occasional Barry White serenade. More recently, they’ve used modern medical techniques, such as ultrasound imaging to assess the “ripeness” of an abalone’s gonads.
The COVID-19 lockdown temporarily stalled operations, but by 2024 the program rebounded, producing over 6.7 million fertilized eggs. To accommodate the baby boom, BML has transported millions of embryos to partnering hatcheries across California.
Their ultimate destination is the sea. Since 2019, divers have outplanted more than 17,000 juvenile white abalone — each just a bit bigger than a quarter — in their home waters. Vulnerable young abalone hide in crevices until their shells grow stronger. However, survivors have been spotted, and many more may still be in hiding.
“It’s a numbers game,” says current director Dr. Alyssa Frederick. “The more abs we get into the ocean, the better the chances that enough will eventually find each other and reproduce.” But just as progress accelerates, a new threat looms.
Without $1 million in annual funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the decades-in-the-making breeding protocols, the carefully managed broodstock and the technical expertise could vanish. A species once numbering in the millions—a mainstay of coastal ecosystems, indigenous traditions and California’s fishing legacy—might slip past the point of no return. Extinction could occur within 10 to 15 years.
You can make a difference–by becoming a Team White Abalone “spawn-sor,” spreading the word about the importance of conservation and contributing to the efforts to save this imperilled marine species. Learn more about the program at its website and Instagram page. Click here to donate.
Photo credits:Kristin Aquilino, NOAA
