There is an urgent need to develop a means of freezing Asian elephant semen, to enable captive breeding conservation programs to maintain genetic diversity. This study revealed important information about the proteins present in the seminal plasma of these animals and how this may contribute to the successful frozen storage of their spermatozoa. These findings will contribute to our understanding of differences in sperm quality between elephants and aid in developing sperm freezing protocols that will lead to the long-awaited birth of an Asian elephant calf from frozen spermatozoa. Photograph by Cameron Negus.

This article belongs to the Collection Dedication to Jim Cummins.