Storing Seeds for the Future 為未來(lái)儲(chǔ)存種子

The Germplasm Bank of Wild Species （GBOWS） is a research and preservation facility? for? rare? and endanger ed? plant s? and animals . It is the largest in Asia in terms of species.

With two in five plant species at risk of extinction， it is a race against time to p r o t e c t? t h e? n a t i o n ' s incredible plant life.

So how does the bank work？ Scientists? collect endangered and useful wild species and send them to the seed bank . For future study， collectors? have to record details of the plant， including where it was found， its size and the number of individual? plants? in? the habitat.

Once the seeds arrive at GBOWS， they're dried and preserved in a room with 15 percent? humidity . Next， they're? cl e an ed? a nd separated from debris. After that， X-rays confirm that the seeds are undamaged and no insects are hidden inside. The seeds are then frozen， stored in glass bottles and placed in huge freezers at ﹣20℃ for long-term storage . Each? co n tai n er? h a s? a b a r c od e? that? can? be scanned to enable scientists to view information about the seeds inside.

中國(guó)西南野生生物種質(zhì)資源庫(kù)，是一個(gè)研究、保藏珍稀瀕危動(dòng)植物的綜合設(shè)施，也是亞洲最大的野生生物種質(zhì)資源庫(kù)。

由于五分之二的植物瀕臨滅絕，保護(hù)國(guó)內(nèi)那些珍貴的植物生命是在與時(shí)間賽跑。

那么，中國(guó)西南野生生物種質(zhì)資源庫(kù)是如何運(yùn)作的呢？科研人員采集瀕危的、有用的野生物種，并將種子送到種質(zhì)資源庫(kù)。為了將來(lái)的研究，接收種子的科研人員必須記錄這種植物的詳細(xì)信息，包括采集地點(diǎn)、種子的體積、周圍環(huán)境中單株植物的數(shù)量等。

中國(guó)西南野生生物種質(zhì)資源庫(kù)接收種子后，會(huì)對(duì)種子進(jìn)行干燥處理，并將其放置在相對(duì)濕度15%的環(huán)境中。接下來(lái)，科研人員會(huì)將種子清理干凈并將其從殘?jiān)蟹蛛x出來(lái)。那之后，還會(huì)對(duì)種子進(jìn)行X光拍照，以確保種子無(wú)損傷、無(wú)蟲(chóng)害。隨后，種子將被冷凍，儲(chǔ)存在玻璃瓶中，放置在零下20攝氏度的巨大冷庫(kù)中長(zhǎng)期保存。每個(gè)玻璃瓶都有一個(gè)條碼，科研人員可以通過(guò)掃描條形碼來(lái)查看瓶?jī)?nèi)種子的信息。

Word Study

debris /'debri?/ n. 碎片；殘?jiān)?/p>

Clear away leaves and other garden

debris from the pond.

barcode /'ba?rk??d/ n. 條形碼