Hot Sperm, Cold Eggs, And Thieving Penguins
A gay penguin couple has achieved notoriety for stealing eggs from straight couples.
This week we had several minor assisted reproductive technology-related stories, but no court cases making headlines or major changes in the legal landscape for individuals hoping to grow their families. Sometimes no news is good news! But below I describe a few of the issues you may have seen in the media.
Where Not To Get Your Sperm. Anyone remember Zika? No, not the Latin exercise craze that your aunt was super into. That was either Zumba or, less likely, Salsa dancing. I’m talking about the mosquito-spread illness that—for the general population—mostly just results in cold-like symptoms. But it can be absolutely devastating if you are pregnant. Zika is likely responsible for thousands of babies born with microcephaly (characterized by severe brain development issues) as well as entire countries issuing recommendations that women not get pregnant for the next couple of years (which might leave an interesting gap in the population).
Unfortunately, Zika is still out there, and there’s still no cure. The latest Zika-related scare comes in the form of the Center for Disease Control’s announcement that sperm donated to sperm banks in southern Florida—specifically in Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties—may be tainted by the Zika virus. The CDC reports that the virus can lie dormant in cryopreserved sperm and, worse, there is no test yet that can detect Zika in sperm.
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There are 12 sperm banks within those three counties, and you can expect that they will be facing some tough economic times soon. Unsurprisingly, if you are looking to start a family and need the help of a sperm bank, you want to minimize the risk of experiencing the effects of Zika. For now, those turning to sperm banks should closely investigate the source of the sperm, in addition to the sperm bank’s safeguards against lying sperm donors. And if you learn that the goods are “sourced” from the blacklisted counties of Florida after June 15, 2016, use extreme caution.
It’s Still Hot To Put Your Eggs On Ice. Another celebrity has gone public about ova cryopreservation (aka egg freezing). Fox News reports, mostly by quoting Twitter, that Kaitlyn Bristowe of “Bachelorette” fame is freezing her eggs. Bristowe’s tweets follow her journey of “taking ahold of [her] future” and avoiding the stress and pressure of wanting kids, but not wanting them yet. She says that her dog is sufficient for now. Shawn Booth, Bristowe’s fiancé, whom she met on the Bachelorette, voiced his support for her on Twitter. He said that he was proud of her for strength and courage and for empowering others. And others are following suit. The article goes on to note two other Bachelorette contestants who plan to freeze their eggs.
For women who want to have a family but either don’t want one right now—perhaps because they want to focus on their career, or to wait for a partner in the future—the stigma of simply freezing one’s eggs is rapidly disappearing. That’s good news.
Important International News. In other news, it looks like the Supreme Court of Iceland will be deciding a history-making surrogacy case shortly. And Russia is considering banning surrogacy altogether. But we’ll wait to see what happens before spending more time thinking about how these changes in the law will impact the global surrogacy picture. It’s time to think about something more important: penguins.
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Gay Penguins Stealing Eggs. A gay penguin couple has recently achieved notoriety for slyly placing egg-sized rocks at the feet of penguin parents and rolling away their actual eggs. Apparently, the Spheniscidae couple longed to be parents. and, lacking the ability to conceive on their own, took to a life of crime to achieve their family-building dreams. A zookeeper at the Chinese zoo where the incident took place explained that the couple “had the natural urge to become fathers, despite their sexuality.”
I’d like to think that humans can learn a lesson from these penguins, and I don’t mean that it’s ok to steal other people’s babies. The biological drive to raise a family can be a powerful one, even for couples who can’t procreate the old-fashioned way. Humans are fortunate to have assisted reproductive technology at their fingertips. And if only penguins had adoption or surrogacy options to choose from, they too could ponder the international implications and ethics of surrogacy and carefully screen their gametes for Zika.
Ellen Trachman is the Managing Attorney of Trachman Law Center, LLC, a Denver-based law firm specializing in assisted reproductive technology law, adoption, and estate planning, and Co-Director of Colorado Surrogacy, LLC, a surrogacy matching and support agency. You can reach her at babies@abovethelaw.com.
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