Sucked in by eDNA – a promising tool for complementing riverine assessment of freshwater fish communities in Aotearoa New Zealand

David, Bruno; Fake, Daniel R.; Hicks, Andy S.; Wilkinson, Shaun P.; Bunce, Michael; Smith, Josh S; West, David W.; Collins, Katie; Gleeson, Dianne

doi:10.1080/03014223.2021.1905672

Cited by 14 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 58 publications

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“…In remote locations or when transporting samples, cold storage can be challenging, and since filter membranes are thin, they are likely to be more prone to thawing with small temperature fluctuations compared to large water samples, which take hours to defrost. Therefore, placing filter membranes in preservation buffers such as Longmires (Spens et al., 2017; Williams et al., 2016), ATL (Majaneva et al., 2018), or DNA/RNA Shield (David et al., 2021) is likely to be necessary to preserve the low copy number eDNA on the passive samples from subterranean environments. Further, during the DNA extraction phase, multiple filters can be combined to improve DNA yield (Hunter et al., 2019).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rapid detection of subterranean fauna from passive sampling of groundwater eDNA

van der Heyde,

Alexander,

Nevill

et al. 2023

Environmental DNA

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Groundwater is an essential source of freshwater that supports surface ecosystems as well as organisms adapted to living underground. The impacts of anthropogenic climate change, extraction, and pollution pose major threats to groundwater ecosystem health, prompting a need for efficient and reliable means to detect and monitor subterranean faunal communities. Conventional survey of subterranean fauna relies on the collection of organisms for morphological identification, which can be biased, labor intensive, and often indeterminate at lower taxonomic levels. Environmental DNA (eDNA)‐based methods can dramatically improve on stygofaunal surveys, but currently rely on time consuming active water filtration that limits the number of samples that can be processed. Passive eDNA sampling, which involves submersion of absorbent material (e.g. filter membrane, sponge etc.) into the sampled environment for a fixed period, has shown promise as a viable alternative to active filtration in aquatic ecosystems and may be applicable to groundwater systems. Here, we compared groundwater eDNA collected from active pump filtered water samples, membranes submerged in water for 10 min and 24 h, and haul‐net samples morphologically identified from bores at two geographically distinct locations in Western Australia. Our results show that while the relative abundance of eDNA in groundwater (measured through qPCR) is 100–800 times lower in passive samples, the species richness detected is comparable between passive and active eDNA collection. Additionally, standard metabarcoding assays (18S and COI) of passive eDNA samples detected most subterranean orders identified morphologically (12/17), and this proportion may be improved with increased sampling and application of DNA extraction methods that increase DNA yield. Our findings demonstrate that passive eDNA sample collection is a non‐invasive survey method with the potential to improve the efficiency and replication level of stygofaunal surveys but will benefit from further development.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rapid detection of subterranean fauna from passive sampling of groundwater eDNA

van der Heyde,

Alexander,

Nevill

et al. 2023

Environmental DNA

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“…These studies would likely require a different survey method since wading electrofishing at night can be hazardous. Environmental DNA metabarcoding surveys could detect more species, but detailed studies of tributary mouth biodiversity may be obfuscated by DNA contamination from upstream sections ( David et al 2021 ). Nevertheless, eDNA metabarcoding may give insights into short-term changes in species presence.…”

Section: Caveats and Future Research Requirementsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fish biodiversity in different types of tributary mouths located within impounded sections of Swedish boreal rivers

Näslund

Bowes

Sandin

et al. 2023

Ecohydrology & Hydrobiology

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“…We advocate that local and central government, including the EPA, signal more clearly a shift towards the uptake of this new generation of biomonitoring tools. The eDNA ball is starting to roll, albeit slowly: recent eDNA pilots led by Waikato and Hawke's Bay regional councils to explore the utility of eDNA as a fish monitoring tool (compared with electrofishing) have been successful (David et al, 2021) and prompted a nationwide pilot at around 45 sites across New Zealand. Likewise, an eDNA 'barometer' has been approved for use in aquaculture environmental monitoring after years of benchmarking by Cawthron (Pochon at al., 2020).…”

Section: Getting the Edna Ball Rolling: How Best To Communicate The E...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Looking Further and Deeper into Environmental Protection, Regulation and Policy Using Environmental DNA (eDNA)

Bunce

Freeth²

2022

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DNA sequencing technologies are transforming how environments are monitored. In this article, we pose the question: is environmental DNA (eDNA) the tool that Aotearoa New Zealand needs, but does not yet realise it does? The step change with eDNA is that genetic ‘breadcrumbs’ left behind in the environment can identify every living thing, from microbes to mammals, thus providing a more nuanced and holistic lens on ecosystems. Using eDNA, we can explore the biological networks that underpin healthy environments. Here we explore whether changes in policy setting, guidance, or pathways for uptake of eDNA are needed. Can eDNA help us make better decisions, inform policy and protections, track restoration, and act as a deterrent to reduce environmental harm?

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Sucked in by eDNA – a promising tool for complementing riverine assessment of freshwater fish communities in Aotearoa New Zealand

Cited by 14 publications

References 58 publications

Rapid detection of subterranean fauna from passive sampling of groundwater eDNA

Rapid detection of subterranean fauna from passive sampling of groundwater eDNA

Fish biodiversity in different types of tributary mouths located within impounded sections of Swedish boreal rivers

Looking Further and Deeper into Environmental Protection, Regulation and Policy Using Environmental DNA (eDNA)

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