Gaute Kjærstad, Z A Danial Hariz, Andrea Desiderato, Sonja Leidenberger, Dario A Lijtmaer, Markus Majaneva, Torbjørn Ekrem, Kenny Meganck, Izabela S. Mendes, Benjamin W. Price, Molly Victoria Czachur, Lucas Sire, Daniel Marquina, Lasse Topstad, Zuzana Čiamporová-Zaťovičová, Vladislav Ivanov, Mark I. Stevens, Fedor Čiampor, Xiao-Long Lin, Kristy Deiner, Kamil Hupało, Université de Tours, Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales ‘Bernardino Rivadavia' [Buenos Aires] (MACN), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas [Buenos Aires] (CONICET), Slovak Academy of Sciences (SAS), Université de Tours (UT), Hupało, Kamil, Majaneva, Markus, Czachur, Molly Victoria, Sire, Lucas, Stevens, Mark, and Deiner, Kristy
As global biodiversity declines, there is an increasing need to create an educated and engaged society. Having people of all ages participate in measuring biodiversity where they live helps to create awareness. Recently, the use of environmental DNA (eDNA) for biodiversity surveys has gained momentum. Here, we explore whether sampling eDNA and sequencing it can be used as a means of rapidly surveying urban biodiversity for educational purposes. We sampled 2 × 1 L of water from each of 15 locations in the city of Trondheim, Norway, including a variety of freshwater, marine, and brackish habitats. DNA was extracted, amplified in triplicate targeting the barcoding fragment of COI gene, and sequenced. The obtained data were analyzed on the novel mBRAVE platform, an online open-access software and computing resource. The water samples were collected in 2 days by two people, and the laboratory analysis was completed in 5 days by one person. Overall, we detected the presence of 506 BINs identified as belonging to 435 taxa, representing at least 265 putative species. On average, only 5.4% of the taxa were shared among six replicates per site. Based on the observed diversity, three distinct clusters were detected and related to the geographic distribution of sites. There were some taxa shared between the habitats, with a substantial presence of terrestrial biota. Here we propose a new form of BioBlitz, where with noninvasive sampling effort combined with swift processing and straightforward online analyses, hundreds of species can be detected. Thus, using eDNA analysis of water is useful for rapid biodiversity surveys and valuable for educational purposes. We show that rapid eDNA surveys, combined with openly available services and software, can be used as an educational tool to raise awareness about the importance of biodiversity. Fil: Hupalo, Kamil. Universitat Essen; Alemania Fil: Majaneva, Markus. Norwegian Institute For Nature Research.; Noruega Fil: Czachur, Molly Victoria. STELLENBOSCH UNIVERSITY (SUN); Fil: Sire, Lucas. Universite de Tours; Francia Fil: Marquina, Daniel. Stockholms Universitet; Suecia Fil: Lijtmaer, Dario Alejandro. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia"; Argentina Fil: Ivanov, Vladislav. University of Oulu; Finlandia Fil: Leidenberger, Sonja. University of Skövde; Suecia Fil: Čiampor, Fedor Jr. Slovak Academy of Sciences; Eslovaquia Fil: Čiamporová-Zaťovičová, Zuzana. Slovak Academy of Sciences; Eslovaquia Fil: Mendes, Izabela S.. Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais; Brasil Fil: Desiderato, Andrea. Universidade Federal do Paraná; Brasil Fil: Topstad, Lasse. Norwegian University of Science and Technology; Noruega Fil: Meganck, Kenny. Royal Museum for Central Africa; Bélgica Fil: Hariz Z. A., Danial. Universiti Sains Malaysia; Malasia Fil: Kjærstad, Gaute. Norwegian University of Science and Technology; Noruega Fil: Lin, Xiao Long. Nankai University; China Fil: Price, Benjamin. Natural History Museum; Reino Unido Fil: Stevens, Mark. South Australian Museum; Australia. University of South Australia; Australia Fil: Ekrem, Torbjørn. Norwegian University of Science and Technology; Noruega Fil: Deiner, Kristy. Natural History Museum; Reino Unido