Use of eDNA to Charactarize the Finfish Population of a NJ Coastal Dredge Hole

As part of a larger ecosystem characterization of finfish usage, this study uses environmental DNA (eDNA) data to help characterize the faunal community of Dredge Hole #90 in Atlantic County. Water samples containing eDNA were collected  in the spring, summer, and autumn of 2020, filtered, and frozen for future analysis. Complete genomic DNA was extracted from these samples, which were then processed in order to perform next generation amplicon sequencing using a well-characterized region of the mitochondrial rRNA for which many local finfish species have previously been added to DNA sequence databases. DNA sequences, including those extracted from Genbank were aligned and analyzed using  Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis (MEGA-X) software. The genetic sequences of the unknown samples were compared to previously identified bony and cartilaginous fish samples to determine the species that were present in the dredged hole. MEGA-X was also used to perform phylogenetic analyses and build phylogenetic trees in order to identify fauna present at the study site. Data will be ground-truthed with results collected via traditional survey methods, and could potentially result in a less-invasive method for identifying faunal use of an ecosystem that is not dependent on invasive sampling techniques.

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