Airborne environmental DNA metabarcoding for the monitoring of terrestrial insects—A proof of concept from the field
Abstract Biodiversity is in decline due to human‐induced pressures on ecosystems around the world. To be able to counteract this alarming trend, it is paramount to closely monitor biodiversity at global scales. Because this is practically impossible with traditional methods, the last decade has seen...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2022-07-01
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| Series: | Environmental DNA |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/edn3.290 |
| _version_ | 1818472243229884416 |
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| author | Fabian Roger Hamid R. Ghanavi Natalie Danielsson Niklas Wahlberg Jakob Löndahl Lars B. Pettersson Georg K. S. Andersson Niklas Boke Olén Yann Clough |
| author_facet | Fabian Roger Hamid R. Ghanavi Natalie Danielsson Niklas Wahlberg Jakob Löndahl Lars B. Pettersson Georg K. S. Andersson Niklas Boke Olén Yann Clough |
| author_sort | Fabian Roger |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Biodiversity is in decline due to human‐induced pressures on ecosystems around the world. To be able to counteract this alarming trend, it is paramount to closely monitor biodiversity at global scales. Because this is practically impossible with traditional methods, the last decade has seen a strong push for new solutions. In aquatic ecosystems, the monitoring of species from environmental DNA (eDNA) has emerged as one of the most powerful tools at our disposal, but in terrestrial ecosystems, the power of eDNA for monitoring has so far been hampered by the local scale of the samples. In this study, we report the successful detection of insects from airborne eDNA from samples taken in the field. We compare our results to two traditional insect monitoring methods (1) light traps for moth monitoring and (2) transect walks for the monitoring of butterflies and wild bees. Airborne eDNA metabarcoding revealed DNA from six classes of arthropods, and twelve order of insects—including representatives from the four largest orders: Diptera (flies), Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths), Coleoptera (beetles), and Hymenoptera (bees, wasps, and ants). We did not detect all species observed using traditional methods and suggest further directions for the development of airborne eDNA metabarcoding. We also recovered DNA from nine species of vertebrates, including frogs, birds, and mammals as well as from 12 other phyla. Airborne eDNA has the potential to become a powerful tool for terrestrial biodiversity monitoring, with many impactful applications including the monitoring of pests, invasive, or endangered species and disease vectors. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-14T04:04:08Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c7ff1d563a2844949b811393188454e0 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2637-4943 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-14T04:04:08Z |
| publishDate | 2022-07-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Environmental DNA |
| spelling | doaj.art-c7ff1d563a2844949b811393188454e02022-12-22T02:13:26ZengWileyEnvironmental DNA2637-49432022-07-014479080710.1002/edn3.290Airborne environmental DNA metabarcoding for the monitoring of terrestrial insects—A proof of concept from the fieldFabian Roger0Hamid R. Ghanavi1Natalie Danielsson2Niklas Wahlberg3Jakob Löndahl4Lars B. Pettersson5Georg K. S. Andersson6Niklas Boke Olén7Yann Clough8Centre for Environmental and Climate Science Lund University Lund SwedenFunctional Zoology Unit Department of Biology Lund University Lund SwedenCentre for Environmental and Climate Science Lund University Lund SwedenBiodiversity Unit Department of Biology Lund University Lund SwedenDivision of Ergonomics and Aerosol Technology Faculty of Engineering Lund University Lund SwedenBiodiversity Unit Department of Biology Lund University Lund SwedenBiodiversity Unit Department of Biology Lund University Lund SwedenCentre for Environmental and Climate Science Lund University Lund SwedenCentre for Environmental and Climate Science Lund University Lund SwedenAbstract Biodiversity is in decline due to human‐induced pressures on ecosystems around the world. To be able to counteract this alarming trend, it is paramount to closely monitor biodiversity at global scales. Because this is practically impossible with traditional methods, the last decade has seen a strong push for new solutions. In aquatic ecosystems, the monitoring of species from environmental DNA (eDNA) has emerged as one of the most powerful tools at our disposal, but in terrestrial ecosystems, the power of eDNA for monitoring has so far been hampered by the local scale of the samples. In this study, we report the successful detection of insects from airborne eDNA from samples taken in the field. We compare our results to two traditional insect monitoring methods (1) light traps for moth monitoring and (2) transect walks for the monitoring of butterflies and wild bees. Airborne eDNA metabarcoding revealed DNA from six classes of arthropods, and twelve order of insects—including representatives from the four largest orders: Diptera (flies), Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths), Coleoptera (beetles), and Hymenoptera (bees, wasps, and ants). We did not detect all species observed using traditional methods and suggest further directions for the development of airborne eDNA metabarcoding. We also recovered DNA from nine species of vertebrates, including frogs, birds, and mammals as well as from 12 other phyla. Airborne eDNA has the potential to become a powerful tool for terrestrial biodiversity monitoring, with many impactful applications including the monitoring of pests, invasive, or endangered species and disease vectors.https://doi.org/10.1002/edn3.290aerosolsbiodiversityDNA barcodingenvironmental DNAInsecta |
| spellingShingle | Fabian Roger Hamid R. Ghanavi Natalie Danielsson Niklas Wahlberg Jakob Löndahl Lars B. Pettersson Georg K. S. Andersson Niklas Boke Olén Yann Clough Airborne environmental DNA metabarcoding for the monitoring of terrestrial insects—A proof of concept from the field Environmental DNA aerosols biodiversity DNA barcoding environmental DNA Insecta |
| title | Airborne environmental DNA metabarcoding for the monitoring of terrestrial insects—A proof of concept from the field |
| title_full | Airborne environmental DNA metabarcoding for the monitoring of terrestrial insects—A proof of concept from the field |
| title_fullStr | Airborne environmental DNA metabarcoding for the monitoring of terrestrial insects—A proof of concept from the field |
| title_full_unstemmed | Airborne environmental DNA metabarcoding for the monitoring of terrestrial insects—A proof of concept from the field |
| title_short | Airborne environmental DNA metabarcoding for the monitoring of terrestrial insects—A proof of concept from the field |
| title_sort | airborne environmental dna metabarcoding for the monitoring of terrestrial insects a proof of concept from the field |
| topic | aerosols biodiversity DNA barcoding environmental DNA Insecta |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/edn3.290 |
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