Tiny fragments of DNA permeate the air, soil, and water around us. This environmental DNA (eDNA) unlocks a non-invasive way to monitor biodiversity and detect species that might otherwise go unnoticed. Dr. Andrea Schreier, an adjunct associate professor in the Department of Animal Science in the College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences at UC Davis, began working with eDNA in the 2010s when its potential and limitations were first being explored. Working alongside her team in the Genomic Variation Laboratory (GVL), they are harnessing eDNA to monitor invasive species, protect sensitive ecosystems, and advance conservation efforts across California.

The Genomic Variation Laboratory, in partnership with the California Department of Water Resources (CDWR), focuses on three invasive species in the Bay Delta: Quagga (Dreissena bugensis) and Zebra (Dreissena polymorpha) mussels and the semiaquatic rodent Nutria (Myocastor coypus). Each species presents unique challenges to the Bay Delta ecosystem. The mussels clog critical water transport infrastructure, and once established, physical removal becomes a costly and ongoing task. Beyond this, they can also alter water chemistry, negatively impacting native species. Dr. Schreier points out that zebra mussels filtered so much phytoplankton in the Great Lakes that they drastically changed the water chemistry—raising concerns they could do the same in California’s Bay Delta.

Read the full story at the UC Davis Coastal and Marine Sciences Institute