Achievement

Research surveillance techniques, specifically environmental DNA (eDNA) detection tools that are used to identify and monitor invasive species, have come to the forefront in the battle to prevent Asian carp from invading the Great Lakes. The eDNA detection tools represent an exciting new frontier in species detection. GLOBES-IGERT trainee Cameron Turner and associate Matt Barnes work with an interdisciplinary team of researchers headed by GLOBES Co-PI David Lodge in collaboration with The Nature Conservancy and the Army Corps of Engineers. Their aim is to quantify the concentration of Asian carp DNA in water samples that are collected during ongoing surveillance of the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal connecting the Mississippi River system to Lake Michigan. The research seeks to refine the eDNA detection method by better understanding the dynamics and sensitivity of eDNA in a variety of natural conditions and to determine its future application to other species and ecosystems.