This idea is pure gene-ius

Cutting-edge genetic technology will be the topic of the MidCoast Watershed Council’s next virtual Community Meeting, at 6:30 pm on Thursday, April 1.

Dr. Kellie Carim will discuss sampling using environmental DNA, which the MCWC is applying to inform conservation and management in coastal watersheds. 

DNA is the unique genetic material that is found in all organisms. Environmental DNA, or eDNA, is simply DNA that organisms slough off into their surrounding environment: water, snow, soil or even air.

Biologists can collect and analyze this eDNA to understand what animals are in a given area. For example, a glass of water collected from a stream along the Oregon Coast will contain the DNA from the organisms living upstream. Biologists now have the power to quickly identify the animals in that stream by filtering the water and analyzing the various genetics codes that are present.

Fish, frogs, mammals, mussels — all from a single glass of water.

While it may sound like magic, eDNA is becoming a common tool in aquatic research and management. In particular, this tool is exceptionally useful for finding species that are rare, elusive or invasive. 

For example, the technique has found endangered frogs, fish and marine species when other methods could not find them. In Western Oregon, it’s helping increase the understanding of lamprey, freshwater mussels and other fish and shellfish distributions. 

Carim is an aquatic research biologist with a joint position at the University of Montana and the US. Forest Service National Genomics Center for Wildlife and Fish Conservation. She received a BA in Biology from Carleton College and Ph.D. in Fish and Wildlife Biology from the University of Montana. A native Minnesotan, she has grown to love the West and its lack of mosquitoes. Her talk will focus on work with federal, state, tribal and non-profit partners to understand the presence and distribution of Pacific lamprey in the Columbia River basin and mid-coast watersheds.

For more information, go to www.midcoastwatersheds.org.