Using Environmental DNA to Monitor the Reintroduction Success of the Rhine Sculpin (Cottus rhenanus) in a Restored Stream

GND
1231311886
Zugehörige Organisation
Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph
Hempel, Christopher A.;
GND
1114828092
LSF
58463
Peinert, Bianca;
GND
1155182391
ORCID
0000-0003-0403-0322
LSF
58023
Zugehörige Organisation
Centre for Water and Environmental Research, University of Duisburg-Essen
Beermann, Arne J.;
GND
1037317831
ORCID
0000-0003-4672-7099
LSF
58024
Zugehörige Organisation
Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph
Elbrecht, Vasco; Macher, Jan-Niklas; Macher, Till-Hendrik; Jacobs, Gunnar;
GND
136054838
ORCID
0000-0002-5465-913X
LSF
57731
Zugehörige Organisation
Centre for Water and Environmental Research, University of Duisburg-Essen
Leese, Florian

Freshwaters face some of the highest rates of species loss, caused by strong human impact. To decrease or even revert this strong impact, ecological restorations are increasingly applied to restore and maintain the natural ecological status of freshwaters. Their ecological status can be determined by assessing the presence of indicator species (e.g., certain fish species), which is called biomonitoring. However, traditional biomonitoring of fish, such as electrofishing, is often challenging and invasive. To augment traditional biomonitoring of fish, the analysis of environmental DNA (eDNA) has recently been proposed as an alternative, sensitive approach. The present study employed this modern approach to monitor the Rhine sculpin (Cottus rhenanus), a fish species that has been reintroduced into a recently restored stream within the Emscher catchment in Germany, in order to validate the success of the applied restorations and to monitor the species’ dispersal. We monitored the dispersal of the Rhine sculpin using replicated 12S end-point nested PCR eDNA surveillance at a fine spatial and temporal scale. In that way, we investigated if eDNA analysis can be applied for freshwater assessments. We also performed traditional electrofishing in one instance to validate our eDNA-based approach. We could track the dispersal of the Rhine sculpin and showed a higher dispersal potential of the species than we assumed. eDNA detection indicated the species’ dispersal across a potential dispersal barrier and showed a steep increase of positive detections once the reintroduced population had established. In contrast to that, false negative eDNA results occurred at early reintroduction stages. Our results show that eDNA detection can be used to confirm and monitor reintroductions and to contribute to the assessment and modeling of the ecological status of streams.

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Copyright © 2020 Hempel, Peinert, Beermann, Elbrecht, Macher, Macher, Jacobs and Leese.

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