Harbor porpoises are one of the smallest marine mammals in the world. They are also difficult to study because they are highly mobile and don’t spend a lot of time at the surface of the water. Scientists hope genetic approaches can help them determine the number of harbor porpoise populations in Southeast Alaska. They are using environmental DNA (eDNA) to learn more about this elusive porpoise.
What is eDNA? It’s genetic material collected from environmental samples such as soil, seawater or even air rather than directly from an individual animal. For years, NOAA Fisheries scientists have had to rely on tissue samples from dead animals that have either stranded in coastal areas or been taken as bycatch in fishing nets. This is because it’s challenging to collect a sample from live animals during a research survey. But with the use of new technologies and eDNA, genetic material now can be isolated from seawater.
“It’s really hard to collect biological samples from harbor porpoise. They only break the surface of the water for an instant and then they are gone,” said researcher Kim Parsons, NOAA Fisheries affiliate at the Alaska Fisheries Science Center’s Marine Mammal Laboratory. “Environmental DNA is a rapidly advancing, reliable and less invasive approach to collect genetic information on rare, elusive or difficult to study animals like harbor porpoise.”
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Image via NOAA.