Pest Alert Tool-a web-based application for flagging species of concern in metabarcoding datasets

Area of Science:

• Environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding
• High-throughput sequencing (HTS)
• Biodiversity assessment
• Invasive species detection

Background:

• High-throughput sequencing (HTS) and environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding are increasingly used for biodiversity assessments across various ecosystems.
• These technologies enable broad-scale ecological monitoring and the incidental detection of concerning organisms like non-indigenous and pathogenic species.
• Non-scientists can now participate in eDNA sampling, expanding biodiversity data collection opportunities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce the Pest Alert Tool, an online application for screening marine eDNA datasets.
• To facilitate the identification of non-indigenous, unwanted, and notifiable marine organisms in New Zealand.
• To provide a user-friendly platform for analyzing eDNA data for biosecurity purposes.

Main Methods:

• Screening of nuclear small subunit 18S ribosomal RNA and mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit I datasets.
• Utilizing an online application (Pest Alert Tool) for data analysis.
• Filtering results by minimum sequence length and identity match.
• Generating phylogenetic trees using NCBI's BLAST Tree View for verification.

Main Results:

• The Pest Alert Tool enables efficient screening of eDNA data for marine species of concern.
• The tool allows for customizable filtering of potential matches.
• Phylogenetic analysis supports the verification of detected species.

Conclusions:

• The Pest Alert Tool enhances the capacity for detecting marine invasive and notifiable species in New Zealand using eDNA data.
• This tool offers a valuable resource for biosecurity and biodiversity monitoring efforts.
• Public accessibility of the tool promotes wider application in environmental surveillance.