Innovating aquatic biodiversity monitoring – DNAquaIMG

Biodiversity change in Europe is becoming increasingly noceable, therefore, the research project "DNAquaIMG: Innovave transnaonal aquac biodiversity monitoring" explores a new perspecve: the interdisciplinary project aims to understand and communicate the far- reaching biodiversity change in Europe in all its complexity. The project is led by Prof. Dr. Florian Leese (University of Duisburg-Essen) and includes an internaonal consorum of 14 partners from eleven European countries. The researchers will contribute their experse in the development and implementaon of high-throughput molecular and automated image recognion methods for biodiversity monitoring in European rivers. The combinaon of the two complementary approaches oers advantages for biodiversity assessment in the context of ecosystem degradaon and restoraon. Similar to DNA ngerprinng in forensics, genec methods enable accurate detecon and descripon of biodiversity, even for microscopic organisms. In contrast, image-based methods can provide reliable data on species abundance, size structure and biomass of organisms. Together, the approaches enable to signicantly expand the informaon from the data on biodiversity from environmental samples. Currently, water bodies in Europe are assessed using organisms that have oen not been idened to species level. This allows to monitor ecological status of water bodies in a specic region, but is not sucient for a detailed biodiversity monitoring. In order to ulise the above-menoned new methods for European biodiversity monitoring, DNAquaIMG will evaluate their implementaon in the exisng and proven monitoring of water bodies within the framework of the European Water Framework Direcve (EC/2000/60, WFD). In the context of WFD it will be invesgated how changes in the genec diversity of idened communies are related to the funconal diversity and ecological status classes of watercourses. Samples of aquac invertebrates and diatoms, two key indicator groups under the WFD, originang from eight countries will be determined to species level. It will be analysed whether, for example, improvements in the ecological status classes through river restoraon also result in an increase in biodiversity. Based on the project results, the sciensts plan to develop a strategy for improved transnaonal monitoring of biodiversity and ecosystem change in order to support the implementaon of the European Green Deal and the European Biodiversity Strategy.