Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology Commons^™

Validation Of A Nutria (Myocastor Coypus) Environmental Dna Assay Highlights Considerations For Sampling Methodology, Anna M. Mangan, John A. Kronenberger, Ian H. Plummer

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Nutria (Myocastor coypus) is a semiaquatic rodent species that is invasive across multiple regions within the United States. Here, we evaluated a qPCR assay previously described for use in Japan for application across invasive populations in the United States. We also compared two environmental DNA sampling methodologies for this assay: field filtration of large volumes of water passed through filters versus direct sampling of small volumes of water. We validated assay specificity, generality, and sensitivity, compared assay performance between two independent laboratories, and successfully tested the assay in situ on a known wild population. The filtration method required …