Day in the Life – Cracking the code with eDNA

For the Wapusk Resource Conservation Team, no two days are ever the same, but most are a mix of science, sweat and — if you are lucky — minimal mosquito bites. A day in the life of Russell Turner, Ecosystem Scientist, also includes a little mystery.

Have you ever wondered how we figure out what’s swimming around in the lakes and rivers of Wapusk without actually seeing or catching the fish? Meet eDNA, short for Environmental DNA. These traces of DNA are nature’s trail of breadcrumbs and our secret weapon for identifying fish; no rods or reels required.

Welcome to the Wapusk Resource Conservation detective agency.

What’s with eDNA?

Every living creature, from minnows to polar bears, shed tiny bits of genetic material as they swim, eat and generally go about their daily business. We’re talking skin cells, mucus, gametes, scales and yes, even poop. Floating in the water, these microscopic genetic clues can be scooped up with an ordinary water bottle to reveal what’s lurking beneath the water through genetic analysis.

In collaboration with GEN-FISH’s (Genomic Network for Fish Identification, Stress and Health) 500 Lake Project, the team braved the elements to collect eDNA from 19 different creeks and rivers within Wapusk National Park. This work is part of our collaborative project with GEN-FISH and Dr. Margaret Docker at the University of Manitoba.

Who’s that fish?

At one of the sites along Rupert Creek this year, the team could observe hundreds of tiny unidentifiable fish swimming near the surface. While they tried to capture photos of the unknown fish, they couldn’t identify what was swimming near the surface with 100% confidence. The team is excited to learn what the eDNA will detect and see if the mysterious fish can help be identified!

eDNA is a powerful tool that helps Parks Canada make informed conservation decisions, and is not only efficient, but is also non-invasive, meaning we can track species without causing them any stress. eDNA also makes it easier to detect rare or elusive species that might slip through the cracks of traditional survey methods and allows researchers to detect species-at-risk, invasive species, and even waterborne pathogens.

Fieldwork fun

Field days are always an adventure. Picture this: Russell and the team, armed with an arsenal of water bottles, a handheld cordless drill, a peristaltic pump, donning bug jackets while trekking through the mud and willows to some of the park’s most remote creeks and rivers. There is something satisfying about getting dropped off by a helicopter into a new remote location to spend 30 minutes on the ground collecting data, knowing that the samples collected are helping to fill in the gaps of Wapusk’s aquatic finventory.

Collecting eDNA samples isn’t too complicated once you get the hang of it. The team takes a control sample from an unopened, sterile, plastic water bottle to make sure they are not accidently picking up DNA from their own lunch (note: avoid tuna sandwiches). Next up is collecting water from each site.

The water is then poured through a tiny piece of filter paper, trapping the DNA. To keep the sample safe, the filter is folded, stored with silica beads and kept in a dry, cool location before it’s prepped for shipping. Once back in Churchill, the samples are sent to the high-tech lab at the University of Manitoba for genetic analysis, revealing a snapshot of what species are or were recently present.

What’s next?

The Wapusk Resource Conservation Team is eagerly awaiting the results from this year’s samples, like anglers waiting for the big catch. With this data, they can start reeling in the answers about what species are swimming around in Wapusk’s waters. In the meantime, it’s time to plan for more fieldwork and samples next summer to help scale up their knowledge and hook more insights into these aquatic mysteries.

Until then, a day for the team may look completely different. They may find themselves visiting a fur trade-era trading post, traversing one of Wapusk’s 10,000 thermokarst lakes or corralling a gaggle of geese.