This transfer project facilitated meaningful conversations, built capacity for future collaborations, and provided experiential knowledge sharing among researchers and community members through hands-on demonstrations of the utility of environmental DNA.

The Project

Sub-arctic environments are experiencing swift physical and biological changes, including freshening from increased glacier and riverine runoff and increased temperatures from both longer-term global climate change and shorter-term heat waves. Species in the northern Gulf of Alaska have demonstrated a global phenomenon of poleward movement as sub-Arctic habitats become increasingly suitable for more temperate species. Communities across this region have exhibited signs of range expansion, with some temperate species expanding into the northern Gulf of Alaska while other species in the northern Gulf of Alaska extend their ranges into colder waters. In the midst of these trends, understanding how sub-arctic regions are responding to climate change has become a key management need for decision makers in the region. Compounding these challenges, researchers, practitioners, and community organizations are spread thin over long ranges of coastline, which reinforces the need for more collaborative efforts that include novel techniques for environmental monitoring, remote sensing, and community monitoring.

This project addressed a key regional management need through a multifaceted approach that involved training graduate students and staff from KBNERR and University of Alaska Anchorage on the workflow of environmental DNA (eDNA) collection, organizing a workshop for eDNA researchers to share their work, and providing community members with opportunities for active participation in eDNA collection. The team based the community engagement phase of the project on a successful collaborative eDNA workshop held at the Heʻeia Reserve in 2022, which set a precedent for how to communicate eDNA technology to a diverse audience. As part of their efforts, the team also produced a research and engagement protocol based on processes used by the Heʻeia Reserve to promote reciprocal relationships and avoid extractive practices when engaging with community members as part of collaborative research. Overall, increased local capacity has led to multiple new partner relationships that set the stage for future research and collaborations in the region.

About Environmental DNA
Advancements in DNA methods now make it possible to identify the organisms in an area by the DNA they leave behind. Environmental DNA (eDNA) comes from feces, gametes, scales, and cells that an organism sheds, and is easily collected from water and sediment samples. eDNA has proven to be a useful tool in filling in many of the gaps of species monitoring, particularly in high-latitude, remote environments such as Kachemak Bay, where study sites can be difficult to access during winter months. Additional benefits of leveraging eDNA include its ability to identify more cryptic species than traditional monitoring methods, low cost per sample, fast turnaround times, and its non-invasive nature.

The Impact

• The research protocols developed as part of this project represent a significant step toward supporting widespread reciprocal relationship building by providing tools that will help future teams design engagement approaches that include community members.
• Workshop participation bolstered the Kachemak Bay NERR’s ability to incorporate eDNA methodology into more projects and in a variety of scenarios.
• Regional collaboration strengthened communication and knowledge sharing among scientists, community members, and practitioners in the Gulf of Alaska region.
• The partnership between Kenai Peninsula College - Kachemak Bay Campus and the KBNERR was particularly strengthened during this project. Both organizations are part of the University of Alaska Anchorage and the groundwork was laid for the potential for sharing resources.