Frequent and accurate monitoring of biodiversity is key for adaptive management approaches of coastal habitats, which are critical to hundreds of thousands of Mozambicans who rely on fishing for a living.
WCS Mozambique and partners are working with NatureMetrics – UK based company established in 2014 – to build capacity for new technologies such as environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding. This molecular-based detection method offers the potential for a robust, scalable, and cost-effective alternative for the monitoring of biodiversity.
Recently, a paper evaluated the potential of using eDNA metabarcoding and community-based sampling to survey tropical and subtropical fish communities in coastal zones of Mozambique. The results showed that eDNA-metabarcoding is a very useful tool because it facilitated the detection of a large range of economically important as well as threatened fish taxa.
WCS in Mozambique is working with the Mozambican Oceanographic Institute, the National Fisheries Administration and other government organizations to improve sustainability of small-scale fisheries. This kind of tool (eDNA) can support improving national reference databases, monitoring trends, creating efficient ways to share information and report on progress.
Link for the paper: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/1755-0998.13839