Environmental DNA provides early detection of invasive crayfish

Every plant and animal has a unique genetic composition, which makes a lake like a bowl of DNA soup -- every spoonful contains the combined DNA of the lake`s inhabitants. Scientists have only recently begun using this environmental DNA, or eDNA, to identify the presence of organisms like amphibians and fish. A U of I researcher and his colleagues analyzed eDNA to successfully detect the presence of the highly invasive rusty crayfish in a dozen Wisconsin lakes. Using eDNA to monitor hard to detect species can provide early warnings of newly arrived invasive species.