Dr Cecilia Villacorta-Rath1, Dr Alejandro Trujillo-González2, Ass Prof Lori Lach3, Dr Natalia Andrade Rodriguez1, Prof Damien Burrows1, Prof Dianne Gleeson2
1Centre for Tropical Water and Aquatic Ecosystem Research (TropWATER), James Cook University, Townsville, Australia, 2Institute for Applied Ecology, EcoDNA group, University of Canberra, Canberra, Australia, 3James Cook University, Nguma-bada campus, Cairns, Australia
The yellow crazy ant, Anoplolepis gracilipes, is a highly invasive species that disrupts natural environments, affect the horticulture industry, and causes skin and eye irritations. All activities to reduce the impact of this pest (e.g., prevention of additional incursions, containment or eradication of existing infestations) require the ability to detect it, often at large scales or in low densities. We tested the suitability of environmental DNA detection methods to better enable land managers and biosecurity officers to detect the presence of A. gracilipes. We developed two novel species-specific probe-based assays targeting separate regions in the Cytochrome oxidase 1 gene region of A. gracilipes (Agra1= 112 bp and Agra2=131 bp). Soil and water samples were collected from areas with known A. gracilipes infestations in Townsville, Queensland, and eDNA was extracted using field and laboratory-based protocols. We successfully extracted and amplified A. gracilipes eDNA from both soil and water samples. Although both assays successfully detected A. gracilipes eDNA from soil and water samples, assay Agra1 had higher amplification efficiency (81.05 %) compared to Agra2 (66.6%). Assay Agra1 was better suited to detect the target template in soil samples (positive detection=14-64%), while Agra2 showed higher detection in water samples (positive detection=50-100%). Testing of soil samples also revealed that incorporating the ant’s ecology into selecting the location from which to collect soil is key to avoiding false negatives, as the species may establish temporary refugia. We present preliminary results that will be updated for the purpose of this conference with an updated abstract.
Biography:
Biographies to come