Isaac Di Natale1,2,3, Kevin Rowe2, Karen Rowe2, Mick McCarthy3
1EnviroDNA, Melbourne, Australia, 2Museums Victoria, Melbourne, Australia, 3University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
Biography:
Isaac is a wetland ecologist specialising in avian assemblages and threatened species monitoring. Driven by a fascination with uncovering Australia’s most elusive and rare wetland species, he is passionate about translating eDNA monitoring approaches into practical conservation outcomes.At EnviroDNA, Isaac brings his expertise in end-to-end eDNA project design spanning fieldwork and molecular genetics to inform best practice survey protocols.Prior to joining EnviroDNA, Isaac completed a Bachelor of Wildlife and Conservation Biology and a Masters of Bioscience (Research) where his project focussed on optimising eDNA field and laboratory detection methods for the critically endangered Australasian Bittern. He also has extensive experience in habitat restoration including revegetation, biodiversity surveys and ecological burning practices. Outside of work Isaac is an avid ‘birder,’ regularly taking recreational field trips to complete checklists and track endangered species. He also has a background as a professional contemporary dancer and still enjoys a dance from time to time.
Abstract:
Monitoring threatened species is integral to conservation efforts, but visual and acoustic survey methods often fail to detect cryptic and rare taxa. Complementary methods like eDNA can mitigate these limitations.
We designed and optimised an eDNA workflow to detect a targeted threatened species, the Australasian Bittern (Botaurus poiciloptilus), alongside other wetland vertebrates. Water samples were collected from ten wetlands across Victoria during the 2024/2025 Summer breeding season, targeting sites of known historic Australasian Bittern presence. We refined filtration and laboratory protocols and tested four mitochondrial barcode regions.
eDNA surveys identified 13% of vertebrates historically recorded within sampled wetlands to the species rank. Additionally, we successfully detected the Australasian Bittern with eDNA at 50% of surveyed sites, providing valuable statewide occurrence data for the species. This was supplemented with vertebrate occurrence inventories, informing the ecological context of Australasian Bittern presence/absence and establishing biodiversity baselines for sampled wetlands. A benefit/cost analysis against acoustic monitoring indicated multi-marker eDNA metabarcoding was the most cost-effective survey method to detect the Australasian Bittern. Our research offers a complementary detection method to traditional Australasian Bittern survey techniques. The developed protocols support future application to monitor other high-priority wetland species and faunal communities using this eDNA approach.