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An environmental DNA assay for detecting Arctic grayling in the upper Missouri River basin, North America

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Abstract

The upper Missouri River basin in the northwestern US contains disjunct Arctic grayling (Thymallus arcticus) populations of conservation concern. To assist efforts aimed at understanding Artic grayling distribution, we developed a quantitative PCR assay to detect the presence of Arctic grayling DNA in environmental samples. The assay amplified low concentrations of Arctic grayling DNA consistently, and did not amplify non-target species, including sympatric salmonid fishes.

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Acknowledgments

This work was funded by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. We would like to thank James Boyd for his support in assay development. We would also like to thank all of our collaborators who have provided the tissues used in assay development. In particular, we thank Robb Leary and Sally Painter with Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks for sharing information and genetic material from local Arctic grayling populations.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, National Genomics Center for Wildlife and Fish Conservation, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Missoula, MT, USA

    K. J. Carim, J. C. S. Dysthe, M. K. Young, K. S. McKelvey & M. K. Schwartz

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  1. K. J. Carim
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  2. J. C. S. Dysthe
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  3. M. K. Young
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  4. K. S. McKelvey
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  5. M. K. Schwartz
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to K. J. Carim.

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Carim, K.J., Dysthe, J.C.S., Young, M.K. et al. An environmental DNA assay for detecting Arctic grayling in the upper Missouri River basin, North America. Conservation Genet Resour 8, 197–199 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12686-016-0531-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12686-016-0531-1

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