Coral eDNA Research of Miyako Island, Japan

Coral reefs have the highest biodiversity of any ecosystems in tropical and subtropical oceans. However, scleractinian corals, keystone organisms of reef productivity are facing a crisis due to climate change and anthropogenic activities. A broad survey of reef-building corals is essential for world-wide reef preservation, but conventional direct observation through diving by coral specialists cannot meet this demand. We here carried out an environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding survey on corals at reefs around Miyako Island, Japan. We identified nearly 60 genera by sampling 1 L of surface seawater above reefs. This provides basic knowledge for the future conservation of coral reefs at Miyako.