Comparison of fish detections, community diversity, and relative abundance using environmental DNA metabarcoding and traditional gears

Background Detecting species at low abundance, including aquatic invasive species (AIS), is critical for making informed management decisions. Environmental DNA (eDNA) methods have become a powerful tool for rare or cryptic species detection; however, many eDNA assays offer limited utility for community‐level analyses due to their use of species‐specific (presence/absence) ‘barcodes’. Metabarcoding methods provide information on entire communities based on sequencing of all taxon‐specific barcodes within an eDNA sample. Aims Evaluate measures of fish species detections, community diversity, and estimates of relative abundance based on eDNA metabarcoding and traditional fisheries sampling approaches in the context of fish community characterization and AIS survellience. Materials and Methods In 2016, eight limnologically diverse lakes (surface area range: 13 – 1,728 ha) in Michigan, USA were sampled using a variety of traditional fisheries gears to characterize fish commun...