eDNA metabarcoding bioassessment of endangered fairy shrimp (Branchinecta spp.) - Part A

Fairy shrimp are integral components of vernal pool ecosystems, providing key food resources for migratory birds and amphibians. However, habitat degradation and land use change severely threaten the health of both vernal pools and the survival of fairy shrimp species. Branchinecta sandiegonensis has been particularly affected by urban and agricultural development in its small native range within San Diego County, California, USA. It is listed as an endangered species under both state and federal laws and is actively managed for its conservation. However, despite its legal protections, current methods of population assessment require the capture and sacrifice of individuals of B. sandiegonensis  in order to identify specimens to species level through microscopy. Furthermore, accurate species-level identification is especially important given overlap of B. sandiegonensis with a common (non-threatened) sister species, B. lindahli. Thus non-invasive methods to definitively distinguish thes...