eDNA Survey in the Arctic with an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle

Abstract

The eDNA autonomous biosampler results from a line of research aimed at developing systems for sampling and collecting marine biological data, and for collecting environmen-tal DNA. Environmental DNA is a tool that has been increasingly used in the biological monitoring of aquatic environments, as it is a non-invasive method with very promising results when it comes to assessing biological diversity. In this sense, the automation of this method has the potential to greatly increase the temporal and spatial resolution of current biological monitoring programs in aquatic environments. The system has been developed in a partnership between research teams at the Centre for Robotics and Autonomous Systems (CRAS - INESC TEC) and CIIMAR and has been tested in multiple operational scenarios, including the Arctic, where it was attached to the AUV IRIS.