Participatory forest monitoring: an assessment of the accuracy of simple cost–effective methods

International forest policies have recently increased the focus on involvement of local communities in forest monitoring and management as a strategy to improve biodiversity conservation efforts and local livelihood in developing countries. However, little is known about feasible methods, costs and accuracy of participatory monitoring schemes in developing countries. This paper examines the costs, accuracy and local reproducibility of three simple cost–effective methods for monitoring forest disturbance by local participants: (1) 20-trees method, (2) Bitterlich gauge method and (3) Disturbance Checklist transect. Using one of these methods the costs of monitoring forest habitats are only between US$ 0.04 and 0.12 ha⁻¹ annually, depending on the methods used, this is significantly cheaper than the costs of traditional scientific methods for biodiversity monitoring. Results indicate that local community members without former scientific training can collect accurate data on habitat loss and forest disturbance after only a few days of introduction to the methods, and thereby contribute with valuable information for natural resource management. The strengths and weaknesses of monitoring done, respectively, by local community members and educated biologists, respectfully, are discussed. It is suggested that these approaches should be seen as supplements to each other rather than substitutes. Finally, it is argued that monitoring schemes in developing countries can be sustained after donor funds have ceased only if the local communities play a central role and clear financially and/or socially incentives for members of the local community are incorporated.     

Participatory Resource Monitoring as a Means for Promoting Social Change in Yunnan,China

Recent international forest policies stimulate involvement of communities in forest management as a strategy to improve biodiversity conservation and the quality of local livelihoods. Increasingly, the role of local people in monitoring forest resources is also acknowledged. This paper presents a participatory resources monitoring (PRM) system developed and implemented by representatives of 12 villages, six each within and adjacent to two nature reserves in Yunnan, China. The short-term objectives are to monitor resource and wildlife abundance, resource use, wildlife damage to crops, and land use. Main methods used by the village monitoring team are: (1) observation through forest walk, (2) village interview, and (3) market survey. Monitoring is implemented throughout the year to fit in the daily work of villagers. Staff from the nature reserve or forestry bureau provide support by visiting the villages several days per year. Results indicate that participatory monitoring is a valuable tool for villagers to engage in self-owned management actions. We discuss how monitoring is also a process which could lead to social change. Based on narratives we suggest that participatory monitoring builds trust between stakeholders, changes perceptions and attitudes and leads to more democratic and transparent decision-making. In discussing accuracy, we argue that all stakeholders perceive and interpret nature differently based on different worldviews, knowledge systems, values and beliefs. We argue that if participatory monitoring is to be sustainable, community-based monitoring – preferably linked to scientific monitoring and patrolling – should be designed as a discursive institution where the process of building social capital and inter-actor learning is extremely important. Finally, we briefly reflect upon efforts to scale up participatory monitoring.     

Can Community Members Identify Tropical Tree Species for REDD+ Carbon and Biodiversity Measurements?

Biodiversity conservation is a required co-benefit of REDD+. Biodiversity monitoring is therefore needed, yet in most areas it will be constrained by limitations in the available human professional and financial resources. REDD+ programs that use forest plots for biomass monitoring may be able to take advantage of the same data for detecting changes in the tree diversity, using the richness and abundance of canopy trees as a proxy for biodiversity. If local community members are already assessing the above-ground biomass in a representative network of forest vegetation plots, it may require minimal further effort to collect data on the diversity of trees. We compare community members and trained scientists’ data on tree diversity in permanent vegetation plots in montane forest in Yunnan, China. We show that local community members here can collect tree diversity data of comparable quality to trained botanists, at one third the cost. Without access to herbaria, identification guides or the Internet, community members could provide the ethno-taxonomical names for 95% of 1071 trees in 60 vegetation plots. Moreover, we show that the community-led survey spent 89% of the expenses at village level as opposed to 23% of funds in the monitoring by botanists. In participatory REDD+ programs in areas where community members demonstrate great knowledge of forest trees, community-based collection of tree diversity data can be a cost-effective approach for obtaining tree diversity information.     

Less government intervention in biodiversity management: risks and opportunities

In a changing global environment, with increasing pressure on ecosystem goods and services, biodiversity conservation is likely to become increasingly important. However, with the current global financial crisis, governments are increasingly trying to stabilise economies through spending cuts aiming to reduce national deficits. Within such an economic climate, the devolution of governance through public participation is an intrinsically appealing concept. We outline a number of challenges that explain why increased participation in biodiversity management has been and may continue to be problematic. Using as a case study the local stakeholder-driven Moray Firth Seal Management Plan in Scotland, we identify four key conditions that were crucial to the successful participatory management of a biodiversity conflict: a local champion, the emergence of a crisis point, the involvement of decision-makers, and long-term financial and institutional support. Three of the four conditions point to the role of direct government involvement, highlighting the risk of devolving responsibility for biodiversity conflict management to local communities. We argue that without an informed debate, the move towards a more participatory approach could pose a danger to hard-won policy gains in relation to public participation, biodiversity conservation and conflict management.     

Can we make participatory NTFP monitoring work? Lessons learnt from the development of a multi-stakeholder system in Northern Laos

Monitoring natural resources is essential for their successful and sustainable management. Community participation should enable local people to take ownership of the monitoring and ensure that it is cost-effective. But even then, success is often elusive. We developed a participatory Non Timber Forest Product (NTFP) monitoring system in 6 upland villages of Luang Prabang Province, Lao PDR, using focus group discussions, interviews, village meetings and direct observations. We used simple approaches to select resources, discuss issues, and develop a cost-effective NTFP monitoring system. Communities usually relied on shifting cultivation, fishing and collection of NTFPs. Gold mining activities affected livelihoods in three villages, which had better access to markets. Participatory monitoring looks less successful when external economic pressures or a major environmental threat disturbs local livelihoods. In the case of gold mining, we observed the prioritization of villagers’ activities towards this sudden new economic opportunity. In contrast, communities not impacted by mining participated more actively in data collection. They understood how the data could be used to influence the local government, to achieve more beneficial land management for all stakeholders concerned. We believe that participatory NTFP monitoring can work and is an important tool for decision-making and economic empowerment for local communities. We identified the conditions under which participatory NTFP monitoring could work: reaching a shared understanding of what needs to be monitored and how; testing and refining a simple monitoring system; and integrating local government concerns with those of other stakeholders.     

Use of indigenous knowledge for rapidly assessing trends in biodiversity: a case study from Chiapas, Mexico

In order to evaluate the usefulness of rapid surveys of indigenous knowledge for assessing trends in biodiversity, a case study was undertaken in two rural communities, Juznajab and Muquenal, in Chiapas, Mexico. This involved the use of a variety of rapid rural appraisal (RRA) and participatory rural appraisal (PRA) techniques, including semi-structured interviews, transect walks and participatory mapping. These approaches were used in conjunction with analysis of land use maps and aerial photographs to evaluate recent changes in vegetation cover and abundance of utilised species. In both communities, the extent of forest cover was considered by local people to have declined substantially in recent decades, with an annual decline in forest cover of 0.3% and 0.6% estimated by local people in Juznajab and Muquenal, respectively. Results from RRA indicated that this has been accompanied by significant declines in the abundance of useful species. In Juznajab 60% and 79%, and in Muquenal 96% and 85% of plants and animal species, respectively, were considered to have declined within living memory. These declines appear to result from over-utilization as well as habitat changes. For example, most of the tree species used for timber and the animal species used for meat were considered to have declined substantially in both communities. These results indicate that indigenous knowledge is potentially a valuable source of information about biodiversity trends, which could be assessed during Rapid Biodiversity Assessments and incorporated into the process of resource management by local communities. However, the contradictions recorded between assessments of vegetation change by local people and data obtained from other sources indicates the need for caution in the use of indigenous knowledge for this purpose.     

Combining local ecological knowledge and quantitative forest surveys to select indicator species for forest condition monitoring in central Viet Nam

In tropical central Viet Nam, as part of a forest allocation program, forest condition should be monitored by local stakeholders. If local ecological knowledge can be integrated into the development of indicator species, then improvements in both the rigor of the indicator list and the involvement of local people in the monitoring process may occur. We used a dual methodology to derive two forest condition indicator species lists using trees, based on local ecological knowledge and quantitative forest surveys. Combining these lists allowed us to produce a final list of thirteen ‘probable’ and eight ‘possible’ indicator tree species for forest condition monitoring. Despite some possible limitations to the methodology, we encourage the use of multiple data sets when working with rural communities that are involved in the monitoring process. Local people can propose timely and appropriate measures of forest conservation and improvement, and can definitely integrate indicator species into monitoring community forests.     

Assessing the Claims of Participatory Measurement,Reporting and Verification (PMRV) in Achieving REDD+ Outcomes: A Systematic Review

Participation of local communities in the Measurement, Reporting and Verification (MRV) of forest changes has been promoted as a strategy that lowers the cost of MRV and increases their engagement with REDD+. This systematic review of literature assessed the claims of participatory MRV (PMRV) in achieving REDD+ outcomes. We identified 29 PMRV publications that consisted of 20 peer-reviewed and 9 non peer-reviewed publications, with 14 publications being empirically based studies. The evidence supporting PMRV claims was categorized into empirical finding, citation or assumption. Our analysis of the empirical studies showed that PMRV projects were conducted in 17 countries in three tropical continents and across various forest and land tenure types. Most of these projects tested the feasibility of participatory measurement or monitoring, which limited the participation of local communities to data gathering. PMRV claims of providing accurate local biomass measurements and lowering MRV cost were well-supported with empirical evidence. Claims that PMRV supports REDD+ social outcomes that affect local communities directly, such as increased environmental awareness and equity in benefit sharing, were supported with less empirical evidence than REDD+ technical outcomes. This may be due to the difficulties in measuring social outcomes and the slow progress in the development and implementation of REDD+ components outside of experimental research contexts. Although lessons from other monitoring contexts have been used to support PMRV claims, they are only applicable when the enabling conditions can be replicated in REDD+ contexts. There is a need for more empirical evidence to support PMRV claims on achieving REDD+ social outcomes, which may be addressed with more opportunities and rigorous methods for assessing REDD+ social outcomes. Integrating future PMRV studies into local REDD+ implementations may help create those opportunities, while increasing the participation of local communities as local REDD+ stakeholders. Further development and testing of participatory reporting framework are required to integrate PMRV data with the national database. Publication of empirical PMRV studies is encouraged to guide when, where and how PMRV should be implemented.     

Community-based Monitoring of Natural Resource Use and Forest Quality in Montane Forests and Miombo Woodlands of Tanzania

A community-based monitoring system that focuses on natural resource use and forest quality in montane evergreen forest and miombo woodland areas was developed and implemented in 23 villages in 2002 as part of a participatory forest management regime in Iringa District, Tanzania. The scheme was developed to suit the needs and capacities of locally-elected natural resource committees managing and monitoring natural forests. Rather than measuring biodiversity, the monitoring is focused on resource extraction and disturbance. High levels of commitment to the monitoring were displayed by village level managers, and the preliminary feed-back indicates that the monitoring scheme provides them with the relevant information needed to suggest appropriate management interventions. While external support has been essential to cover development costs, natural resource revenue generated at village level can provide most of the running costs. Once developed, the scheme can, however, be transferred to similar areas at significantly lower costs that can be met by Tanzanian District budgets. Natural resource revenue generated from montane forests is generally much lower than in woodland areas due to restrictions on resource extraction imposed as a consequence of national and international interests. Opportunities to provide economic incentives for montane forest managers through direct utilisation of the resource are limited and it remains to be seen whether other non-economic incentives can sustain long term commitment in these biodiversity rich areas. Findings indicate that the key elements of this local resource utilisation monitoring scheme are simplicity, incentive mechanisms, transparency and accountability, and autonomy for local managers. However, the methods may not provide sufficient data on changes in biodiversity values in the high value forests and may need to be augmented by conventional monitoring by scientists funded by national or international institutions. Elements of the scheme are now being institutionalised within the forestry sector in Tanzania.     

中国森林生物多样性监测: 科学基础与执行计划

中国森林生物多样性保护和恢复措施的制订依赖于生物多样性的监测信息。设计一个有效的生物多样性监测网络是一项复杂的系统工程。监测网络的设计框架可分为监测目标、监测对象、监测指标、取样策略、数据采集和处理、网络维护以及组织工作等几个部分。目前, 国际上已有5个得到广泛认可的生物多样性监测网络, 包括地球观测组织-生物多样性监测网络、全球森林监测网络、热带生态评估与监测网络、泛欧洲森林监测网络和亚马逊森林清查网络, 它们的监测目标、监测内容和方法、样地布局及部分监测成果各有特色。我们试图在全国生物多样性监测、森林资源清查和森林生态系统定位研究的基础上, 通过网络布局、建设和运行, 形成中国森林生物多样性监测网(Chinese Forest Biodiversity Monitoring Network, Sino BON-CForBio)及其监测规范体系。该网络的科学目标是, 在全国尺度上研究不同典型地带性森林的生物多样性维持机制、监测森林生物多样性变化并阐明其机理、研究生物多样性变化的效应。该网络布局以《中国植被区划》中的森林植被区划成果作为顶层设计和监测样地选择的核心依据, 设计了4个层级的监测系统; 其监测指标体系以生物多样性核心指标为主, 并结合我国传统森林群落调查方法进行拓展; 预期建成国家水平上的森林生物多样性监测网络, 阐明森林生物多样性维持机制和生物多样性变化的效应, 同时对重大生态保护工程的生物多样性保护效果进行有效性监测和验证型监测。     

Joining science and policy in capacity development for monitoring progress towards the Aichi Biodiversity Targets in the global South

In view of better linking conservation and sustainable development, it is imperative to optimize the transfer of biodiversity-related knowledge and technology from resource-rich countries to developing countries. All countries signatory to the Convention on Biological Diversity are expected to report on their progress towards achieving the Aichi Biodiversity Targets. However, weak data coverage and the technicality or even unavailability of indicators present major barriers to the monitoring of biodiversity as well as the development of adequate biodiversity policies and management plans in many countries of the global South, hence increasing the North-South knowledge and capacity gap. Capacity development in these countries may hence substantially enrich global biodiversity monitoring and policy. In this effort, ensuring that monitoring programs are realistic and sufficiently embedded in policy remains a challenge. To contribute to the mainstreaming of biodiversity into development cooperation, we developed a capacity development concept that links scientific data to policy development. To guarantee shared ownership, academic institutes and organisations or authorities with responsibilities in biodiversity policy were invited to jointly submit competitive “Monitoring, Reporting and Verification” (MRV) project applications. It appeared that especially ground truthing, economic valuation of biodiversity, and the application of modern technologies in biodiversity monitoring were missing capacities in the global South. Efforts are also required to increase the understanding and use of indicators to avoid them remaining a theoretical concept. As is observed with MRV in the carbon context, increased involvement of local communities is recommended in the global MRV framework, including techniques such as community-based Mapping, Measuring and Monitoring.     

The social fabric of citizen science—drivers for long-term engagement in the German butterfly monitoring scheme

Insect conservation needs sound information on species distribution trends. Developing this evidence relies—in practice—on long-term engagement of volunteers who observe and record species over large spatial and temporal scales. Many biodiversity monitoring schemes, including those for insects, are highly dependent on conservation-based citizen science programs with a long-term continuity. As these schemes are built entirely on good will, the nature of social relations and networks is pivotal to success. We assess the working mechanism of a monitoring scheme that is citizen-based as a case study. The German Butterfly Monitoring Scheme (hereafter TMD for “Tagfalter-Monitoring Deutschland”) operates, as many other citizen science monitoring schemes, through an overarching national network of regional subnetworks of volunteers and a central scientific coordination. Using a questionnaire survey paired with a visual social network assessment, we investigate how participants interact within these networks and assess their motivations to engage. We characterise the functionality of this social network based on mechanism of coordination and participation, flows of information and knowledge exchange among recorders, regional and central coordinators, academic scientists and institutions. By analyzing the interactions, we show how the social network facilitates and ensures various communication modes and thereby fosters long-term engagement, stability and growth of the scheme. We identify the central role of project coordination and the importance of social relations within citizen-based monitoring programs for engagement and personal satisfaction. Based on our empirical study, we derive a set of recommendations for establishing and maintaining successful volunteer networks in insect citizen-based monitoring programs.     

探讨我国森林野生动物红外相机监测规范

野生动物多样性是生物多样性监测与保护管理评价的关键指标, 因此对野生动物进行长期监测是中国森林生物多样性监测网络(CForBio)等大尺度生物多样性监测研究计划的一个重要组成部分。2011年以来, CForBio网络陆续在多个森林动态监测样地开展以红外相机来监测野生动物多样性。随着我国野生动物红外相机监测网络的初步形成, 亟待建立和执行基于红外相机技术的统一监测规范。基于3年来在我国森林动态监测样地红外相机监测的进展情况, 以及热带生态评价与监测网络针对陆生脊椎动物(兽类和鸟类)所提出的红外相机监测规范, 本文从监测规范和监测注意事项等方面探讨了我国森林野生动物红外相机监测的现状和未来。     

Urban biodiversity, city-dwellers and conservation: how does an outdoor activity day affect the human-nature relationship?

Urban conservation education programs aim to increase knowledge and awareness towards biodiversity and to change attitudes and behaviour towards the environment. However, to date, few urban conservation education studies have evaluated to what extent these programs have managed to achieve their goals. In this study, we experimentally explored the influence of an urban conservation activity day on individual knowledge, awareness and actions towards biodiversity, in both the short and longer term.We organised three activity days in Paris (France), during which people were invited to participate in urban conservation efforts. Both quantitative (questionnaire) and qualitative (interviews) methods were employed to investigate the influence of this short urban nature experience on the relationships that city-dwellers develop with nearby biodiversity. We found a strong positive correlation between the levels of participation and an immediate interest towards local urban biodiversity. In the longer term, however, although participants claimed to have gained more knowledge, local awareness and interest for species in their daily environment, they did not seem to extend this interest to participating in other related activities. These results highlight the complexity of validating the effectiveness of this type of education program for achieving conservation goals. Although such a short activity may only have a limited environmental impact, it nevertheless seems to increase people's knowledge, awareness, interest and concern. We therefore believe that when repeated locally, these short conservation education programs could enhance people's experience with nature in cities and achieve conservation goals more fully.     

日本演习林制度对中国生物多样性保护与国家公园建设的启示

演习林是日本通过农林院校管辖和运行的自然林地与人工林, 兼具科教、生物多样性保护、生态旅游与林木生产等功能。演习林的责、权、利明确, 能够实现长期、稳定的保护与利用, 与自然保护区、国家公园既有区别又相辅相成, 是日本经济协调发展与快速实现生态恢复的一个重要保障。目前, 日本约有30所高等院校拥有演习林, 演习林面积约占日本森林总面积的5‰, 其中东京大学的演习林建立最早、运行与管理机制最为完善。演习林主要有三大功能: 教学实践、科学研究、社会服务。演习林主要负责人是大学教师, 教师既参与科教也参与管理, 实现了教授治校、科教与社会服务的协调发展。当前, 我国正处于生物多样性保护的转型期和国家公园试点建设的关键阶段, 农林类高校或研究所可借鉴日本演习林制度, 主动参与到国家“绿水青山就是金山银山”的绿色发展理念和实践中; 涉及生物学与农林学科的科学工作者应积极承担当地自然保护区、森林公园、国家公园等的建设与管护。政府可以引导和吸纳有着充足研究经费、学术水平较高的农林与生物学类高校(特别是相关学科被列入“世界一流学科”建设行列的高校)在有条件的自然保护区或城市周边开辟高校直辖林地, 实现教学实践、研究与保护、社会服务等共建共存模式, 提升我国高校农林与生物学科研究水平, 促进我国生物多样性的可持续保护和国家公园的高标准建设。     

Plot size matters: Toward comparable species richness estimates across plot‐based inventories

To understand the state and trends in biodiversity beyond the scope of monitoring programs, biodiversity indicators must be comparable across inventories. Species richness (SR) is one of the most widely used biodiversity indicators. However, as SR increases with the size of the area sampled, inventories using different plot sizes are hardly comparable. This study aims at producing a methodological framework that enables SR comparisons across plot‐based inventories with differing plot sizes. We used National Forest Inventory (NFI) data from Norway, Slovakia, Spain, and Switzerland to build sample‐based rarefaction curves by randomly incrementally aggregating plots, representing the relationship between SR and sampled area. As aggregated plots can be far apart and subject to different environmental conditions, we estimated the amount of environmental heterogeneity (EH) introduced in the aggregation process. By correcting for this EH, we produced adjusted rarefaction curves mimicking the sampling of environmentally homogeneous forest stands, thus reducing the effect of plot size and enabling reliable SR comparisons between inventories. Models were built using the Conway–Maxell–Poisson distribution to account for the underdispersed SR data. Our method successfully corrected for the EH introduced during the aggregation process in all countries, with better performances in Norway and Switzerland. We further found that SR comparisons across countries based on the country‐specific NFI plot sizes are misleading, and that our approach offers an opportunity to harmonize pan‐European SR monitoring. Our method provides reliable and comparable SR estimates for inventories that use different plot sizes. Our approach can be applied to any plot‐based inventory and count data other than SR, thus allowing a more comprehensive assessment of biodiversity across various scales and ecosystems.     

Employing participatory surveys to monitor the illegal killing of elephants across diverse land uses in Laikipia–Samburu,Kenya

Levels and trends of illegal killing of elephants are measured by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) Monitoring the Illegal Killing of Elephants (MIKE) programme in sites across Africa and Asia. In the mostly unprotected Laikipia–Samburu MIKE site in northern Kenya, elephant mortality data were collected using both standard law enforcement monitoring procedures, relying on patrolling, and participatory methods involving local communities. Qualitatively, traditional patrolling techniques were more successful in protected areas whereas participatory approaches provided more information outside protected areas, where elephant were most at risk from ivory poachers. A minimum of 35% of the 389 verified carcasses during 2001–2003 were illegally killed. In this baseline study, land uses ranked from highest to lowest by the proportion of illegally killed elephants (PIKE) were community conservation areas, government trust lands, forest reserves, private ranches, settlement areas and national reserves. PIKE trends derived from traditional and participatory data sources were similar across years and indicate elephants were at greater risk in regions outside government or privately patrolled areas. We suggest that PIKE is a useful index for comparing levels and trends in illegal killing of elephants, and that carcass ratios and presence/absence of tusks are useful proxy indicators of mortality and its causes.     

Can Wide Consultation Help with Setting Priorities for Large-Scale Biodiversity Monitoring Programs?

Climate and other global change phenomena affecting biodiversity require monitoring to track ecosystem changes and guide policy and management actions. Designing a biodiversity monitoring program is a difficult task that requires making decisions that often lack consensus due to budgetary constrains. As monitoring programs require long-term investment, they also require strong and continuing support from all interested parties. As such, stakeholder consultation is key to identify priorities and make sound design decisions that have as much support as possible. Here, we present the results of a consultation conducted to serve as an aid for designing a large-scale biodiversity monitoring program for the province of Québec (Canada). The consultation took the form of a survey with 13 discrete choices involving tradeoffs in respect to design priorities and 10 demographic questions (e.g., age, profession). The survey was sent to thousands of individuals having expected interests and knowledge about biodiversity and was completed by 621 participants. Overall, consensuses were few and it appeared difficult to create a design fulfilling the priorities of the majority. Most participants wanted 1) a monitoring design covering the entire territory and focusing on natural habitats; 2) a focus on species related to ecosystem services, on threatened and on invasive species. The only demographic characteristic that was related to the type of prioritization was the declared level of knowledge in biodiversity (null to high), but even then the influence was quite small.     

Standards for biodiversity: a proposal based on biodiversity standards for forest plantations

The 1992 Convention on Biological Diversity has not only focused attention on the concept of biodiversity it has also set expectations that the signatory nations will establish objectives. It is suggested here that the use of biodiversity standards could have a useful role in quantifying these objectives. The use of biodiversity standards is explored in connection with the levels of biodiversity In plantation forests. Forest plantations have been used for the basis of this investigation because such plantations could be used as large-scale experiments in which the use of standards, and the ecological monitoring of these standards, could be researched. The impact of intensive forestry practices on wildlife has often been the cause of concern and indeed controversy. Recently there has been a move towards the development of multipurpose forest plantations where management for recreation and wildlife takes place alongside management for timber. Some forest authorities are actively looking at ways of restoring levels of biodiversity in plantation forests. We suggest that if levels of biodiversity are to be restored, then forest managers must have something to aim for; that is, there must be a standard. The adoption of standards could provide a means whereby forest managers can meet biodiversity objectives. Standards may also enable managers to determine the effectiveness of those management practices which are intended to increase levels of biodiversity. We suggest a conceptual plan which combines a monitoring procedure with biodiversity objectives.     

Improved Methods for Capture,Extraction, and Quantitative Assay of Environmental DNA from Asian Bigheaded Carp (Hypophthalmichthys spp.)

Indirect, non-invasive detection of rare aquatic macrofauna using aqueous environmental DNA (eDNA) is a relatively new approach to population and biodiversity monitoring. As such, the sensitivity of monitoring results to different methods of eDNA capture, extraction, and detection is being investigated in many ecosystems and species. One of the first and largest conservation programs with eDNA-based monitoring as a central instrument focuses on Asian bigheaded carp (Hypophthalmichthys spp.), an invasive fish spreading toward the Laurentian Great Lakes. However, the standard eDNA methods of this program have not advanced since their development in 2010. We developed new, quantitative, and more cost-effective methods and tested them against the standard protocols. In laboratory testing, our new quantitative PCR (qPCR) assay for bigheaded carp eDNA was one to two orders of magnitude more sensitive than the existing endpoint PCR assays. When applied to eDNA samples from an experimental pond containing bigheaded carp, the qPCR assay produced a detection probability of 94.8% compared to 4.2% for the endpoint PCR assays. Also, the eDNA capture and extraction method we adapted from aquatic microbiology yielded five times more bigheaded carp eDNA from the experimental pond than the standard method, at a per sample cost over forty times lower. Our new, more sensitive assay provides a quantitative tool for eDNA-based monitoring of bigheaded carp, and the higher-yielding eDNA capture and extraction method we describe can be used for eDNA-based monitoring of any aquatic species.