Using eDNA to identify fish communities is cheaper and less harmful to the environment than traditional sampling methods. Environmental DNA techniques have been deployed to search for traces of coronavirus in sewage, including a special deployment to Papatoetoe​ in Auckland, site of the most recent community outbreak of Covid-19. It’s the most public example of fairly new techniques that are remaking marine biology in New Zealand and around the world. The point was to trial three different eDNA techniques to see which detected best, Kelly said in an interview. eDNA techniques have been used in New Zealand in an increasingly wide range of projects.

Source: Stuff February 21, 2021 16:01 UTC