Depth-dependent eDNA abundances across ecosystems inform deep-sea sampling strategies
- 1Lehigh University
Abstract
Environmental DNA (eDNA) surveys are increasingly used to assess marine biodiversity and inform deep-sea environmental decision-making, including mineral resource management and fisheries oversight. Yet standard low-volume protocols inherited from coastal work may be inadequate at depth, and recent findings indicate that depth- and productivity-aware sampling, often requiring high-volume in situ filtration, is needed, but no quantitative framework links depth and ecosystem context to defensible filtration volume targets. We compiled 841 eDNA samples from eight expeditions across the North Atlantic, Wider Caribbean, and Pacific (surface to 4000 m) to quantify how recoverable eDNA scales with depth and surface productivity, and to derive depth- and productivity-aware sampling targets. Total eDNA concentration declined with depth as a power law, with attenuation exponents (b) modulated by surface productivity: most gradual in eutrophic waters (b = 0.67), intermediate in mesotrophic (b = 0.90), and steepest in oligotrophic systems (b = 1.25); volume-weighted models explained 66 to 88% of the variance. At a fixed extract-concentration target, required filtration volumes diverged ~7-fold between oligotrophic and eutrophic systems at 200 m and ~38-fold at 4000 m. Conventional Niskin sampling therefore undersamples deep-sea biodiversity, particularly in mid- to low-productivity systems. Among laboratory parameters, the assay-specific extract-concentration target exerted greater leverage on required volume than extraction efficiency or elution volume. Volume-aware sampling paired with optimized recovery should be routine in deep-sea eDNA surveys.
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BibTeX
@misc{herrera2026depthdependent,
title = {{Depth-dependent eDNA abundances across ecosystems inform deep-sea sampling strategies}},
author = {S. Herrera and A. F. Govindarajan and E. Andruszkiewicz Allan and R. Francolini and E. Frates and L. McCartin and N. C. Pittoors and M. Sengthep and S. Stover and S. Vohsen and N. Yang},
howpublished = {bioRxiv},
year = {2026},
month = may,
doi = {10.64898/2026.05.12.724363},
url = {https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.05.12.724363v3},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Depth-dependent eDNA abundances across ecosystems inform deep-sea sampling strategies
AU - S. Herrera
AU - A. F. Govindarajan
AU - E. Andruszkiewicz Allan
AU - R. Francolini
AU - E. Frates
AU - L. McCartin
AU - N. C. Pittoors
AU - M. Sengthep
AU - S. Stover
AU - S. Vohsen
AU - N. Yang
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/05/12
PB - bioRxiv
DO - 10.64898/2026.05.12.724363
UR - https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.05.12.724363v3
AB - Environmental DNA (eDNA) surveys are increasingly used to assess marine biodiversity and inform deep-sea environmental decision-making, including mineral resource management and fisheries oversight. Yet standard low-volume protocols inherited from coastal work may be inadequate at depth, and recent findings indicate that depth- and productivity-aware sampling, often requiring high-volume in situ filtration, is needed, but no quantitative framework links depth and ecosystem context to defensible filtration volume targets. We compiled 841 eDNA samples from eight expeditions across the North Atlantic, Wider Caribbean, and Pacific (surface to 4000 m) to quantify how recoverable eDNA scales with depth and surface productivity, and to derive depth- and productivity-aware sampling targets. Total eDNA concentration declined with depth as a power law, with attenuation exponents (b) modulated by surface productivity: most gradual in eutrophic waters (b = 0.67), intermediate in mesotrophic (b = 0.90), and steepest in oligotrophic systems (b = 1.25); volume-weighted models explained 66 to 88% of the variance. At a fixed extract-concentration target, required filtration volumes diverged ~7-fold between oligotrophic and eutrophic systems at 200 m and ~38-fold at 4000 m. Conventional Niskin sampling therefore undersamples deep-sea biodiversity, particularly in mid- to low-productivity systems. Among laboratory parameters, the assay-specific extract-concentration target exerted greater leverage on required volume than extraction efficiency or elution volume. Volume-aware sampling paired with optimized recovery should be routine in deep-sea eDNA surveys.
ER -