On an overcast morning in July, marine biologist Greg Rouse collected seawater samples from a tide pool near La Jolla’s Bird Rock.
This routine task is part of a larger project to document California’s intertidal ecosystems. The California Intertidal Biodiversity DNA Barcode Library project aims to log every organism from San Diego to the Oregon border over the next two years.
The project, led by top research institutions including the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History, seeks to create a comprehensive picture of California’s tidal habitats by focusing on algae and invertebrates. The goal is to track changes in these ecosystems, which are vulnerable to climate change.
The project launched with $10 million in state funding and involves collecting samples of invertebrates and algae. According to LAist, scientists have already identified 1,600 species, hundreds of which could be new to science. Once analyzed, the specimens will be stored at the L.A. County Museum of Natural History.
The project uses environmental DNA (E-DNA) to provide snapshots of ecosystems. Dean Pentcheff, project manager of the Diversity Initiative for the Southern California Ocean, emphasized the importance of this baseline data for managing California’s coastal resources. The DNA library will help officials monitor invasive species and understand species range shifts.
The project is a collaboration of over 50 researchers, as reported by Scripps Institution of Oceanography. It will serve as a model for future DNA reference libraries and aims to support biodiversity science and conservation across California.
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