Scientists use mosquitoes to track endangered wildlife

 

SCIENTISTS in Australia have found that mosquitoes can act like tiny “flying wildlife surveyors”, helping track elusive and endangered animals, offering a powerful non-invasive tool for conservation.

Researchers used DNA found in mosquito blood meals to identify around 70 species of birds and mammals living in Kakadu National Park in Australia’s Northern Territory, including several animals that are rarely seen or difficult to monitor, said a statement from Australia’s Macquarie University on Thursday.

The technique involves analyzing the DNA of animals from female mosquitoes that have recently fed on. When mosquitoes are trapped, scientists can extract traces of that DNA to determine which species are present in the area, said researchers from the university and the Australian Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water.

The study, published in the journal Environmental DNA, found that the mosquito method detected around twice as many mammal species as traditional camera traps, despite only two nights of sampling compared with six weeks of camera monitoring.

— Xinhua