Quick and cost-effective mapping of biodiversity have been invisible, and yet right under our noses. The results are now published in Nature.
Air samples with spores were collected with cyclone samplers for two days each week from 2018 to 2021. The sampling will continue until 2025. NINA researcher Jenni Nordén with the cyclone sampler. Photo credit: Mysi Nordén.
Fungi are among the most diverse and ecologically important living organisms, although their diversity, distribution and activity remain poorly known. An international team of researchers have now surveyed fungi from air samples around the world using a recently developed DNA-survey method – a breakthrough in its field. NINA researchers Jenni Nordén and Björn Nordén are part of the team.
Air - a treasure chest for nature research
The results are published in Nature, showing that the sampling of airborne DNA can provide a holistic view of global fungal diversity, representing a breakthrough in the understanding of the whole fungal kingdom.
The study further presents highly predictable patterns of spatial and seasonal variation in fungi and suggests that the drivers of the fungal community are largely similar to those affecting communities of larger species.
Thus, the team of researchers strongly believe that such new techniques for investigating biodiversity will revolutionize the monitoring of biodiversity and make us better able to predict future trends.
Air samples are collected with a so-called cyclone sampler that sucks air into the sample tube at a given speed over a long period of time. Small particles such as spores are collected in test tubes which are frozen and then sent for DNA sequencing.
- We hope that new methods for monitoring biodiversity also can be used in Norwegian and European monitoring schemes such as the Norwegian national forest inventory, says Jenni Nordén.
Read more: Airborne DNA reveals predictable spatial and seasonal dynamics of fungi
Contact: Jenni Nordén and Björn Nordén