About This Project

All our wildlife are in danger, but did you know amphibians are going extinct at much faster rates than other vertebrates? We do not know the status of most amphibians in Kenya and as the country continues to extract and pollute water, many species may be dying out. Traditional survey techniques are extremely difficult, but now we can use cutting edge technology to detect the presence of species in the environment using environmental DNA (eDNA).

Ask the Scientists

What is the context of this research?

Rapid human population growth and development in many parts of Africa have led to excessive water extraction and pollution. Aquatic habitats are often left out of national policy development unless their ecosystem services serve the immediate socio-economic interest (e.g., drinking water). Insufficient local resources for research means that continuous aquatic monitoring is not viable and current aquatic research is disjointed. Environmental DNA approaches allow for assessment of amphibian biodiversity and stored samples can be analyzed for a multitude of species in the future. This project will serve as an initial proof of concept for eDNA biodiversity assessment with the aim of establishing a permanent facility and local expertise to serve the region and continent.

What is the significance of this project?

The technique should be ideal for Africa, yet it has not achieved widespread use! Understanding the applicability, limitations and requirements for the use of eDNA is essential to establishing the technology in the region for future assessment. Also, amphibians are an ideal group of organisms for this type of study because of their complex terrestrial/aquatic life-cycle as well as their sensitivity to habitat change, predation, disease and pollution. They can therefore serve as indicators of aquatic habitat condition. Initially, this project we will assess the current geographic distribution of common, rare and endangered amphibians and compare these to historic records to gain a better understanding of their population trends and possible threats.

What are the goals of the project?

1) To initiate an electronic and genetic database for amphibians in Kenya with the aim of expanding it to the region and continent. Genetic databases exist for large and economically important species such as elephants, but we have not found one that accommodates aquatic species.

2) To determine whether eDNA can be used effectively to monitor occurrence of amphibians in aquatic systems in Kenya. We will do this by assessing common, rare and endangered species using both eDNA as well as traditional survey techniques. We will compare detection probabilities in different aquatic environments and multiple locations.

3) To generate current and historic range maps and determine landscape threats and areas for conservation.

4) To fund Kenyan and American student collaborative projects