Coral Forensics in the Deep Flower Garden Banks

February 22, 2023

Luke McCartin, Graduate Student, Lehigh University

Like all marine animals, corals leave behind genetic traces in their environment. Scientists refer to these genetic traces as environmental DNA or eDNA. Similar to forensics, marine biologists can sequence this eDNA to determine what animals have passed through an area, or are nearby but not easily seen. Learn how Luke McCartin sequences eDNA to better understand the corals that live in the deepest waters of Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary, even when he can’t see them!