eDNA from water column to characterise fish and invertebrate communities from 30 sites in the Belgian Part of the North Sea -12S

This dataset contains eDNA metabarcoding data of fish species detected in 30 locations in the Belgian Part of the North Sea (BPNS). The seawater samples were collected during two different field campaigns in September and November 2021. The fish species were identified using 12S eDNA metabarcoding. The dataset includes amplicon sequence variants and their associated metadata. Study extend: The construction of offshore wind farms may affect local soft-sediment fauna. Hence, an efficient monitoring technique is needed to monitor the potential effects on the marine ecosystem. Here, we assess whether eDNA metabarcoding is a suitable alternative to monitor fish and epibenthos biodiversity in these difficult to access marine habitats. Water sampling and trawl surveys were conducted in parallel in 12 coastal and 18 offshore sites, the latter located inside and outside two offshore wind farms in the Belgian part of the North Sea. project ID: Bioproject Accession - PRJNA1032405 (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/bioproject/1032405) [This dataset was processed using the GBIF eDNA converter tool.]

This dataset is part of the: "Automated biodiversity monitoring in the North Sea through eDNA ZERO-IMPACT".

The construction of offshore wind farms may affect local soft-sediment fauna. Hence, an efficient monitoring technique is needed to monitor the potential effects on the marine ecosystem. Here, we assess whether eDNA metabarcoding is a suitable alternative to monitor fish and epibenthos biodiversity in these difficult to access marine habitats. Water sampling and trawl surveys were conducted in parallel in 12 coastal and 18 offshore sites, the latter located inside and outside two offshore wind farms in the Belgian part of the North Sea. project ID: (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/bioproject/1032405)

Study area
The construction of offshore wind farms may affect local soft-sediment fauna. Hence, an efficient monitoring technique is needed to monitor the potential effects on the marine ecosystem. Here, we assess whether eDNA metabarcoding is a suitable alternative to monitor fish and epibenthos biodiversity in these difficult to access marine habitats. Water sampling and trawl surveys were conducted in parallel in 12 coastal and 18 offshore sites, the latter located inside and outside two offshore wind farms in the Belgian part of the North Sea.

Description
Is it feasible to detect the presence of marine organisms based on “environmental” DNA (eDNA) in seawater? The ZERO impact project has answered this research question positively. The aim was to develop an innovative, sustainable and automatic method to detect marine species and marine biodiversity in a reliable and less invasive way. There are several advantages to this eDNA technique: 1/ because only seawater is collected to detect the presence of species, the organisms themselves are not disturbed or killed, 2/ only one sampling method is needed to identify different groups of organisms (fish, invertebrates, plankton), and 3/ by autonomous seawater collection, continuous time series for marine biodiversity and fish populations can be obtained.