Detection of monk seal in Mediterranean eDNA data sets and
anticipation on visual data
Positive detections were found in both the Tyrrhenian and the Strait of
Sicily trial sample sets, both collected in marine districts where the
monk seal is occasionally encountered. DNA recovery was more prevalent
in the Pelagian (especially around Lampione Island) than in the ferry
sample. Monk seal sightings in waters surrounding the Italian peninsula
have been occurring rarely, but constantly in the last decades (Figure
S1). According to available published data (some sightings may remain
unrevealed for the species safeguard), no sighting was recorded in 2019,
while at least 9 events were recorded in 2020, suggesting an increased
monk seal occurrence in Italian waters. The same trend, but anticipated
by a year, was found in our two-year spanning Tyrrhenian sample: the 17
ferry eDNA samples in which monk seal DNA was detected were more
abundant in 2019 (n=13, 65% of yearly total) than in 2018 (n=4, 25% of
yearly total).
The strongest monk seal DNA recovery within the ferry-route eDNA
collection was found in sample MmoMo17 (sample 19-1LiGA1), collected on
the 20th of June 2019 at about 11km from Elba Island
and 26km from Capraia Island, where the monk seal has been sighted at
least twice during summer 2020 (June/July). In the same site, exactly
one year before (18th of June 2018), a detectable but
non-quantifiable signal was identified, witnessing the presence of the
monk seal in the Tuscany archipelagos up to two years before the recentde-visu identifications in the waters surrounding Capraia island
(June-July 2020).
In the Pelagian data, both samples (MmoMc09, and MmoMc11) scoring the
strongest detection signals were somehow related to sightings. Sample
MmoM+09 was collected in the northern shore of Lampedusa close to where
two consecutive sightings would have occurred two months later (Figure
3). Sample MmoMc11 was instead purposely collected two days after a
sighting occurred nearby. In this case, at least for MarVer2, the signal
was the strongest within the Pelagian data (5.36*103DNA copies per liter of marine water), comparable in value to the signal
obtained in the control eDNA of Madeira sample MmoM+01
(6.38*103). We generally found agreement with data
reporting a signal persistence of about 48 hours from release (Collinset al ., 2018), although other factors should be kept in
consideration, such as the possible unsubstantiated repeated presence of
the animal in the two days between sighting and sampling (which could
have increased the signal intensity). Also, we are unaware if the
animal/s has/have engaged in behaviors that facilitate the release of
biological material (e.g. landing or rubbing on the shoreline), and
finally it should be bear in mind the differential eDNA persistence
between coastal and deep pelagic waters (Collins et al ., 2018).