Evening Talk rescheduled

The Evening Talk with Dr. Austen Thomas at UW/ONRC scheduled for 7 p.m. next Thursday, March 12 will be rescheduled to another time. Frank Hanson said, “We do not want to risk anyone’s health and wellness given the outbreak of the COVID-19 virus in our state and evolving risk in Clallam and Jefferson County.

By Frank Hanson

Please join us at UW / ONRC in our Hemlock Forest room for our first 2020 Wild Steelhead Review evening event featuring eDNA research. This evening talk will share information on using this process including current research and equipment. Dr. Austen Thomas, Senior Research Scientist and possible others working on the Olympic Peninsula conducting eDNA research will share information for understanding the use of eDNA to detect the presence of specific populations of fish and other aquatic species in our local rivers and estuaries.

Austen joined Smith-Root in 2015 and has directed the development of the Environmental DNA division. Working alongside the in-house engineering team, he designed the Smith-Root eDNA sampling system and fostered partnerships with other companies to help make Smith-Root a leader in eDNA technology. He is a research Molecular Ecologist with over 15 years of experience conducting field surveys, and he possesses a strong publication record with a focus on DNA metabarcoding. Austen has participated in national eDNA standardization efforts and he consistently strives to improve eDNA sampling processes for the betterment of data quality. He will bring some of the equipment to share during his presentation and speak to the practical application for the Olympic Peninsula.

Currently, there is a local coastal eDNA working group coordinated by our NWIFC (Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission) coastal office by Coastal Habitat Biologist, John A. Hagan. This local working group of tribal scientists and groups supporting tribal science are looking at coordinating and disseminating current efforts in using eDNA. Their efforts are focused on future data sharing and the “state of the art “techniques on this process to target authentic evaluations of occupancy and spatial distributions of various aquatic species in Washington coast watersheds. This presentation will begin to bring information of this type of evaluation using eDNA to our community and help strengthen and support our local natural resource professionals with another tool in our toolbox.

Evening Talks at ONRC are funded through the Rosmond Forestry Education Fund, an endowment that honors the contributions of Fred Rosmond and his family to forestry, natural resources, and the Forks community. Refreshments will be served and a potluck of your favorite dessert is encouraged. For more information contact: Frank Hanson at 374-4556 or fsh2@uw.edu.