UNESCO is analysing and researching environmental DNA (eDNA) in the water at 25 marine heritage sites in countries around the world. The research in Bangladesh was carried out by a team from Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University (SAU).
For the UNESCO study, Prof Dr Kazi Ahsan Habib, head of the university's Department of Fisheries Biology and Genetics, and his team carried out an expedition to collect and study eDNA from the waters of the Sundarbans wildlife sanctuaries.
Citizen scientists on board
The Bangladesh Forest Department supported the Bangladesh part of the work. The team collected eDNA samples from various rivers and canals in the Sundarbans West Wildlife Sanctuary. Teachers and students of the university's Department of Fisheries Biology and Genetics took part, along with schoolchildren. Sundarbans tour guides, boat operators and fishermen also joined as citizen scientists.
The research will give an idea of which species of aquatic animals and fish live in the Sundarbans' saline waters. Team leader Prof Dr Kazi Ahsan Habib hopes it will also play a special role in monitoring and conserving the biodiversity of the Sundarbans' waters.
How eDNA works
He told Jagonews that UNESCO is monitoring eDNA to learn the current state of biodiversity at the world's marine heritage sites and how the movements of marine life there are changing because of climate change. eDNA is a type of DNA sample collected not directly from an animal's body but from the surrounding environment, such as soil, river or sea water, snow or air. Analysing these samples reveals which animals are present at a particular place and its biodiversity, without harming the animals or disturbing their normal movements. It is a state-of-the-art biomolecular method, he said.
He expressed hope that the research carried out by SAU with UNESCO's support in the saline waters of the Sundarbans would open the door to new research on the biodiversity of fish and other aquatic animals in Bangladesh.
The Bangladesh part of the Sundarbans has three wildlife sanctuaries, which UNESCO has recognised as a World Heritage Site.
Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.
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