Document Author: Melinda Wheelock

Metagenetic Analysis of 2018 and 2019 Plankton Samples from Prince William Sound, Alaska

This final report provided the results of an analysis on the genes of plankton gathered in Port Valdez and Prince William Sound in 2018 and 2019.

For this project, the Council partnered with the Prince William Sound Science Center, who collected the samples, and Moss Landing Marine Laboratory in California, who conducted the genetic analysis.

The Council monitors for marine invasive species which could potentially arrive in ballast water or on the hull of the crude oil tankers arriving at the Valdez Marine Terminal These tankers dock in ports known to harbor marine invasive species. Some invasive species could cause significant economic and environmental harm if reproducing populations became established locally.

Metagenetic Analysis of 2017 Plankton Samples from Prince William Sound, Alaska

Plankton samples, collected by the Prince William Sound Science Center (PWSSC), were analyzed by the Molecular Ecology Laboratory at the Moss Landing Marine Laboratories. The samples were taken from five stations in May of 2017 in Port Valdez and elsewhere in PWS.

DNA was extracted from bulk plankton and a portion of the mitochondrial Cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 gene, the most commonly used DNA barcode for animals, was amplified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Products of PCR were sequenced using Illumina reagents and MiSeq instrument. 211 operational taxonomic units (an approximation of biological species) were found and 52 were identified to species.

Most species were crustaceans and molluscs, and none were non-native. Researchers also compared PWSRCAC samples taken in 2016 to the current set of samples. Fewer species were identified in 2017 than in 2016, but sampling methods varied across years. Standardization of methods and a longer time series are necessary to investigate temporal trends.

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