Polanco F. A. auteur aut IRD Martinezguerra M. M. auteur aut IRD Marques V. auteur aut IRD Villa-Navarro F. auteur aut IRD Perez G. H. B. auteur aut IRD Cheutin M. C. auteur aut IRD Dejean T. auteur aut IRD Hocdé Régis auteur aut IRD Juhel J. B. auteur aut IRD Maire E. auteur aut IRD Manel S. auteur aut IRD Spescha M. auteur aut IRD Valentini A. auteur aut IRD Mouillot D. auteur aut IRD Albouy C. auteur aut IRD Pellissier L. auteur aut IRD text journalArticle eng text/pdf born digital access Estuaries are characterized by a tidal regime and are strongly influenced by hydrodynamics and host diverse and highly dynamic habitats, from fresh, brackish, or saltwater to terrestrial, whose biodiversity is especially difficult to monitor. Here, we investigated the potential of environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding, with three primer sets targeting different regions of the mitochondrial DNA 12S ribosomal RNA gene, to detect vertebrate diversity in the estuary of the Don Diego River in Colombia. With eDNA, we detected not only aquatic organisms, including fishes, amphibians, and reptiles, but also a large diversity of terrestrial, arboreal, and flying vertebrates, including mammals and birds, living in the estuary surroundings. Further, the eDNA signal remained relatively localized along the watercourse. A transect from the deep outer section of the estuary, across the river mouth toward the inner section of the river, showed marked taxonomic turnover from typical marine to freshwater fishes, while eDNA of terrestrial and arboreal species was mainly found in the inner section of the estuary. Our results indicate that eDNA enables the detection of a large diversity of vertebrates and could become an important tool for biodiversity monitoring in estuaries, where water integrates information across the ecosystem. Abstract in Spanish is available with online material. specialized biodiversity biomonitoring Caribbean Sea Colombia Don Diego River environmental DNA Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta tropical ecosystem vertebrate COLOMBIE ZONE TROPICALE 034 036 082 080 53 6 1606-1619 2021 0006-3606 https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010082664 10.1111/btp.13009 0006-3606 [F B010082664] https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010082664 https://www.documentation.ird.fr/intranet/publi/2021-09/010082664.pdf Accès réservé (Intranet de l'IRD) IRD - Base Horizon / Pleins textes 2021-09-17 2025-02-24 fdi:010082664 fre