eDNA First: A Framework for Transition in Biodiversity Monitoring

Biodiversity is vast, but the methods we use to observe it rely on capturing and identifying individual organisms. We are making decisions that carry legal, operational, and reputational consequences for both project developers and environmental agencies with precarious informationIn 2017, I heard Pablos Holman describe the problem through Excel: if you use the spreadsheet, you cannot use all the data; if you use all the data, you cannot use the spreadsheet. Biodiversity presents that same mismatch between what we need to observe and the tools we routinely use. It is a big data problem with small data tools.Capture based surveys observe isolated points while biodiversity varies across space and time.Morphological taxonomy allows us to speak in great detail about what was collected, but it cannot tell us anything about what was not captured: the vast majority.Confidence comes from long time series, which can only exist if we start measuring before demand arises. When a decision is required, the data will already exist and can be converted into actionable information that is comparable, traceable, and technically auditable.