#155 Seadragons, DNA and the Power of Citizen Science

Dr Nerida Wilson has dedicated much of her career to understanding some of Australia’s most unusual marine life. As manager of Seadragon Search, she has brought together genetics, photography and citizen science to reveal new insights into one of the country’s most iconic underwater species.Although seadragons are displayed in aquariums around the world, they are found only in Australian waters. Nerida’s research even led to the extraordinary discovery of a new species, the ruby seadragon. The first evidence did not come from a diver’s sighting but from an unusual string of DNA letters that failed to align with known species. That anomaly proved to represent an entirely new seadragon.Seadragon Search emerged from genetic fieldwork. While collecting small tissue samples, Nerida and her team photographed each animal to ensure they did not resample the same individual. They realised that every seadragon carries unique markings. Weedy seadragons can be identified by their spot patterns, while leafy seadragons display distinctive bars and stripes. Today, artificial intelligence helps narrow down possible matches, but a human reviewer makes the final confirmation.More Informationhttps://seadragonsearch.org/If you enjoy this podcast, please like and subscribe to our show wherever you get your podcasts.Leave us a review and share this show with your friends.It really helps us to reach more citizen scientists, like you.Contact the ShowWe are always looking for more guests to tell us about interesting citizen science projects, research and events.You can email us at: [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.