Fig 1.
Locations for surveys listed in Table 1.
Figure generated in Photoshop using USGS maps as template (https://apps.nationalmap.gov/viewer/).
Table 1.
Marine fish surveys analyzed in this study.
Fig 2.
Commonest fish species in mid-Atlantic surveys A, B, and C representing sandy, rocky, and estuary habitat, respectively (Table 1 and Fig 1). Each column corresponds to one species and species are ranked by decreasing aggregate abundance measured as eDNA copies/L. Scale differs between surveys. Caret (^) marks 10th most common taxon. At bottom, proportion total bony fish eDNA occupied by top ten is shown and top ten fish for each survey are listed by decreasing eDNA abundance. Habitat-associated eDDS as defined in Materials and methods are highlighted in color (blue, orange, or green) and shared eDDS are highlighted gray.
Fig 3.
eDDS habitat profiles applied to pooled and individual water samples/seine days.
eDDS categories and colors are as shown in Fig 2. Pool proportions for each survey are calculated from aggregate eDNA copies/L. A gap at top of a column represents non-eDDS taxa. Criteria 1 and 2 represent dominance and classification metrics, respectively, described in Materials and methods. A dark bar indicates criterion was met.
Fig 4.
eDDS habitat profiles applied to concurrent gear-based surveys.
A gap at top of a column represents non-eDDS taxa. As with eDNA data, pool proportions reflect aggregate weight or individuals for a survey (S4 and S11 Tables). C1 (criteria 1) and C2 (criteria 2) represent dominance and classification metrics described in Materials and methods.
Fig 5.
eDNA copies vs trawl and seine catches.
Each circle represents 1 bony fish species. For NJOTS, values represent total catch weight or total eDNA copies. For RBSS, values represent total individuals per day (normalized to #seines/day) and total eDNA copies per day (normalized to #water samples/day).
Fig 6.
eDDS habitat profiles applied to other locations (Table 1, Fig 1).
At left, 2-year eDNA time series from Barnegat Bay, an estuary 80 km south of Raritan Bay. At right, 35 years of catch records from Connecticut Estuary Seine Survey conducted along northern shore of Long Island Sound, about 100 km northwest of Raritan Bay.
Fig 7.
eDDS protocol applied to NJOTS phenology.
At left, seasonal eDDS based on eDNA reads for January 2020 and August 2019. Colors highlight season-associated and shared taxa as indicated at bottom. In middle and right, eDDS seasonal categories applied to pooled and individual water samples and trawls. As with habitat comparisons, pool proportions represent aggregate reads or catch weight for a survey.
Fig 8.
NJOTS eDDS seasonal profiles applied to historical NJOTS records.
Compare to NJOTS January 2020 proportions in Fig 7.
Fig 9.
NJOTS eDDS seasonal profiles applied to Long Island Sound Trawl Survey.