Identification and characterization of the ichthyoplankton community in the Ribeira de Iguape estuary, São Paulo, Brazil, through DNA metabarcoding

Abstract

Estuaries are used by many fish as breeding, feeding, spawning and protection from predators. These factors are influenced by environmental constants, such as which regulate the stage of embryonic or larval development of these organisms. Knowledge of the areas of development and recruitment, as well as the identification of ichthyoplankton, is essential for understanding population performance in the environment, in addition to contributing to the protection of ichthyofauna and management of fishery resources. Since traditional methods of identifying eggs and larvae are allowed, molecular techniques are used to identify species, using the mitochondrial Cytochrome Oxidase subunit 1 (COI) gene. This is a slow and costly technique, DNA metabarcoding, where it sequences and identifies the use of DNA in mass, proves to be more effective in this process. Thus, the main objective of this project is to identify and characterize the ichthyoplankton of the Ribeira de Iguape River, through the analysis of DNA metabarcoding, bringing relevant information, an end to future subsidies of management plans and priority areas for maintenance organisms. (AU)