Something in the Air Tonight?

A Lund University (Sweden) team have previously shown they can detect vertebrate species in environments, by collecting and identifying airborne DNA. Uniquely, the team have gone on to use this same technique, to establish which insects (ants, beetles, flies, moths and wasps) are present in natural locations (https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/dec/13/airborne-dna-used-to-detect-insect-species-in-breakthrough-for-ecologists). In trials, the Lund group have also analysed airborne DNA samples to identify algae, fungi and plants growing in three Swedish locations. The technique is thought to be a breakthrough for Ecology, as it should enable biodiversity to be quickly assessed in a non-invasive manner.