Using the Smith Root sampler for eDNA collection in Big Pool within Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Park in June, 2023. eDNA will be extracted and sequenced to look for the presence of amphibians.
Aaron Aunins, Ph.D.
Aaron is a Research Fish Biologist at the Eastern Ecological Science Center in Kearneysville, WV.
Aaron Aunins obtained his Ph.D. in Integrative Life Sciences from Virginia Commonwealth University in 2011, where he studied the population genetics of American shad in Chesapeake Bay. He began working at the USGS Leetown Science Center in 2012. Aaron’s research interests are very broad – he has worked on conservation genetic studies of many diverse taxa including brook trout, shortnose sturgeon, Atlantic sturgeon, and Northeastern Beach tiger beetles among others. More recently, he has been focused on environmental DNA (eDNA) studies and has worked on eDNA metabarcoding of stream communities in National Capital Region Parks, using eDNA metabarcoding to characterize deep sea communities along the mid-Atlantic U.S. coast, and optimizing methods for detection of pollinators from eDNA left on flowers.
Professional Experience
2019 to present – Research Fish Biologist, U.S. Geological Survey, Leetown Science Center, Kearneysville, West Virginia
2016 to 2019 – Scientist II (Contractor), Natural Systems Analysts, Winter Park Florida, work location at U.S. Geological Survey, Kearneysville, West Virginia
2014-2016 – Genetics Biologist (Contractor), Cherokee Nation Technology Solutions, Tulsa OK, work location at U.S. Geological Survey, Kearneysville, West Virginia
Education and Certifications
2011. PhD. in Integrative Life Sciences, Virginia Commonwealth University.
2006. M.S. in Marine Science, Virginia Institute of Marine Science of the College of William and Mary
2001. B.A. in Biology, University of Richmond
Science and Products
Advancing the Environmental DNA Toolkit for Ecosystem Monitoring and Management
Using Pollinator Environmental DNA to Assess the Ecological Resilience of America’s Grasslands
Conservation Genetics and Genomics of the Narrowly Endemic Island Marble Butterfly Euchloe ausonides insulanus
Bioinformatics
RADSeq Data to assess population structure of Desmophyllum pertusum found along the United States eastern continental margin
Deep SEARCH eDNA metabarcoding data
SNP data for Karner blue butterfly samples from across the species range
Individual assignments and microsatellite genotypes for Atlantic Sturgeon from 2021 (ver. 2.0, February 2024)
Droplet digital PCR data for the detection of Smoky Mountain Madtoms in Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Metabarcode sequencing of aquatic environmental DNA from the Potomac River Watershed, 2015-2020
Population genetic data for three at-risk tiger beetles Habroscelimorpha dorsalis dorsalis, H. d. media, and Ellipsoptera puritana
SARS-CoV-2 Data from National Wastewater Surveillance System Surge Capacity Sampling, September 2021
Novel genetic resources for Clubshell freshwater mussels (Pleurobema clava, P. oviforme) for enhanced conservation
Population genetic data for flathead catfish from the Susquehanna and Delaware River basins in Pennsylvania and Maryland, USA
Genotypes of Atlantic Sturgeon collected from Canada to Georgia used in the development of a genetic baseline
![Sampling for eDNA at Big Pool in CHOH National Park.](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/media/images/CHOH_amphibian_eDNA_sampling.jpg?itok=6wEIMqbC)
Using the Smith Root sampler for eDNA collection in Big Pool within Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Park in June, 2023. eDNA will be extracted and sequenced to look for the presence of amphibians.
This is Drew Kellogg, a 2019 USGS summer hire filtering water in Rock Creek Park for eDNA analyses. The eDNA will be screened for the presence of aquatic invertebrates.
This is Drew Kellogg, a 2019 USGS summer hire filtering water in Rock Creek Park for eDNA analyses. The eDNA will be screened for the presence of aquatic invertebrates.
Assessing arthropod diversity metrics derived from stream environmental DNA: Spatiotemporal variation and paired comparisons with manual sampling
Development of a ddPCR assay for the detection of the Smoky Madtom (Noturus baileyi) from eDNA in stream water samples
Population genetics of three at-risk tiger beetles Habroscelimorpha dorsalis dorsalis, H. d. media, and Ellipsoptera puritana
Genetic and morphological characterization of the freshwater mussel clubshell species complex (Pleurobema clava and Pleurobema oviforme) to inform conservation planning
Red Knot (Calidris canutus) research—Preliminary results and future opportunities
Development of microsatellite markers for three at risk tiger beetles Cicindela dorsalis dorsalis, C. d. media, and C. puritana
Using advanced population genomics to better understand the relationship between offshore and spawning habitat use for Atlantic Sturgeon
The complete maternal mitochondrial genome sequences of two imperiled North American freshwater mussels: Alasmidonta heterodon and Alasmidonta varicosa (Bivalvia: Unionoida: Unionidae)
The complete mitochondrial genome of the stalk-forming diatom Didymosphenia geminata
Microsatellite marker development from next-generation sequencing in the New England cottontail (Sylvilagus transitionalis) and cross-amplification in the eastern cottontail (S. floridanus)
Draft genome sequence of a picorna-like virus associated with gill tissue in clinically normal brook trout, Salvelinus fontinalis
Comparative mitogenomic analyses of three North American stygobiont amphipods of the genus Stygobromus (Crustacea: Amphipoda)
Science and Products
Advancing the Environmental DNA Toolkit for Ecosystem Monitoring and Management
Using Pollinator Environmental DNA to Assess the Ecological Resilience of America’s Grasslands
Conservation Genetics and Genomics of the Narrowly Endemic Island Marble Butterfly Euchloe ausonides insulanus
Bioinformatics
RADSeq Data to assess population structure of Desmophyllum pertusum found along the United States eastern continental margin
Deep SEARCH eDNA metabarcoding data
SNP data for Karner blue butterfly samples from across the species range
Individual assignments and microsatellite genotypes for Atlantic Sturgeon from 2021 (ver. 2.0, February 2024)
Droplet digital PCR data for the detection of Smoky Mountain Madtoms in Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Metabarcode sequencing of aquatic environmental DNA from the Potomac River Watershed, 2015-2020
Population genetic data for three at-risk tiger beetles Habroscelimorpha dorsalis dorsalis, H. d. media, and Ellipsoptera puritana
SARS-CoV-2 Data from National Wastewater Surveillance System Surge Capacity Sampling, September 2021
Novel genetic resources for Clubshell freshwater mussels (Pleurobema clava, P. oviforme) for enhanced conservation
Population genetic data for flathead catfish from the Susquehanna and Delaware River basins in Pennsylvania and Maryland, USA
Genotypes of Atlantic Sturgeon collected from Canada to Georgia used in the development of a genetic baseline
![Sampling for eDNA at Big Pool in CHOH National Park.](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/media/images/CHOH_amphibian_eDNA_sampling.jpg?itok=6wEIMqbC)
Using the Smith Root sampler for eDNA collection in Big Pool within Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Park in June, 2023. eDNA will be extracted and sequenced to look for the presence of amphibians.
Using the Smith Root sampler for eDNA collection in Big Pool within Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Park in June, 2023. eDNA will be extracted and sequenced to look for the presence of amphibians.
This is Drew Kellogg, a 2019 USGS summer hire filtering water in Rock Creek Park for eDNA analyses. The eDNA will be screened for the presence of aquatic invertebrates.
This is Drew Kellogg, a 2019 USGS summer hire filtering water in Rock Creek Park for eDNA analyses. The eDNA will be screened for the presence of aquatic invertebrates.