The Otago skink, one of New Zealand’s most endangered lizards, inhabits steep, rugged terrain, making traditional visual monitoring difficult, costly, and time-consuming.
In autumn 2024, Wilderlab partnered with conservation researchers to trial a novel eDNA-based monitoring method. Over eight weeks, 120 PipeDNA kits were deployed across skink habitats, and four consecutive occupancy surveys were completed. Wilderlab analysed all samples, generating valuable insights where visual surveys often fall short.
Early results show that eDNA monitoring successfully detected Otago skinks in challenging environments, providing a cost-effective, non-invasive, and time-efficient alternative to traditional approaches. This breakthrough could transform how cryptic reptile species are monitored, enabling conservationists to make data-driven decisions about species protection and habitat management.
This project was supported by The Les Hutchins Foundation, The Otago Science Participatory Fund Platform, and Curious Minds. Read the full paper here.
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Photos by: Samuel Purdie Wildlife
