Scientists have tracked fish off New York by following the traces of DNA left in the water, a technique that could help gauge life in rivers, lakes and oceans around the world, a study showed on Wednesday.
Fish leave bits of slimy skin, scales and excretions as they swim around — clues that let scientists detect 42 species of fish, including herrings, basses and eels in water drawn from the Hudson and East Rivers off Manhattan, it said.
"Rather than get a big boat and a big net ... we just tied a bucket onto a rope and threw it into the river," said lead author Mark Stoeckle, from New York's Rockefeller University.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.