The mudpuppy (Necturus maculosus) is cryptic, fully aquatic salamander within the Great Lakes region. Once abundant throughout its range, evidence now suggests that there have been declines due to habitat loss and lampricide use. Information on the status of mudpuppies along the St. Clair-Detroit River System (SCDRS) is lacking, and since they are important bio-indicators, they could be a gauge for restoration success. Environmental DNA (eDNA) and occupancy modeling were used to determine best detection practices for this cryptic species. Mudpuppy eDNA was detected at all known mudpuppy sites with the addition of one site. Occupancy was highest at shoreline restoration sites, while reef restoration did not affect mudpuppy occupancy. Additionally, eDNA resulted in the highest detection probability. Restoration efforts have shown to be successful by increasing the occupancy of this indicator species; therefore, these efforts should be used as a template for other restoration practices.
","abstract_html":"<p>The mudpuppy (Necturus maculosus) is cryptic, fully aquatic salamander within the Great Lakes region. Once abundant throughout its range, evidence now suggests that there have been declines due to habitat loss and lampricide use. Information on the status of mudpuppies along the St. Clair-Detroit River System (SCDRS) is lacking, and since they are important bio-indicators, they could be a gauge for restoration success. Environmental DNA (eDNA) and occupancy modeling were used to determine best detection practices for this cryptic species. Mudpuppy eDNA was detected at all known mudpuppy sites with the addition of one site. Occupancy was highest at shoreline restoration sites, while reef restoration did not affect mudpuppy occupancy. Additionally, eDNA resulted in the highest detection probability. Restoration efforts have shown to be successful by increasing the occupancy of this indicator species; therefore, these efforts should be used as a template for other restoration practices.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Sutherland, Jenny L."],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Science (MS)","degree_level":"Open Access Thesis","degree_discipline":"Biology","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Katherine Greenwald, Ph.D.","Steve Francoeur, Ph.D.","Kristin Judd, Ph.D."],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2019,"date_issued":"2019-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2019-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:17:33Z","subjects":["eDNA","Great Lakes","Mudpuppy","Occupancy Modeling","Restoration Salamander","Ecology and Evolutionary Biology"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://commons.emich.edu/theses/974","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Katherine Greenwald, Ph.D.","Steve Francoeur, Ph.D.","Kristin Judd, Ph.D."]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Sutherland, Jenny L."]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2019-09-30T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Biology"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Open Access Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science (MS)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["eDNA","Great Lakes","Mudpuppy","Occupancy Modeling","Restoration Salamander","Ecology and Evolutionary Biology"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://commons.emich.edu/theses/974"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The mudpuppy (Necturus maculosus) is cryptic, fully aquatic salamander within the Great Lakes region. Once abundant throughout its range, evidence now suggests that there have been declines due to habitat loss and lampricide use. Information on the status of mudpuppies along the St. Clair-Detroit River System (SCDRS) is lacking, and since they are important bio-indicators, they could be a gauge for restoration success. Environmental DNA (eDNA) and occupancy modeling were used to determine best detection practices for this cryptic species. Mudpuppy eDNA was detected at all known mudpuppy sites with the addition of one site. Occupancy was highest at shoreline restoration sites, while reef restoration did not affect mudpuppy occupancy. Additionally, eDNA resulted in the highest detection probability. Restoration efforts have shown to be successful by increasing the occupancy of this indicator species; therefore, these efforts should be used as a template for other restoration practices.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Assessment of mudpuppy (Necturus maculosus) presence along the St. Clair-Detroit River System using environmental DNA and occupancy modeling"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Katherine Greenwald, Ph.D.","Steve Francoeur, Ph.D.","Kristin Judd, Ph.D."],"dc:creator":["Sutherland, Jenny L."],"dc:date.available":["2019-09-30T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["The mudpuppy (Necturus maculosus) is cryptic, fully aquatic salamander within the Great Lakes region. Once abundant throughout its range, evidence now suggests that there have been declines due to habitat loss and lampricide use. Information on the status of mudpuppies along the St. Clair-Detroit River System (SCDRS) is lacking, and since they are important bio-indicators, they could be a gauge for restoration success. Environmental DNA (eDNA) and occupancy modeling were used to determine best detection practices for this cryptic species. Mudpuppy eDNA was detected at all known mudpuppy sites with the addition of one site. Occupancy was highest at shoreline restoration sites, while reef restoration did not affect mudpuppy occupancy. Additionally, eDNA resulted in the highest detection probability. Restoration efforts have shown to be successful by increasing the occupancy of this indicator species; therefore, these efforts should be used as a template for other restoration practices.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://commons.emich.edu/theses/974"],"dc:subject":["eDNA","Great Lakes","Mudpuppy","Occupancy Modeling","Restoration Salamander","Ecology and Evolutionary Biology"],"dc:title":["Assessment of mudpuppy (Necturus maculosus) presence along the St. Clair-Detroit River System using environmental DNA and occupancy modeling"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Biology"],"thesis:degree_level":["Open Access Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science (MS)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:17:33Z"}