Description
Oyster restoration is increasingly being used in the Chesapeake Bay to re-establish ecological and economic significance to the region; however, there is a gap in monitoring microeukaryotic biodiversity before restoration efforts. Microeukaryotic planktonic communities are responsive to environmental changes by impacting biogeochemical cycles and constructing complex food web dynamics. Assessing their biodiversity and community composition during oyster reef restoration gives insight into higher trophic levels and ecosystem health. Our objective is to characterize the microeukaryotic community to reveal biodiversity and energy flow within the Hampton River. 18S rRNA genes from environmental DNA (eDNA) were sequenced for the first time in the Hampton River. Water samples from three sites provided eDNA, and represented a natural reef site with a preexisting degraded oyster reef, a planting reef site set for reef restoration, and a control area with no history of 3D oyster structures. All sampling was done within a 7-month period uncovering communities in fall, winter, and spring. Results revealed significant dissimilarity between the 3 seasons’ shared species and phylogeny throughout all spatiotemporal change. Trophic feeding strategies also shifted as each season selects for various food web interactions. Despite the overall differences between the seasons, the phyla, Ciliophora, Chlorophyta, Diatomea, and Dinoflagellata maintained dominance as a core community. Within these phyla, eDNA’s resolution detected biotechnological genera associated with parasitism and harmful secondary metabolites. This study characterizes the planktonic microeukaryotic community associated with oyster reef restoration efforts within the Hampton River before large-scale change, and establishes a molecular baseline to track how restoration-driven changes may impact ecosystem health and services.