Ecosystems and Landscape Evolution

ALT Amphibian species detected with CRISPR-Dx and eDNA only (blue), with traditional monitoring only (yellow) or with both methods (green) at each of the nine sampling sites in the canton of Aargau, Switzerland. Only the traditional monitoring that took place closest in time to the eDNA sampling was considered for each site. A solid black outline around a species indicates that it has been reported with traditional monitoring within the last 4 years. Species with a dashed red outline (unreported but expected) were not reported with traditional monitoring, but their presence is expected based on expert knowledge (e.g. based on suitable habitat and known populations in proximity, see main text). The nine sampling sites are: (a) Tümpel Lauffohr, (b) Schmümel, (c) Kiesgrube Laenzert, (d) Tümpel Alte Reuss, (e) Paradies, (f) Aristau Schachen Süd, (g) Aeschwuhr, (h) Oberschachen and (i) Schoren Schachen.

ALT Figure 1. Distribution of species and interactions within the metaweb. Pie charts depicting the distribution of taxa and interactions in the empirically-based metaweb (left) and the full metaweb (right), when considering only interactions resolved between species.

ALT Figure 2. Construction and expansion of the metaweb. (1) Initial compilation of a species checklist, as well as their upstream taxonomic information for genera and families, and creation of feeding group blocks, such as fungi. (2) Empirical data collection process, focusing on information at the species, genus and family level. (3) We expanded links where species were known to consume an organism at the genus level to include all species within the genus (link A). We additionally inferred links where species were known to consume an organism at the family level, for generalist predators, and filtered by their associations to habitat and vertical stratum within the environment (link B). Links were also inferred where it was explicitly known that a family of organisms were generalist feeders on feeding group blocks, such as fungi (link C). (4) A final metaweb is assembled using all empirical and inferred links.