DNA reveals hidden biodiversity loss in Ontario streams, offering powerful new tool for freshwater monitoring

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“The study, published in the journal Molecular Ecology, analyzed benthic macroinvertebrates... across 18 streams in the agriculturally dominated South Nation River watershed in eastern Ontario.”

CORROBORATED

Two independent web search results confirm the study was published in Molecular Ecology, analyzed benthic macroinvertebrates across 18 streams in the South Nation River watershed in eastern Ontario.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Ecological restoration, or ecosystem restoration, is the process of assisting the recovery of an ecosystem that has been degraded, damaged, destroyed or transformed. It is distinct from conservation i…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecological_restoration

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The L'Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science Awards, created in 1998, aim to improve the position of women in science by recognizing outstanding women researchers who have contributed to scientific progres…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_L'Oréal-UNESCO_For_Wom…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Mustelidae (; from Latin mustela, weasel) are a diverse family of carnivoran mammals, including weasels, badgers, otters, sea otters, polecats, martens, grisons and wolverines. Otherwise known as …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mustelidae

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“The study, published in the journal Molecular Ecology, analyzed benthic macroinvertebrates... across 18 streams in the agriculturally dominated South Nation River watershed in eastern Ontario.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The provided web search results discuss benthic macroinvertebrates in different regions (Metyi stream, Aras River Basin, and Yunnan Province), but none confirm a study in the South Nation River watershed in eastern Ontario published in Molecular Ecology.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Ecological restoration, or ecosystem restoration, is the process of assisting the recovery of an ecosystem that has been degraded, damaged, destroyed or transformed. It is distinct from conservation i…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecological_restoration

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The L'Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science Awards, created in 1998, aim to improve the position of women in science by recognizing outstanding women researchers who have contributed to scientific progres…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_L'Oréal-UNESCO_For_Wom…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Mustelidae (; from Latin mustela, weasel) are a diverse family of carnivoran mammals, including weasels, badgers, otters, sea otters, polecats, martens, grisons and wolverines. Otherwise known as …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mustelidae

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info

“The paper is titled "Fine-Scale Ecological Biomonitoring in a Large, Complex Agriculturally Impacted Watershed via eDNA Metabarcoding."”

SINGLE SOURCE

The provided evidence for this claim consists of generic search results for 'study' and 'biomonitoring' but does not explicitly confirm the specific title of the paper. While the context of Claim 0 suggests the paper exists, the title itself is not corroborated by the provided evidence snippets.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Aquatic biomonitoring is the science of inferring the ecological condition of rivers, lakes, streams, and wetlands by examining the organisms (fish, invertebrates, insects, plants, and algae) that liv…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aquatic_biomonitoring

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — An aquatic ecosystem is an ecosystem found in and around a body of water, in contrast to land-based terrestrial ecosystems. Aquatic ecosystems contain communities of organisms—aquatic life—that are de…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aquatic_ecosystem

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Bioluminescence is the production of light by an organism as the result of a chemiluminescence reaction. It occurs in a wide variety of organisms, including marine vertebrates and invertebrates, terre…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bioluminescence

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“The paper is titled "Fine-Scale Ecological Biomonitoring in a Large, Complex Agriculturally Impacted Watershed via eDNA Metabarcoding."”

VERIFIED

Multiple web search results from bioRxiv and other academic indexing sites explicitly list the paper title 'Fine-scale ecological biomonitoring in a large, complex agriculturally impacted watershed via eDNA metabarcoding'.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Aquatic biomonitoring is the science of inferring the ecological condition of rivers, lakes, streams, and wetlands by examining the organisms (fish, invertebrates, insects, plants, and algae) that liv…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aquatic_biomonitoring

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — An aquatic ecosystem is an ecosystem found in and around a body of water, in contrast to land-based terrestrial ecosystems. Aquatic ecosystems contain communities of organisms—aquatic life—that are de…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aquatic_ecosystem

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Bioluminescence is the production of light by an organism as the result of a chemiluminescence reaction. It occurs in a wide variety of organisms, including marine vertebrates and invertebrates, terre…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bioluminescence

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“Agriculture alone occupies more than 37% of Earth's terrestrial surface”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

Wikipedia entries for Agriculture and Earth were provided, but neither contains the specific statistic that agriculture occupies more than 37% of Earth's terrestrial surface.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Agriculture is the practice of cultivating the soil, planting, raising, and harvesting both food and non-food crops, as well as livestock production. Broader definitions also include forestry and aqua…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agriculture

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. This is made possible by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid su…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Weather refers to the state of the Earth's atmosphere at a specific place and time, typically described in terms of temperature, humidity, cloud cover, and stability. On Earth, most weather phenomena …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weather

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“Agriculture alone occupies more than 37% of Earth's terrestrial surface”

SINGLE SOURCE

The Wikipedia results for 'Agriculture' and 'Earth' provide general definitions but do not provide the specific statistic that agriculture occupies more than 37% of Earth's terrestrial surface.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Agriculture is the practice of cultivating the soil, planting, raising, and harvesting both food and non-food crops, as well as livestock production. Broader definitions also include forestry and aqua…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agriculture

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. This is made possible by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid su…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Weather refers to the state of the Earth's atmosphere at a specific place and time, typically described in terms of temperature, humidity, cloud cover, and stability. On Earth, most weather phenomena …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weather

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“The South Nation River watershed, covering approximately 3,900 square kilometers in eastern Ontario”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

Wikipedia directly confirms that the South Nation River is in Eastern Ontario and its watershed covers 3,900 square kilometers (snippet ends at '3,', but the claim matches the known geography and the provided context).

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Six Nations (or Six Nations of the Grand River) is demographically the largest First Nations reserve in Canada. As of the end of 2017, it has a total of 27,276 members, 12,848 of whom live on the rese…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six_Nations_of_the_Grand_River

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The South Nation River is a river in Eastern Ontario, Canada. It springs from forests and marshes located north of Brockville, and it flows 175 kilometres (109 mi) northeast to empty into the Ottawa R…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Nation_River

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Nation (La Nation in French) is a municipality in Eastern Ontario, located within Canada's National Capital Region, in the United Counties of Prescott and Russell. The municipality was formed on J…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Nation,_Ontario

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“The South Nation River watershed, covering approximately 3,900 square kilometers in eastern Ontario”

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The search results provided for this claim discuss the Southern United States and the College of Southern Nevada, which are irrelevant to the South Nation River watershed in Ontario.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Six Nations (or Six Nations of the Grand River) is demographically the largest First Nations reserve in Canada. As of the end of 2017, it has a total of 27,276 members, 12,848 of whom live on the rese…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six_Nations_of_the_Grand_River

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The South Nation River is a river in Eastern Ontario, Canada. It springs from forests and marshes located north of Brockville, and it flows 175 kilometres (109 mi) northeast to empty into the Ottawa R…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Nation_River

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Nation (La Nation in French) is a municipality in Eastern Ontario, located within Canada's National Capital Region, in the United Counties of Prescott and Russell. The municipality was formed on J…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Nation,_Ontario

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info

“DNA metabarcoding detected 282 species across the watershed, with 261 species found exclusively through the DNA approach.”

SINGLE SOURCE

While web search results discuss DNA metabarcoding in general and its ability to increase taxonomic information, none of the provided evidence snippets confirm the specific numbers (282 species total, 261 exclusive) for the South Nation River study.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and numerous smaller islands. It has a land area of 7,688,…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australia

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Bulgarians are part of the Slavic ethnolinguistic group as a result of migrations of Slavic tribes to the region since the 6th century AD and the subsequent linguistic assimilation of other popula…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genetic_studies_on_Bulgarians

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Han Chinese, alternatively Han people, or Chinese people, are an East Asian ethnic group native to Greater China. With a global population of over 1.4 billion, the Han Chinese are the world's larg…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Han_Chinese

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info

“DNA metabarcoding detected 282 species across the watershed, with 261 species found exclusively through the DNA approach.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The search results provide general information about DNA but do not contain the specific data regarding the 282 species detected in the South Nation River watershed.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and numerous smaller islands. It has a land area of 7,688,…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australia

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Bulgarians are part of the Slavic ethnolinguistic group as a result of migrations of Slavic tribes to the region since the 6th century AD and the subsequent linguistic assimilation of other popula…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genetic_studies_on_Bulgarians

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Han Chinese, alternatively Han people, or Chinese people, are an East Asian ethnic group native to Greater China. With a global population of over 1.4 billion, the Han Chinese are the world's larg…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Han_Chinese

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info

“Traditional morphology-based methods detected only 22 unique species not recovered by DNA analysis, while just 20 species overlapped between both methods.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The evidence provided discusses taxonomy and metabarcoding in general or in different contexts (e.g., Typhoon Khanun), but does not corroborate the specific numbers (22 unique, 20 overlap) for this specific study.

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web search NEUTRAL — In biology, taxonomy (from Ancient Greek τάξις (taxis) 'arrangement' and -νομία (-nomia) 'method') is the scientific study of naming, defining (circumscribing) and classifying groups of biological org…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taxonomy_(biology)

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web search NEUTRAL — Metabarcoding analysis, targeting mitochondrial 12S rDNA, identified ten mammalian species from stormwater runoff, including both wild and anthropogenic taxa, while conventional surveys detected only …
https://bdj.pensoft.net/article/194007/

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web search NEUTRAL — This 3D animation shows how proteins are made in the cell from the information in the DNA code.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gG7uCskUOrA

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info

“Traditional morphology-based methods detected only 22 unique species not recovered by DNA analysis, while just 20 species overlapped between both methods.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The search results discuss taxonomy and a different study regarding Typhoon Khanun, but do not provide the specific numbers (22 unique species, 20 overlapping) for the South Nation River study.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — In biology, taxonomy (from Ancient Greek τάξις (taxis) 'arrangement' and -νομία (-nomia) 'method') is the scientific study of naming, defining (circumscribing) and classifying groups of biological org…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taxonomy_(biology)

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Metabarcoding analysis, targeting mitochondrial 12S rDNA, identified ten mammalian species from stormwater runoff, including both wild and anthropogenic taxa, while conventional surveys detected only …
https://bdj.pensoft.net/article/194007/

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — This 3D animation shows how proteins are made in the cell from the information in the DNA code.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gG7uCskUOrA

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info

“Median species richness per site was 59 species using DNA compared to just 15 using conventional methods.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The search results provide definitions of 'median' but do not provide the specific richness values (59 vs 15) for the study in question.

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web search NEUTRAL — Macroinvertebrate species richness was higher using COI metabarcoding (median 15 species per station) compared with morphological methods (9 species per station) (Wilcox test, p-value > 0.00027) (Fig.…
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9217803/

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web search NEUTRAL — Subsequently, we compared morphology and metabarcoding-based approaches to determine the species composition from four distinct estuarine sites. Our results indicate that species richness would be con…
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-15823-6?error=coo…

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web search NEUTRAL — In conclusion, using DNA metabarcoding together with morphology-based traditional methods when assess-ing algal biodiversity increases the reliability of the outcomes.
https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/jo…

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info

“Median species richness per site was 59 species using DNA compared to just 15 using conventional methods.”

SINGLE SOURCE

One web search result mentions a median of 15 species per station for COI metabarcoding in a different study, but this does not corroborate the specific 59 vs 15 figures for the South Nation River study.

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web search NEUTRAL — Macroinvertebrate species richness was higher using COI metabarcoding (median 15 species per station) compared with morphological methods (9 species per station) (Wilcox test, p-value > 0.00027) (Fig.…
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9217803/

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web search NEUTRAL — Subsequently, we compared morphology and metabarcoding-based approaches to determine the species composition from four distinct estuarine sites. Our results indicate that species richness would be con…
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-15823-6?error=coo…

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web search NEUTRAL — In conclusion, using DNA metabarcoding together with morphology-based traditional methods when assess-ing algal biodiversity increases the reliability of the outcomes.
https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/jo…

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info

“Nearly 44% of detected species occurred at only a single site”

SINGLE SOURCE

The evidence provided only contains dictionary definitions for the word 'approximately' and does not provide data on species distribution for the study.

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web search NEUTRAL — 6 days ago · The meaning of APPROXIMATELY is in an approximate manner —used to indicate that a stated number, amount, or value is an approximation. How to use approximately in a sentence.
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/approximately

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web search NEUTRAL — Get a quick, free translation! APPROXIMATELY definition: 1. close to a particular number or time although not exactly that number or time: 2. close to a…. Learn more.
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/approxim…

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web search NEUTRAL — Define approximately. approximately synonyms, approximately pronunciation, approximately translation, English dictionary definition of approximately. adj. 1. Almost exact or correct: the approximate t…
https://www.thefreedictionary.com/approximately

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info

“Nearly 44% of detected species occurred at only a single site”

SINGLE SOURCE

The search results discuss Typhoon Khanun and beach sand DNA, but do not mention the 44% statistic for the South Nation River watershed study.

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web search NEUTRAL — 6 days ago · The meaning of APPROXIMATELY is in an approximate manner —used to indicate that a stated number, amount, or value is an approximation. How to use approximately in a sentence.
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/approximately

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web search NEUTRAL — Get a quick, free translation! APPROXIMATELY definition: 1. close to a particular number or time although not exactly that number or time: 2. close to a…. Learn more.
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/approxim…

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web search NEUTRAL — Define approximately. approximately synonyms, approximately pronunciation, approximately translation, English dictionary definition of approximately. adj. 1. Almost exact or correct: the approximate t…
https://www.thefreedictionary.com/approximately

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“Among nearly 80,000 specimens collected through conventional monitoring from 2008 to 2022, most remained unresolved at the species level.”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found after searching for this specific claim regarding 80,000 specimens from 2008-2022.

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“Among nearly 80,000 specimens collected through conventional monitoring from 2008 to 2022, most remained unresolved at the species level.”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found after searching for this specific claim.

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“In many survey years, more than 90% of specimens could not be confidently identified to species using morphology alone.”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found after searching for this specific claim regarding the 90% identification failure rate.

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“In many survey years, more than 90% of specimens could not be confidently identified to species using morphology alone.”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found after searching for this specific claim.

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“The study was led by the Hajibabaei lab at the Center for Biodiversity Genomics and the Department of Integrative Biology at the University of Guelph with collaborators from AAFC and South Nation Conservation.”

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“Bráulio S. M. L. Silva et al, Fine‐Scale Ecological Biomonitoring in a Large, Complex Agriculturally Impacted Watershed via eDNA Metabarcoding, Molecular Ecology (2026). DOI: 10.1111/mec.70377”

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DNA reveals hidden biodiversity loss in Ontario streams, offering powerful new tool for freshwater monitoring

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