Research stay - HERPOPS

The research stay will contribute directly to the HERPOPS project’s objectives of resolving the spatiotemporal structure of herring populations in the Northeastern Atlantic and developing environmental DNA (eDNA)-based tools for monitoring their occurrence and mixing. The stay is divided into two phases hosted by leading institutions in the fields of marine genomics and eDNA methodology. In the first phase, the fellow will conduct population genomic analyses based on whole-genome sequencing data from herring collected across multiple spawning sites. The work will focus on identifying genetic markers that distinguish populations, including those within currently unresolved spawning components. The analyses will include variant calling, population structure analyses, and evaluation of temporal stability in genetic signatures. These efforts aim to establish a robust SNP panel for population assignment and as a potential reference for eDNA-based detection. In the second phase, the fellow will develop and experimentally validate a method for linking eDNA signals to population composition. Using water samples from known herring mixtures, the fellow will quantify eDNA and assess its correlation with biomass and population origin under controlled conditions. This work will establish a calibration framework necessary to interpret eDNA data from field samples where population mixing occurs. By integrating both genomic and eDNA-based approaches, the research stay will generate new tools to address key knowledge gaps in herring stock identification and contribute to improved management of mixed-stock fisheries. It also supports the fellow’s career development in advanced genomic applications, while strengthening collaborative links between partner institutions across the Nordic region.