Anna M Mckee
Biography
Education
Ph.D., Forestry and Natural Resources - University of Georgia
B.Sc., Biological Science - Colorado State University
Research Background and Interests
My research background is primarily in molecular ecology. Early projects as a laboratory technician at the Savannah River Ecology Lab included developing microsatellite loci for a Peromyscus genome mapping project and using microsatellites to estimate the frequency of multiple paternity in alligators. My dissertation research at the University of Georgia focused on investigating the relationships between species and genetic diversity of pond-breeding amphibian communities, and the association between these scales of diversity and surrounding landscape features. Since joining USGS, my research interests have pivoted to the use environmental DNA for detecting species of interest. Projects have included screening isolated wetlands throughout the southeastern U.S. for imperiled pond-breeding amphibians, comparing results between traditional fish and invertebrate survey methods with eDNA metabarcoding methods, and determining sources of fecal contamination in National Park waterways in the southeastern U.S.
Science and Products
Actual evapotranspiration, flash droughts, water deficits, reduced vegetative growth, and wildfires: the effects of seasonally water-limited conditions in a changing climate
The Southeastern U.S. experiences recurring hydrologic droughts, which can reduce water availability for human consumption and ecosystem services, leading to plant stress and reduced plant growth. This project examines relationships between drought and the water cycle in the Southeast with data from the Panola Mountain Research Watershed (PMRW) near Atlanta, Georgia and other Southeastern...
Environmental DNA (eDNA)
Environmental DNA (eDNA) is organismal DNA that can be found in the environment. Environmental DNA originates from cellular material shed by organisms (via skin, excrement, etc.) into aquatic or terrestrial environments that can be sampled and monitored using new molecular methods. Such methodology is important for the early detection of invasive species as well as the detection of rare and...
New distributional records of the stygobitic crayfish Cambarus cryptodytes (Decapoda: Cambaridae) in the Floridan Aquifer System of southwestern Georgia
Cambarus cryptodytes (Dougherty Plain Cave Crayfish) is an obligate inhabitant of groundwater habitats (i.e., a stygobiont) with troglomorphic adaptations in the Floridan aquifer system of southwestern Georgia and adjacent Florida panhandle, particularly in the Dougherty Plain and Marianna Lowlands. Documented occurrences of Dougherty Plain...
Fenolio, Dante B.; Niemiller, Matthew L.; Gluesenkamp, Andrew G.; Mckee, Anna; Taylor, Steven J. Detection of an enigmatic plethodontid Salamander using Environmental DNA
The isolation and identification of environmental DNA (eDNA) offers a non-invasive and efficient method for the detection of rare and secretive aquatic wildlife, and it is being widely integrated into inventory and monitoring efforts. The Patch-Nosed Salamander (Urspelerpes brucei) is a tiny, recently discovered species of plethodontid salamander...
Pierson, Todd W.; Mckee, Anna; Spear, Stephen F.; Maerz, John C.; Camp, Carlos D.; Glenn, Travis C. Assessment of environmental DNA for detecting presence of imperiled aquatic amphibian species in isolated wetlands
Environmental DNA (eDNA) is an emerging tool that allows low-impact sampling for aquatic species by isolating DNA from water samples and screening for DNA sequences specific to species of interest. However, researchers have not tested this method in naturally acidic wetlands that provide breeding habitat for a number of imperiled species,...
Mckee, Anna; Calhoun, Daniel L.; Barichivich, William J.; Spear, Stephen F.; Goldberg, Caren S.; Glenn, Travis C