DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln

Title

DNA IDENTIFICATION OF BIRD STRIKE REMAINS – PROCEDURES AND TECHNICAL CONSIDERATIONS.

Authors

Nancy Rotzel, Feather Identification Lab, Smithsonian Institution

Document Type

Article

Date of this Version

August 2006

This poster presents the development of DNA techniques by the Smithsonian Institution Feather Lab to identify bird remains recovered from military and civil bird aircraft collisions (bird strikes). The following steps for molecular identification of forensic samples are explained: receipt of sample, extraction, amplification, sequencing, and final data analysis using computer software. Recommendations for collecting bird strike samples for DNA analysis are also discussed. This work compliments the continuing work of the Feather Lab by providing a molecular signature to verify bird strike samples that do not contain sufficient feather remains for morphological identification.