Invasive species test brings big prize for student

A high school student from Summerside, P.E.I., has won a $4,500 prize for developing a test for identifying vase tunicate DNA in water samples.

Three Oaks Senior High School student Rebecca Wolfe, 17, wanted to achieve something significant with her science fair project, so she turned her attention to the tunicate, an invasive species that has caused big problems for mussel farmers on P.E.I. in recent years.

"I looked for a problem that was really important at the time, and this was one of the most important things for us on Prince Edward Island, so I decided to go in that area," Wolfe told CBC News on Tuesday.

The slimy marine creatures grow over top of mussels hanging on lines set up by aquafarmers, competing for food and making the mussels difficult to harvest.

Working with PhD student Sarah Clark at Charlottetown's Atlantic Veterinary College, Wolfe developed a test that could quickly determine whether vase tunicate are present in a waterway. Previous technology could take up to four months. Wolfe's test takes only a couple of days.

"That's a lot faster and a lot more conclusive evidence, so we can use it to map out waterways to see where the species is," she said.

Wolfe's project won a $4,500 award from the Ernest C. Manning Awards Foundation at the Canada-wide Science Fair in Ottawa last week. Mussel farmers are already using her technique to find out where vase tunicates are developing, and plan where they should hang their mussel socks.

The Grade 12 student plans to put the $4,500 toward her university education, where she intends to study marine or molecular biology.