Abstract
Sedimentary ancient DNA in well‐dated contexts ( sed aDNA) has great potential as a palaeoecological proxy. A few studies have attempted palaeoecological reconstructions using sed aDNA from soil; these studies have been mainly restricted to cold and/or dry soils. The study of soils from wet, temperate locations has been limited due to uncertainties surrounding the longevity and mobility of DNA in these environments. We addressed this knowledge gap with a novel field experiment that (i) tracked the movement and longevity of ‘exotic’ DNA applied to a wet, temperate soil and (ii) compared extant plant community structure with recent (decades old) environmental DNA (eDNA) data extracted from shallow ( sed aDNA would be suitable as a palaeo‐proxy for vegetation in similar settings, albeit restricted to the most abundant taxa. Further work in more taxonomically and structurally diverse settings, preferably with different soil types, would be required to establish the broader use of soil sed aDNA as a palaeoecological proxy in wet, temperate soils.