Instead of detecting the actual metabolite, we asked whether individual egg collars in SW Florida contained the biosynthetic gene cluster (BGC) of 6. In Feb. 2023, we systematically collected moon snail egg collars at the same sites as our previous collections. Ten individual moon snail egg collars were collected at each site, preserved in ethanol, and the environmental DNA extracted. Analysis of the sequenced P. piscicida genome in AntiSMASH 40 identified a putative BGC for 6, which had 100% homology to previously reported pathways. We designed PCR primers for a key biosynthetic gene, specifically for the NRPS adenylation domain (NRPS-A), which forms the amide bond between 10 and lysine (11) (Fig. ). We used this set of primers to amplify the gene from the extracted egg collar DNA using PCR. Interestingly, the NRPS-A was observed in three of the ten samples (Figure ). The presence of this gene was confirmed through Illumnia sequencing of the PCR product from one sample (Table ), thus strongly indicting that the microbiota of the moon snail egg collars have the potential to make 6 and this molecule may have a role in minimizing micro-biofouling.