Limited gut bacterial response of tuatara (Sphenodon punctatus) to dietary manipulation and captivity.

ABSTRACT: The bacteria of a host's digestive tract play crucial roles in digestion and pathogen resistance. Hosts living in captivity often have more human interaction and antibiotic use, in addition to differences in diet and environment, compared to their wild counterparts. Consequently, wild and captive animals frequently harbour different bacterial communities. We tested whether diversity of diet provided in captivity shifts the gut bacteria of tuatara, an endemic New Zealand reptile, at three captive sites, and examined how the gut community of these tuatara compares to those in the wild. Dietary manipulation did not cause a strong overall shift in tuatara gut bacteria, but individual tuatara did experience bacterial shifts during manipulation, which subsequently reverted after manipulation. We

SUBMITTER: Hoffbeck C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11523620 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature