Exploring winter diet, gut microbiota and parasitism in caribou using multi-marker metabarcoding of fecal DNA.

ABSTRACT: In conservation strategies, getting precise and repeatable information on the species' diet and health without relying on invasive or laborious methods is challenging. Here, we developed an efficient and non-invasive workflow for the sequencing and analysis of four taxonomic markers from fecal DNA to characterize the gut microbiota, parasites, and plants and lichens composing the winter diet of caribou (Rangifer tarandus), Canada's most iconic endangered species. Sequencing of the 18S rRNA gene of eukaryotes from seven locations in Manitoba and Saskatchewan, Canada, allowed for the detection of five genera of parasites in caribou feces (including Nematodirella and Parelaphostrongylus) with variable frequency of occurrence depending on sampling location and sex. Our workflow also revealed a

SUBMITTER: Nagati M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11564527 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature