Gut microbiome communities demonstrate fine-scale spatial variation in a closed, island bird population.

ABSTRACT: Environmental variation is a key factor shaping microbial communities in wild animals. However, most studies have focussed on separate populations distributed over large spatial scales. How ecological factors shape inter-individual microbiome variation within a single landscape and host population remains poorly understood. Here, we use dense sampling of individuals in a natural, closed population of Seychelles warblers (Acrocephalus sechellensis) on Cousin Island (<0.7 km diameter, 0.34 km² total area) to determine whether gut microbiome communities exhibit high-resolution spatial variation over fine scales (average territory area is 0.0023 km²). We identified a small but highly significant quadratic relationship between geographic distance and gut microbiome

SUBMITTER: Worsley SF 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12400925 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature