Unravelling the impacts of captivity on saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus porosus) cloacal bacterial communities and physiology.

ABSTRACT: This study addresses a significant research gap in understanding the impacts of captivity on the bacteriome and physiology of saltwater crocodiles (Crocodylus porosus). Despite their ecological and cultural significance, crocodilians are a taxon that remains underexplored in microbiome research. We investigated cloacal bacteriome samples from both wild and captive populations to identify compositional and functional differences resulting from captivity. Our findings reveal significant alterations in bacterial diversity and community structure in captive crocodiles, with notable shifts at both phylum and family levels; specifically, Bacteroidota and Fusobacteriota dominate in captivity, whereas wild crocodiles exhibit a higher prevalence of Pseudomonadota and Bacillota. The Shannon diversit

SUBMITTER: Scheelings TF 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12658888 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature