Seasonal Turnover in Bat Skin Mycobiota: Contrasting Fungal Communities Between Hibernation and Reproduction in Greater Mouse-Eared Bats (Myotis myotis).

ABSTRACT: The skin of bats hosts diverse microbial communities, yet most research has focused on bacteria or single fungal pathogens such as Pseudogymnoascus destructans. Here, we present the first direct comparison of culturable skin mycobiota in the greater mouse-eared bat (Myotis myotis) between hibernation and the reproductive season. Swabs collected from hibernating bats in the Nietoperek reserve and from maternity colonies in Lipy yielded 41 fungal species, including 27 that represent new records for M. myotis. Winter assemblages were less diverse but strongly dominated by Penicillium (>90% of isolates), while summer maternity roosts supported broader communities shaped by environmental exposure and plant-associated fungi. Despite seasonal turnover, a small set of t

SUBMITTER: Ogorek R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12845230 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature