Poikilothermic Animals as a Previously Unrecognized Source of Fecal Indicator Bacteria in a Backwater Ecosystem of a Large River.

ABSTRACT: Quantitative information regarding the presence of Escherichia coli, intestinal enterococci, and Clostridium perfringens in poikilotherms is notably scarce. Therefore, this study was designed to allow a systematic comparison of the occurrence of these standard fecal indicator bacteria (SFIB) in the excreta of wild homeothermic (ruminants, boars, carnivores, and birds) and poikilothermic (earthworms, gastropods, frogs, and fish) animals inhabiting an alluvial backwater area in eastern Austria. With the exception of earthworms, the average concentrations of E. coli and enterococci in the excreta of poikilotherms were equal to or only slightly lower than those observed in homeothermic excreta and were 1 to 4 orders of magnitude higher than the levels observed in the ambie

SUBMITTER: Frick C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6070746 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature