Microbial communities associated with mounds of the Orange-footed scrubfowl Megapodius reinwardt.

ABSTRACT: Megapodius reinwardt, the orange-footed scrubfowl, belongs to a small family of birds that inhabits the Indo-Australian region. Megapodes are unique in incubating their eggs in mounds using heat from microbial decomposition of organic materials and solar radiation. Little is known about the microorganisms involved in the decomposition of organic matter in mounds. To determine the source of microbes in the mounds, we used 16S and 18S rRNA gene sequencing to characterize the microbial communities of mound soil, adjacent soil and scrubfowl faeces. We found that the microbial communities of scrubfowl faeces were substantially different from those of the mounds and surrounding soils, suggesting that scrubfowls probably do not use their faeces to inoculate their mounds although a few micr

SUBMITTER: Cardenas Gomez K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9332330 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature