Using high-throughput sequencing to investigate the dietary composition of the Korean water deer (Hydropotes inermis argyropus): a spatiotemporal comparison.

ABSTRACT: The Korean water deer (Hydropotes inermis argyropus) is considered a vermin in Korea because it damages crops, but also listed as a vulnerable species on the IUCN's red list. Therefore, it is indispensable to manage them appropriately by understanding the ecology such as food habits. Here, we aimed to apply high-throughput sequencing (HTS), a sensitive and objective method, to investigate the dietary composition of the Korean water deer inhabiting the lowland and forest areas in summer and winter. We targeted the internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) region for plant identification. From a total of 40 fecal samples analyzed, 63 plant genera were identified, with Morus being the most abundant, and some of the plant taxa identified by HTS were detected for the first time as the diets of Korea

SUBMITTER: Lee SK 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9789119 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature