Relationships Between Migration and Microbiome Composition and Diversity in Urban Canada Geese
Microbiome analysis presents an opportunity to understand how urban environments affect avian physiology. For example, habitat use can affect microbiome diversity and composition, and hosts with more diverse gut microbiota are thought to be more resistant to pathogens and have increased fitness. How...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:bf732080cda34a9ba30b2b96ec744251 2023-05-15T15:46:16+02:00 Relationships Between Migration and Microbiome Composition and Diversity in Urban Canada Geese Sean Obrochta Maria Luisa Savo Sardaro Katherine R. Amato Maureen H. Murray 2022-02-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2022.742369 https://doaj.org/article/bf732080cda34a9ba30b2b96ec744251 EN eng Frontiers Media S.A. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fevo.2022.742369/full https://doaj.org/toc/2296-701X 2296-701X doi:10.3389/fevo.2022.742369 https://doaj.org/article/bf732080cda34a9ba30b2b96ec744251 Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, Vol 10 (2022) migration Branta canadensis urban ecology Firmicutes microbiome microbial diversity Evolution QH359-425 Ecology QH540-549.5 article 2022 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2022.742369 2022-12-31T03:42:25Z Microbiome analysis presents an opportunity to understand how urban environments affect avian physiology. For example, habitat use can affect microbiome diversity and composition, and hosts with more diverse gut microbiota are thought to be more resistant to pathogens and have increased fitness. However, the microbiome is an understudied aspect of avian ecology, particularly in the context of migration and urbanization in wild birds. For this study, we hypothesized that, within urban birds, migrants would exhibit greater microbial diversity and inter-individual variation in microbiome composition than residents because they are exposed to more diverse habitats. We focused on Canada geese (Branta canadensis), one of many migratory species that exhibit increasingly more year-round residency in cities. We used 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing to quantify microbiome taxonomic composition in fecal samples from 32 GPS-tracked Canada geese, 22 of which were year-round residents of the Chicago area and 10 of which were migrants. Similar to recent studies on wild species feeding near human habitation, urban resident geese had higher gut microbial diversity than migrants. They also had increased inter-individual variation in microbiome composition and, on average, lower relative abundances of bacteria in the phylum Firmicutes, and the genera Terrisporobacter, Turicibacter, and Cellulosilyticum, which all have metabolic functions that may aid in goose digestion. Therefore, the gut microbiome of resident geese may provide fewer potential health benefits. These patterns may be a result of anthropogenic influences on aspects of resident goose ecology, such as diet, as well the influence of migration on migrant goose ecology and biology. Overall, our results suggest that reduced migration for urban-adapted wildlife species may have important consequences for physiology and health. Article in Journal/Newspaper Branta canadensis Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Canada Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution 10 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
migration Branta canadensis urban ecology Firmicutes microbiome microbial diversity Evolution QH359-425 Ecology QH540-549.5 |
spellingShingle |
migration Branta canadensis urban ecology Firmicutes microbiome microbial diversity Evolution QH359-425 Ecology QH540-549.5 Sean Obrochta Maria Luisa Savo Sardaro Katherine R. Amato Maureen H. Murray Relationships Between Migration and Microbiome Composition and Diversity in Urban Canada Geese |
topic_facet |
migration Branta canadensis urban ecology Firmicutes microbiome microbial diversity Evolution QH359-425 Ecology QH540-549.5 |
description |
Microbiome analysis presents an opportunity to understand how urban environments affect avian physiology. For example, habitat use can affect microbiome diversity and composition, and hosts with more diverse gut microbiota are thought to be more resistant to pathogens and have increased fitness. However, the microbiome is an understudied aspect of avian ecology, particularly in the context of migration and urbanization in wild birds. For this study, we hypothesized that, within urban birds, migrants would exhibit greater microbial diversity and inter-individual variation in microbiome composition than residents because they are exposed to more diverse habitats. We focused on Canada geese (Branta canadensis), one of many migratory species that exhibit increasingly more year-round residency in cities. We used 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing to quantify microbiome taxonomic composition in fecal samples from 32 GPS-tracked Canada geese, 22 of which were year-round residents of the Chicago area and 10 of which were migrants. Similar to recent studies on wild species feeding near human habitation, urban resident geese had higher gut microbial diversity than migrants. They also had increased inter-individual variation in microbiome composition and, on average, lower relative abundances of bacteria in the phylum Firmicutes, and the genera Terrisporobacter, Turicibacter, and Cellulosilyticum, which all have metabolic functions that may aid in goose digestion. Therefore, the gut microbiome of resident geese may provide fewer potential health benefits. These patterns may be a result of anthropogenic influences on aspects of resident goose ecology, such as diet, as well the influence of migration on migrant goose ecology and biology. Overall, our results suggest that reduced migration for urban-adapted wildlife species may have important consequences for physiology and health. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Sean Obrochta Maria Luisa Savo Sardaro Katherine R. Amato Maureen H. Murray |
author_facet |
Sean Obrochta Maria Luisa Savo Sardaro Katherine R. Amato Maureen H. Murray |
author_sort |
Sean Obrochta |
title |
Relationships Between Migration and Microbiome Composition and Diversity in Urban Canada Geese |
title_short |
Relationships Between Migration and Microbiome Composition and Diversity in Urban Canada Geese |
title_full |
Relationships Between Migration and Microbiome Composition and Diversity in Urban Canada Geese |
title_fullStr |
Relationships Between Migration and Microbiome Composition and Diversity in Urban Canada Geese |
title_full_unstemmed |
Relationships Between Migration and Microbiome Composition and Diversity in Urban Canada Geese |
title_sort |
relationships between migration and microbiome composition and diversity in urban canada geese |
publisher |
Frontiers Media S.A. |
publishDate |
2022 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2022.742369 https://doaj.org/article/bf732080cda34a9ba30b2b96ec744251 |
geographic |
Canada |
geographic_facet |
Canada |
genre |
Branta canadensis |
genre_facet |
Branta canadensis |
op_source |
Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, Vol 10 (2022) |
op_relation |
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fevo.2022.742369/full https://doaj.org/toc/2296-701X 2296-701X doi:10.3389/fevo.2022.742369 https://doaj.org/article/bf732080cda34a9ba30b2b96ec744251 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2022.742369 |
container_title |
Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution |
container_volume |
10 |
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1766380972255739904 |