Bacterial Diversity in Feces of Wild Bald Eagles, Turkey Vultures and Common Ravens from the Pacific Northwest Coast, U.S.A.

Abstract

Birds harbor diverse microorganisms in their guts, which collectively fulfill important roles in providing their hosts with nutrition and protection from pathogens. Although numerous studies have investigated the presence of certain pathogenic bacteria in the feces of wild birds, only a few have attempted to investigate the microbiota of the gut. This study analyzed the avian bacteria present in the cloaca of avian scavengers captured on coastal beaches of Washington and Oregon between 2013 and 2015: 10 turkey vultures (Cathartes aura), 9 bald eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus), and 2 common ravens (Corvus corax). We used illumina sequencing based on the V4 region of the 16s gene was to characterize the bacterial diversity. Our investigation revealed phylum-level differences in the microbiome of turkey vultures, compared with bald eagles and common ravens. Substantial microbiome differences were found between bald eagles and ravens below the phylum level. Although little is known about the possible relations among these microorganisms, our analyses provides the first integrated look at the composition of the avian microbiota and serves as a foundation for future studies in this area.