Tracheal and cloacal bacterial diversity of red listed Eastern Imperial Eagle (Aquila heliaca)
This study aimed to improve knowledge of raptor microbiomes by providing the first description of tracheal and cloacal bacterial diversity of Eastern Imperial Eagles (Aquila heliaca). To date, only few studies are available and they are carried out mainly on captive birds. The Eastern Imperial Eagle...
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2025-05-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Microbiology |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2025.1477032/full |
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| author | Marine Murtskhvaladze Marine Murtskhvaladze Levan Ninua Nika Budagashvili Ekaterine Tevdoradze Zurab Gurgenidze Adam Kotorashvili Nato Kotaria Alexander Gavashelishvili Zurab Javakhishvili |
| author_facet | Marine Murtskhvaladze Marine Murtskhvaladze Levan Ninua Nika Budagashvili Ekaterine Tevdoradze Zurab Gurgenidze Adam Kotorashvili Nato Kotaria Alexander Gavashelishvili Zurab Javakhishvili |
| author_sort | Marine Murtskhvaladze |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This study aimed to improve knowledge of raptor microbiomes by providing the first description of tracheal and cloacal bacterial diversity of Eastern Imperial Eagles (Aquila heliaca). To date, only few studies are available and they are carried out mainly on captive birds. The Eastern Imperial Eagle is species of significant conservation concern and, therefore, characterization microbiota contributes valuable information to the field of avian microbiology and aids in conservation efforts for this threatened species, moreover, identification of avian and human pathogens within microbial communities and evaluation of potential threats to birds, humans, and other species are crucial for sustainably balancing the wellbeing of ecosystems, 3,500 OTUs were identified from each sample supported by ∼2.8 Million sequence reads. The tracheal and cloacal microbiomes were dominated by Gammaproteobacteria (67.5%), Bacilli (43.8%), and Negativicutes (22.0%). We detected dissimilarities between cloacal (unique 440 OTUs) and tracheal (337 unique OTUs) samples, and significant evidence of moderate positive monotonic relationship between cloacal and tracheal bacterial communities. No significant differences between individuals from different nests. Aquila heliaca can serve as an indicator of presence of bacterial species in its respective habitats. Efforts aiming at protection of red-listed birds may not presently prioritize microbiome considerations but integrating microbiome research into conservation strategies could yield significant benefits. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-57b1579eace2446fba51caa9b5e6e367 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 1664-302X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Microbiology |
| spelling | doaj-art-57b1579eace2446fba51caa9b5e6e3672025-08-20T02:56:08ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Microbiology1664-302X2025-05-011610.3389/fmicb.2025.14770321477032Tracheal and cloacal bacterial diversity of red listed Eastern Imperial Eagle (Aquila heliaca)Marine Murtskhvaladze0Marine Murtskhvaladze1Levan Ninua2Nika Budagashvili3Ekaterine Tevdoradze4Zurab Gurgenidze5Adam Kotorashvili6Nato Kotaria7Alexander Gavashelishvili8Zurab Javakhishvili9Faculty of Natural Sciences and Medicine, Ilia State University, Tbilisi, GeorgiaR. L. Lugar Center, L. Sakvarelidze National Center for Disease Control and Public Health, Tbilisi, GeorgiaFaculty of Natural Sciences and Medicine, Ilia State University, Tbilisi, GeorgiaSABUKO (Society for Nature Conservation), Tbilisi, GeorgiaFaculty of Natural Sciences and Medicine, Ilia State University, Tbilisi, GeorgiaSABUKO (Society for Nature Conservation), Tbilisi, GeorgiaR. L. Lugar Center, L. Sakvarelidze National Center for Disease Control and Public Health, Tbilisi, GeorgiaR. L. Lugar Center, L. Sakvarelidze National Center for Disease Control and Public Health, Tbilisi, GeorgiaFaculty of Natural Sciences and Medicine, Ilia State University, Tbilisi, GeorgiaFaculty of Natural Sciences and Medicine, Ilia State University, Tbilisi, GeorgiaThis study aimed to improve knowledge of raptor microbiomes by providing the first description of tracheal and cloacal bacterial diversity of Eastern Imperial Eagles (Aquila heliaca). To date, only few studies are available and they are carried out mainly on captive birds. The Eastern Imperial Eagle is species of significant conservation concern and, therefore, characterization microbiota contributes valuable information to the field of avian microbiology and aids in conservation efforts for this threatened species, moreover, identification of avian and human pathogens within microbial communities and evaluation of potential threats to birds, humans, and other species are crucial for sustainably balancing the wellbeing of ecosystems, 3,500 OTUs were identified from each sample supported by ∼2.8 Million sequence reads. The tracheal and cloacal microbiomes were dominated by Gammaproteobacteria (67.5%), Bacilli (43.8%), and Negativicutes (22.0%). We detected dissimilarities between cloacal (unique 440 OTUs) and tracheal (337 unique OTUs) samples, and significant evidence of moderate positive monotonic relationship between cloacal and tracheal bacterial communities. No significant differences between individuals from different nests. Aquila heliaca can serve as an indicator of presence of bacterial species in its respective habitats. Efforts aiming at protection of red-listed birds may not presently prioritize microbiome considerations but integrating microbiome research into conservation strategies could yield significant benefits.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2025.1477032/fullEastern Imperial Eagletracheal bacteriascloacal bacterias16S rRNAconservation |
| spellingShingle | Marine Murtskhvaladze Marine Murtskhvaladze Levan Ninua Nika Budagashvili Ekaterine Tevdoradze Zurab Gurgenidze Adam Kotorashvili Nato Kotaria Alexander Gavashelishvili Zurab Javakhishvili Tracheal and cloacal bacterial diversity of red listed Eastern Imperial Eagle (Aquila heliaca) Frontiers in Microbiology Eastern Imperial Eagle tracheal bacterias cloacal bacterias 16S rRNA conservation |
| title | Tracheal and cloacal bacterial diversity of red listed Eastern Imperial Eagle (Aquila heliaca) |
| title_full | Tracheal and cloacal bacterial diversity of red listed Eastern Imperial Eagle (Aquila heliaca) |
| title_fullStr | Tracheal and cloacal bacterial diversity of red listed Eastern Imperial Eagle (Aquila heliaca) |
| title_full_unstemmed | Tracheal and cloacal bacterial diversity of red listed Eastern Imperial Eagle (Aquila heliaca) |
| title_short | Tracheal and cloacal bacterial diversity of red listed Eastern Imperial Eagle (Aquila heliaca) |
| title_sort | tracheal and cloacal bacterial diversity of red listed eastern imperial eagle aquila heliaca |
| topic | Eastern Imperial Eagle tracheal bacterias cloacal bacterias 16S rRNA conservation |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2025.1477032/full |
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