Abstract

Host ecological factors and external environmental factors are known to influence the structure of gut microbial communities, but few studies have examined the impacts of environmental changes on microbiotas in free‐ranging animals. Rapid land‐use change has the potential to shift gut microbial communities in wildlife through exposure to novel bacteria and/or by changing the availability or quality of local food resources. The consequences of such changes to host health and fitness remain unknown and may have important implications for pathogen spillover between humans and wildlife. To better understand the consequences of land‐use change on wildlife microbiotas, we analyzed long‐term dietary trends, gut microbiota composition, and innate immune function in common vampire bats (Desmodus rotundus) in two nearby sites in Belize that vary in landscape structure. We found that vampire bats living in a small forest fragment had more homogenous diets indicative of feeding on livestock and shifts in microbiota heterogeneity, but not overall composition, compared to those living in an intact forest reserve. We also found that irrespective of sampling site, vampire bats which consumed relatively more livestock showed shifts in some core bacteria compared with vampire bats which consumed relatively less livestock. The relative abundance of some core microbiota members was associated with innate immune function, suggesting that future research should consider the role of the host microbiota in immune defense and its relationship to zoonotic infection dynamics. We suggest that subsequent homogenization of diet and habitat loss through livestock rearing in the Neotropics may lead to disruption to the microbiota that could have downstream impacts on host immunity and cross‐species pathogen transmission.

Highlights

  • The animal gut microbiota plays an essential role in maintaining host health, including modulating effects of nutrition and immu‐ nity (Amato et al, 2014; Hanning & Diaz‐Sanchez, 2015; Khosravi & Mazmanian, 2013; O'Sullivan et al, 2013)

  • We suggest that subsequent homogenization of diet and habitat loss through livestock rearing in the Neotropics may lead to disruption to the microbiota that could have downstream impacts on host immunity and cross‐species pathogen transmission

  • Common vampire bats (D. rotundus) are one of three species of vampire bats found in the Neotropics and are the most specialized for feeding on mammalian prey (Goodwin & Greenhall, 1961; Greenhall, Joermann, Schmidt, & Seidel, 1983; Greenhall & Schmidt, 1988; Greenhall, Schmidt, & Lopez‐Forment, 1969; Turner, 1975)

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Summary

| INTRODUCTION

The animal gut microbiota plays an essential role in maintaining host health, including modulating effects of nutrition and immu‐ nity (Amato et al, 2014; Hanning & Diaz‐Sanchez, 2015; Khosravi & Mazmanian, 2013; O'Sullivan et al, 2013). The gut microbi‐ otas of Udzungwa red colobus monkeys (Procolobus gordonorum) in fragmented forests were found to have significantly lower micro‐ biota alpha diversity than conspecifics living in undisturbed forests and have reduced functional capacity to digest toxic xenobiotics naturally present in their diet (Barelli et al, 2015) These studies suggest that land‐use change and habitat loss may impact the fit‐ ness of animal microbiotas through changes in host diet. Exactly how land conversion influences the vampire bat gut microbiota, and if this helps explain observed immune profiles, remains unknown (Altizer et al, 2018; Becker, Bergner, et al, 2018a; Streicker & Allgeier, 2016) We approached these questions by sampling blood, rectal micro‐ biota, and hair from vampire bats at two adjacent sites in Belize that contrast in land use. We predicted that less diverse vampire bat microbiotas would be associated with weaker immune defenses as measure by a bacterial killing assay (Khosravi & Mazmanian, 2013)

| MATERIALS AND METHODS
| DISCUSSION
Findings
CONFLICT OF INTEREST
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