Père David's deer gut microbiome changes across captive and translocated populations: Implications for conservation

Area of Science:

• Microbiome research
• Conservation biology
• Animal ecology

Background:

• Gut microbial communities influence host nutrition, development, and environmental adaptation.
• Père David's deer (Elaphurus davidianus) populations exist in both captive and translocated settings.
• Understanding gut microbiome dynamics is crucial for species conservation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the coevolution of gut microbiomes in captive versus translocated Père David's deer.
• To correlate gut microbiome composition and function with host diet and environmental factors.
• To assess the potential of gut microbiome analysis for informing conservation translocation strategies.

Main Methods:

• Employed macro- and micro-ecological approaches including landscape ecology, nutritional analysis, microscopy, isotopic analysis, and metagenomics.
• Conducted a long-term study from 2011-2014.
• Analyzed gut microbial community and functional gene profiles.

Main Results:

• Observed distinct gut microbiome compositions and functions between captive and translocated Père David's deer.
• Identified higher abundance of cellulose-digesting enzymes in captive deer, linked to their diet.
• Found enrichment of sodium transport-related enzymes in translocated deer, associated with a high-salt diet (Spartina alterniflora).

Conclusions:

• Père David's deer gut microorganisms appear to coevolve with host diet.
• The gut microbiome reflects local adaptation in translocated populations to new environments and diets.
• Findings suggest potential translocation sites rich in Spartina alterniflora for Père David's deer conservation.