The microbiome clues researchers into endangered bat health

Wildlife species can’t really tell researchers when they’re sick, so one team of scientists wanted to get some clues into how they were feeling by studying their waste. Indiana bats (Myotis sodalist) are federally endangered, and researchers need to know about the health of individuals to know if there are population impacts. In a study published in Microbial Genomics, a team of wildlifers captured Indiana bats in front of a hibernation site in Missouri and took fecal samples. Back at the lab, they extracted DNA from the samples to get a better look at their gut microbiomes and any parasites present. The team found the presence of a protozoan parasite called Eimeria, and by looking at the bats’ microbiomes, they could see how the parasite affected them. They found that bats with high loads of Eimeria had more Clostridium bacteria, which is associated with severe tissue damage in other species. “This is where our work adds value,” said Andrew Bennett, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and lead author of the study. “Before, if we just detected Eimeria, we wouldn’t necessarily be able to say whether it was causing problems. But by analyzing changes in the microbiome that are associated with Eimeria load in these bats, we gain a noninvasive marker that can help us assess their gut health.”

Read the study in Microbial Genomics.