A5044596534- Gut microbiota and health
- Avian ecology and behavior
- Reproductive tract infections research
- Animal Nutrition and Physiology
- Climate variability and models
- Indigenous Studies and Ecology
- Marine and coastal plant biology
- Marine and fisheries research
- Dermatology and Skin Diseases
- Salmonella and Campylobacter epidemiology
- Bat Biology and Ecology Studies
- Marine animal studies overview
- Mercury impact and mitigation studies
- Probiotics and Fermented Foods
- Clostridium difficile and Clostridium perfringens research
- Coastal wetland ecosystem dynamics
- Genetic and phenotypic traits in livestock
- Zoonotic diseases and public health
- Environmental DNA in Biodiversity Studies
- Species Distribution and Climate Change
- Bird parasitology and diseases
- Allergic Rhinitis and Sensitization
- Macrophage Migration Inhibitory Factor
- Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
- Microbial Community Ecology and Physiology
University of Alaska Anchorage
2021-2024
University of Connecticut
2019-2023
Providence College
2021
Kansas State University
2014-2019
University of Groningen
2011-2015
Royal Ontario Museum
2014
University of Toronto
2014
LKH Hochsteiermark
1989
Austrian Society of Dermatology and Venereology
1976-1977
Gastrointestinal microbiota play a vital role in maintaining organismal health, through facilitating nutrient uptake, detoxification and interactions with the immune system. The gastrointestinal of birds has been poorly studied, especially wild species under natural conditions. Studies avian gut are outnumbered ten to one by studies mammals, dominated research on domestic poultry. Unlike poultry, vary widely environmental preferences, physiology, life‐history traits, such as migratory...
Gut microbiota play a key role in host health. Mammals acquire gut during birth, but timing of microbial recruitment birds is unknown. We evaluated whether precocial chicks from three species arctic-breeding shorebirds before or after hatching, and then documented the rate compositional dynamics accumulation microbiota. Contrary to earlier reports hatching chickens, quantitative PCR Illumina sequence data indicated negligible guts shorebird embryos hatching. Analyses chick feces an...
Gut microbiota can have important effects on host health, but explanatory factors and pathways that determine gut microbial composition differ among lineages. In mammals, phylogeny is one of the main drivers microbiota, a result vertical transfer during birth. birds, it less clear what might be, both environmental may play role. We investigated underlie variation in eight species migratory shorebirds. characterized bacterial communities from 375 fecal samples collected adults shorebird...
The ecological consequences of climate change have been recognized in numerous species, with perhaps phenology being the most well-documented change. Phenological changes may negative when organisms within different trophic levels respond to environmental at rates, potentially leading phenological mismatches between predators and their prey. This be especially apparent Arctic, which has affected more by than other regions, resulting earlier, warmer, longer summers. During a 7-year study near...
Using 16S rRNA gene sequencing analysis, we examined the bacterial diversity and presence of opportunistic pathogens (i.e., Campylobacter Helicobacter) in red knot (Calidris canutus; n = 40), ruddy turnstone (Arenaria interpres; 35), semipalmated sandpiper pusilla; 22) fecal samples collected during a migratory stopover Delaware Bay. Additionally, studied occurrence spp., enterococci, waterfowl source markers using quantitative PCR (qPCR) assays. Of 3,889 clone sequences analyzed, community...
Phylosymbiosis refers to a congruent pattern between the similarity of microbiomes different species and branching host phylogeny. has been detected in variety vertebrate invertebrate hosts, but only assessed geographically isolated populations. We tested for phylosymbiosis eight (sub)species western chipmunks with overlapping ranges ecological niches; we used nuclear (Acrosin) mitochondrial (CYTB) phylogenetic marker because there are many instances introgression chipmunks. predicted that...
Birds breeding in cold environments regularly have to interrupt incubation forage, causing a trade-off between two mutually exclusive behaviours. Earlier studies showed that uniparental Arctic sandpipers overall spend less time incubating their eggs than biparental species, but interspecific differences size and ecology were potential confounding factors. This study reports on within-species comparison of schedules metal egg temperatures uni- sanderlings (Calidris alba) Northeast Greenland...
The gastrointestinal tract (GIT) consists of connected structures that vary in function and physiology, different GIT sections potentially provide habitats for microorganisms. Birds possess unique structures, including the oesophagus, proventriculus, gizzard, small intestine, caeca large intestine. To understand birds as hosts microbial ecosystems, we characterized communities six two shorebird species, Dunlin Semipalmated Sandpiper, identified potential host species effects on microbiome...
Shorebirds migrate long distances twice annually, which requires intense physiological and morphological adaptations, including the ability to rapidly gain weight via fat deposition at stopover locations. The role of microbiome in avian hosts is unresolved, but there substantial evidence support hypothesis that involved with host from mammalian literature. Here, we collected 100 fecal samples Ruddy Turnstones investigate composition function during Delaware Bay, USA. Using 16S rRNA...
Probiotics are bacterial species or assemblages that applied to animals and plants with the intention of altering microbiome in a beneficial way. have been linked positive health effects such as faster disease recovery times humans increased weight gain poultry. Pigeon fanciers often feed their show pigeons probiotics increasing flight performance. The objective our study was determine effect two different probiotics, alone combination, on fecal Birmingham Roller pigeons. We sequenced...
Sanderlings (Calidris alba) are long-distance migratory shorebirds with a non-breeding range that spans temperate and tropical coastal habitats. Breeding in the High Arctic combined seasons tropics necessitate long migrations, which energetically demanding. On an annual basis, higher energy expenditures during migration might pay off if food availability is than at latitudes. We compared foraging behaviour of birds north site Netherlands Ghana, respectively. In both cases used similar...
Environmental variation can shape the gut microbiome, but broad/large-scale data on among and within-population heterogeneity in microbiome associated environmental factors of wild populations is lacking. Furthermore, previous studies have limited taxonomical coverage, knowledge about avian microbiomes still scarce. We investigated large-scale adult great tits across species' European distribution range. collected fecal samples to represent used 16S rRNA gene sequencing characterize...
Abstract Background Thirteen-lined ground squirrels ( Ictidomys tridecemlineatus ) are obligate hibernators and only active 4–5 months annually. During this period, rapidly acquire fat for use during hibernation. We investigated how the gut microbiome changed over season in mucosa lumen of two sections: cecum ileum. sequenced 16S rRNA gene to assess diversity composition squirrel used differential abundance network analyses identify relationships among sections. Results Microbial...
Abstract Background The gut microbiome forms at an early stage, yet data on the environmental factors influencing development of wild avian microbiomes is limited. As a vital part organismal health, it important to understand how may connect host performance. studies with have shown that rearing environment be importance in formation, results vary across taxa, and effects specific not been characterized. Here, great tit ( Parus major ) broods were manipulated either reduce or enlarge...
Obligate seasonal hibernators fast for 5-9 months depending on species yet resist muscle atrophy and emerge with little lean mass loss. The role of the gut microbiome in host nitrogen metabolism during hibernation is therefore considerable interest, recent studies support a urea salvage (UNS) host-protein conservation. We were interested effect pre-hibernation diet UNS microbial provision essential amino acids (EAAs) hibernation; therefore, we conducted study whereby fed arctic ground...
Marking wild birds is an integral part of many field studies. However, if marks affect the vital rates or behavior marked individuals, any conclusions reached by a study might be biased relative to general population. Leg bands have rarely been found negative effects on and are frequently used mark individuals. flags, which larger, heavier, produce more drag than bands, commonly shorebirds can help improve resighting rates. no one date has assessed possible leg flags demographic performance...
The gut microbiome is essential for maintaining organismal health. Gut microbiota may be disrupted through external factors like dietary change, which can lead to inflammation resulting in obesity. Hibernating mammals develop low-grade when they accumulate fat deposits preparation hibernation, making them useful models studying the relationship between microbiome, inflammation, and weight gain. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs steroids are commonly used humans target but how these affect...