Impacts of coprophagic foraging behaviour on the avian gut microbiome

Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc. 2023 Dec 8. doi: 10.1111/brv.13036. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTAvian gut microbial communities are complex and play a fundamental role in regulating biological functions within an individual. Although it is well established that diet can influence the structure and composition of the gut microbiota, foraging behaviour may also play a critical, yet unexplored role in shaping the composition, dynamics, and adaptive potential of avian gut microbiota. In this review, we examine the potential influence of coprophagic foraging behaviour on the establishment and adaptability of wild avian gut microbiomes. Coprophagy involves the ingestion of faeces, sourced from either self (autocoprophagy), conspecific animals (allocoprophagy), or heterospecific animals. Much like faecal transplant therapy, coprophagy may (i) support the establishment of the gut microbiota of young precocial species, (ii) directly and indirectly provide nutritional and energetic requirements, and (iii) represent a mechanism by which birds can rapidly adapt the microbiota to changing environments and diets. However, in certain contexts, coprophagy may also pose risks to wild birds, and their microbiomes, through increased exposure to chemical pollutants, pathogenic microbes, and antibiotic-resistant microbes, with deleterious effects on host health and performance. Given the potentially far-reaching consequences of coprophagy for avian microbiomes, and the dearth of literature directly i...
Source: Biological Reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society - Category: Biology Authors: Source Type: research