Diversity of the aerobic cloacal microbiota of syntopic lizard species (Reptilia: Sauria) from a low-mountain area in Western Bulgaria

Abstract

Compared to other reptile groups in Europe, lizards have generally been neglected and understudied in terms of microbiota research. In this study, we aimed to isolate, identify and characterize the aerobic cloacal microflora of wild-dwelling lizard hosts. We examined a total of 86 individuals from five species belonging to three families: the European green lizard (Lacerta viridis), the common wall lizard (Podarcis muralis), the meadow lizard (Darevskia praticola) (Lacertidae), the European snake-eyed skink (Ablepharus kitaibelii) (Scincidae) and the European slow worm (Anguis fragilis) (Anguidae) which co-occur in a low-mountain region in Western Bulgaria. In general, a similar composition of the resident microbial communities in the cloaca was found, accompanied by variation in the relative abundance of some bacterial taxa between the lizard species. A variety of Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria was isolated from the cloacal samples. Some of these bacteria are also known as opportunistic pathogens, both for hosts and humans. The bacterial species Hafnia alvei, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella oxytoca and representatives of Enterobacter spp., Citrobacter spp. and Enterococcus spp. were among the most prevalent.