Analysis of the microbial diversity in the fecal material of the critically endangered orangutan.

Abstract

The orangutan ( Pongo spp.) is a critically endangered species. Today, populations of these animals are rapidly declining by up to 75%. They are found in the tropical rainforests of Borneo and Sumatra. In this study, using a next generation sequencing approach, the bacterial and fungal diversity in the fecal material of orangutans living in the Racine Zoo were investigated. The most predominant bacterial phyla were the Bacillota along with Bacteroidota. The most predominant fungal phylum was Ascomycota. Finally, the various functions of the bacterial communities present in the fecal material were predicted with PICRUSt2 using the KEGG database.