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Kouete MT, Bletz MC, LaBumbard BC, Woodhams DC, Blackburn DC. Parental care contributes to vertical transmission of microbes in a skin-feeding and direct-developing caecilian. Anim Microbiome 2023; 5:28. [PMID: 37189209 PMCID: PMC10184399 DOI: 10.1186/s42523-023-00243-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2022] [Accepted: 03/20/2023] [Indexed: 05/17/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Our current understanding of vertebrate skin and gut microbiomes, and their vertical transmission, remains incomplete as major lineages and varied forms of parental care remain unexplored. The diverse and elaborate forms of parental care exhibited by amphibians constitute an ideal system to study microbe transmission, yet investigations of vertical transmission among frogs and salamanders have been inconclusive. In this study, we assess bacteria transmission in Herpele squalostoma, an oviparous direct-developing caecilian in which females obligately attend juveniles that feed on their mother's skin (dermatophagy). RESULTS We used 16S rRNA amplicon-sequencing of the skin and gut of wild caught H. squalostoma individuals (males, females, including those attending juveniles) as well as environmental samples. Sourcetracker analyses revealed that juveniles obtain an important portion of their skin and gut bacteria communities from their mother. The contribution of a mother's skin to the skin and gut of her respective juveniles was much larger than that of any other bacteria source. In contrast to males and females not attending juveniles, only the skins of juveniles and their mothers were colonized by bacteria taxa Verrucomicrobiaceae, Nocardioidaceae, and Erysipelotrichaceae. In addition to providing indirect evidence for microbiome transmission linked to parental care among amphibians, our study also points to noticeable differences between the skin and gut communities of H. squalostoma and that of many frogs and salamanders, which warrants further investigation. CONCLUSION Our study is the first to find strong support for vertical bacteria transmission attributed to parental care in a direct-developing amphibian species. This suggests that obligate parental care may promote microbiome transmission in caecilians.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcel T Kouete
- School of Natural Resources and Environment, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA.
- Department of Natural History, Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA.
| | - Molly C Bletz
- Department of Biology, University of Massachusetts, Boston, MA, 02125, USA
| | | | - Douglas C Woodhams
- Department of Biology, University of Massachusetts, Boston, MA, 02125, USA
| | - David C Blackburn
- Department of Natural History, Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA
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2
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Potapov AM, Beaulieu F, Birkhofer K, Bluhm SL, Degtyarev MI, Devetter M, Goncharov AA, Gongalsky KB, Klarner B, Korobushkin DI, Liebke DF, Maraun M, Mc Donnell RJ, Pollierer MM, Schaefer I, Shrubovych J, Semenyuk II, Sendra A, Tuma J, Tůmová M, Vassilieva AB, Chen T, Geisen S, Schmidt O, Tiunov AV, Scheu S. Feeding habits and multifunctional classification of soil‐associated consumers from protists to vertebrates. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2022; 97:1057-1117. [DOI: 10.1111/brv.12832] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2021] [Revised: 12/31/2021] [Accepted: 01/05/2022] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Anton M. Potapov
- J.F. Blumenbach Institute of Zoology and Anthropology University of Göttingen Untere Karspüle 2 37073 Göttingen Germany
- A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences Leninsky Prospect 33 119071 Moscow Russia
| | - Frédéric Beaulieu
- Canadian National Collection of Insects, Arachnids and Nematodes, Agriculture and Agri‐Food Canada Ottawa ON K1A 0C6 Canada
| | - Klaus Birkhofer
- Department of Ecology Brandenburg University of Technology Karl‐Wachsmann‐Allee 6 03046 Cottbus Germany
| | - Sarah L. Bluhm
- J.F. Blumenbach Institute of Zoology and Anthropology University of Göttingen Untere Karspüle 2 37073 Göttingen Germany
| | - Maxim I. Degtyarev
- A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences Leninsky Prospect 33 119071 Moscow Russia
| | - Miloslav Devetter
- Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Soil Biology Na Sádkách 702/7 37005 České Budějovice Czech Republic
| | - Anton A. Goncharov
- A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences Leninsky Prospect 33 119071 Moscow Russia
| | - Konstantin B. Gongalsky
- A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences Leninsky Prospect 33 119071 Moscow Russia
| | - Bernhard Klarner
- J.F. Blumenbach Institute of Zoology and Anthropology University of Göttingen Untere Karspüle 2 37073 Göttingen Germany
| | - Daniil I. Korobushkin
- A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences Leninsky Prospect 33 119071 Moscow Russia
| | - Dana F. Liebke
- J.F. Blumenbach Institute of Zoology and Anthropology University of Göttingen Untere Karspüle 2 37073 Göttingen Germany
| | - Mark Maraun
- J.F. Blumenbach Institute of Zoology and Anthropology University of Göttingen Untere Karspüle 2 37073 Göttingen Germany
| | - Rory J. Mc Donnell
- Department of Crop and Soil Science Oregon State University Corvallis OR 97331 U.S.A
| | - Melanie M. Pollierer
- J.F. Blumenbach Institute of Zoology and Anthropology University of Göttingen Untere Karspüle 2 37073 Göttingen Germany
| | - Ina Schaefer
- J.F. Blumenbach Institute of Zoology and Anthropology University of Göttingen Untere Karspüle 2 37073 Göttingen Germany
| | - Julia Shrubovych
- Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Soil Biology Na Sádkách 702/7 37005 České Budějovice Czech Republic
- Institute of Systematics and Evolution of Animals PAS Slawkowska 17 Pl 31‐016 Krakow Poland
- State Museum Natural History of NAS of Ukraine Teatralna 18 79008 Lviv Ukraine
| | - Irina I. Semenyuk
- A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences Leninsky Prospect 33 119071 Moscow Russia
- Joint Russian‐Vietnamese Tropical Center №3 Street 3 Thang 2, Q10 Ho Chi Minh City Vietnam
| | - Alberto Sendra
- Colecciones Entomológicas Torres‐Sala, Servei de Patrimoni Històric, Ajuntament de València València Spain
- Departament de Didàctica de les Cièncias Experimentals i Socials, Facultat de Magisteri Universitat de València València Spain
| | - Jiri Tuma
- Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Soil Biology Na Sádkách 702/7 37005 České Budějovice Czech Republic
- Biology Centre CAS, Institute of Entomology Branisovska 1160/31 370 05 Ceske Budejovice Czech Republic
| | - Michala Tůmová
- Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Soil Biology Na Sádkách 702/7 37005 České Budějovice Czech Republic
| | - Anna B. Vassilieva
- A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences Leninsky Prospect 33 119071 Moscow Russia
| | - Ting‐Wen Chen
- Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Soil Biology Na Sádkách 702/7 37005 České Budějovice Czech Republic
| | - Stefan Geisen
- Department of Nematology Wageningen University & Research 6700ES Wageningen The Netherlands
| | - Olaf Schmidt
- UCD School of Agriculture and Food Science University College Dublin Belfield Dublin 4 Ireland
| | - Alexei V. Tiunov
- A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences Leninsky Prospect 33 119071 Moscow Russia
| | - Stefan Scheu
- J.F. Blumenbach Institute of Zoology and Anthropology University of Göttingen Untere Karspüle 2 37073 Göttingen Germany
- Centre of Biodiversity and Sustainable Land Use Büsgenweg 1 37077 Göttingen Germany
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Investigating the Effect of Disturbance on Prey Consumption in Captive Congo Caecilians Herpele squalostoma. JOURNAL OF ZOOLOGICAL AND BOTANICAL GARDENS 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/jzbg2040050] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Maintaining Gymnophiona in captivity provides opportunities to study the behaviour and life-history of this poorly known Order, and to investigate and provide species-appropriate welfare guidelines, which are currently lacking. This study focuses on the terrestrial caecilian Herpele squalostoma to investigate its sensitivity to disturbances associated with routine husbandry needed for monitoring and maintaining adequate wellbeing in captivity. Fossorial caecilians gradually pollute their environment in captivity with waste products, and substrate must be replaced at intervals; doing so disturbs the animals directly and via destruction of burrow networks. As inappetence is frequently associated with stress in amphibians, the percentage consumption of offered food types, river shrimp (Palaemon varians) and brown crickets (Gryllus assimilis), was measured as an indicator of putative stress following three routine substrate changes up to 297 days post-substrate change. Mean daily variation in substrate temperatures were also recorded in order to account for environmental influences on food consumption, along with nitrogenous waste in tank substrate prior to a substrate change and fresh top soil in order to understand the trade-off between dealing with waste accumulation and disturbing animals. We found a significant negative effect of substrate disturbance on food intake, but no significant effect of prey type. Variations in daily soil temperatures did not have a significant effect on food intake, but mean substrate temperature did. Additionally, substrate nitrogenous waste testing indicated little difference between fresh and tank substrate. In conclusion, this study provides a basis from which to develop further welfare assessment for this and other rarely kept and rarely observed terrestrial caecilian species.
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Lowie A, De Kegel B, Wilkinson M, Measey J, O'Reilly JC, Kley NJ, Gaucher P, Brecko J, Kleinteich T, Adriaens D, Herrel A. The relationship between head shape, head musculature and bite force in caecilians (Amphibia: Gymnophiona). J Exp Biol 2021; 225:273674. [PMID: 34897477 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.243599] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2021] [Accepted: 12/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Caecilians are enigmatic limbless amphibians that, with a few exceptions all have an at least partly burrowing lifestyle. Although it has been suggested that caecilian evolution resulted in sturdy and compact skulls as an adaptation to their head-first burrowing habits, no relationship between skull shape and burrowing performance has been demonstrated to date. However, the unique dual jaw-closing mechanism and the osteological variability of their temporal region suggest a potential relationship between skull shape and feeding mechanics. Here, we explored the relationships between skull shape, head musculature, and in vivo bite forces. Although there is a correlation between bite force and external head shape, no relationship between bite force and skull shape could be detected. Whereas our data suggest that muscles are the principal drivers of variation in bite force, the shape of the skull is constrained by factors other than demands for bite force generation. However, a strong covariation between the cranium and mandible exists. Moreover, both cranium and mandible shape covary with jaw muscle architecture. Caecilians show a gradient between species with a long retroarticular process associated with a large and pennate-fibered m. interhyoideus posterior and species with a short process but long and parallel-fibered jaw adductors. Our results demonstrate the complexity of the relationship between form and function of this jaw system. Further studies that focus on factors such as gape distance or jaw velocity will be needed in order to fully understand the evolution of feeding mechanics in caecilians.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aurélien Lowie
- Ghent University, Department of Biology, Evolutionary Morphology of Vertebrates, K.L. Ledeganckstraat 35, 9000 Gent, Belgium
| | - Barbara De Kegel
- Ghent University, Department of Biology, Evolutionary Morphology of Vertebrates, K.L. Ledeganckstraat 35, 9000 Gent, Belgium
| | - Mark Wilkinson
- Department of Life Sciences, Natural History Museum, London SW7 5BD, UK
| | - John Measey
- Centre for Invasion Biology, Department of Botany & Zoology, Stellenbosch University, Private Bag X1, 7602 Matieland, Stellenbosch, South Africa
| | - James C O'Reilly
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Ohio University, Cleveland Campus, SPS-334C, Cleveland, OH 45701, USA
| | - Nathan J Kley
- Department of Anatomical Sciences, Health Sciences Center, T8-082, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794-8081, USA
| | - Philippe Gaucher
- USR 3456, CNRS, Centre de recherche de Montabo IRD, CNRS-Guyane, 97334 Cayenne, France
| | - Jonathan Brecko
- Royal Museum for Central Africa, Biological Collections and Data Management, 3080 Tervuren, Belgium
| | | | - Dominique Adriaens
- Ghent University, Department of Biology, Evolutionary Morphology of Vertebrates, K.L. Ledeganckstraat 35, 9000 Gent, Belgium
| | - Anthony Herrel
- Ghent University, Department of Biology, Evolutionary Morphology of Vertebrates, K.L. Ledeganckstraat 35, 9000 Gent, Belgium.,UMR 7179 C.N.R.S/M.N.H.N., Département d'Ecologie et de Gestion de la Biodiversité, 57 rue Cuvier, Case postale 55, 75231, Paris Cedex 5, France
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5
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O'Connell KA, Prates I, Scheinberg LA, Mulder KP, Bell RC. Speciation and secondary contact in a fossorial island endemic, the São Tomé caecilian. Mol Ecol 2021; 30:2859-2871. [PMID: 33969550 DOI: 10.1111/mec.15928] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2020] [Revised: 04/07/2021] [Accepted: 04/14/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
A period of isolation in allopatry typically precedes local adaptation and subsequent divergence among lineages. Alternatively, locally adapted phenotypes may arise and persist in the face of gene flow, resulting in strong correlations between ecologically-relevant phenotypic variation and corresponding environmental gradients. Quantifying genetic, ecological, and phenotypic divergence in such lineages can provide insights into the abiotic and biotic mechanisms that structure populations and drive the accumulation of phenotypic and taxonomic diversity. Low-vagility organisms whose distributions span ephemeral geographic barriers present the ideal evolutionary context within which to address these questions. Here, we combine genetic (mtDNA and genome-wide SNPs) and phenotypic data to investigate the divergence history of caecilians (Amphibia: Gymnophiona) endemic to the oceanic island of São Tomé in the Gulf of Guinea archipelago. Consistent with a previous mtDNA study, we find two phenotypically and genetically distinct lineages that occur along a north-to-south axis with extensive admixture in the centre of the island. Demographic modelling supports divergence in allopatry (~300 kya) followed by secondary contact (~95 kya). Consequently, in contrast to a morphological study that interpreted latitudinal phenotypic variation in these caecilians as a cline within a single widespread species, our analyses suggest a history of allopatric lineage divergence and subsequent hybridization that may have blurred species boundaries. We propose that late Pleistocene volcanic activity favoured allopatric divergence between these lineages with local adaptation to climate maintaining a stable hybrid zone in the centre of São Tomé Island. Our study joins a growing number of systems demonstrating lineage divergence on volcanic islands with stark environmental transitions across small geographic distances.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyle A O'Connell
- Department of Vertebrate Zoology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, USA.,Global Genome Initiative, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, USA.,Department of Biological Sciences, George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Ivan Prates
- Department of Vertebrate Zoology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, USA.,Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and Museum of Zoology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Lauren A Scheinberg
- Department of Herpetology, California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Kevin P Mulder
- Department of Vertebrate Zoology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, USA.,CIBIO/InBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, Universidade do Porto, Vairão, Portugal.,Center for Conservation Genomics, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, National Zoological Park, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Rayna C Bell
- Department of Vertebrate Zoology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, USA.,Department of Herpetology, California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, CA, USA
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