TABLE 1.
Comparison of diet, habitat, and gut microbiome in marsupials.
| Species | Feeding strategy | Diet | Distribution and habitat | Major gut bacteriaa | Firmicutes: Bacteroidetesb | References |
| Tasmanian devil | Generalist carnivore |
Mammals, insects, birds, fish, and carrion | Tasmania. Inter-tidal to sub-alpine; predominantly with sclerophyll forests. Mosaic landscape of forest and farmland. |
• Firmicutes 53.5 ± 3.9% • Proteobacteria 18.6 ± 3.5% • Fusobacteria 13.8 ± 4.5% • The most abundant genus: Clostridium |
45:1 | Pemberton et al., 2008; Cheng et al., 2015; Rogers T. et al., 2016; Pemberton, 2019 |
| Northern quoll | Generalist omnivore |
Mammals, birds, reptiles, frogs, invertebrates, fruit, and carrion |
Northern Australia. Arid and coastal zones; inland to approximately 200 km from coast. Tropical lowland savanna. |
• Firmicutes 58.1 ± 21.3% • Proteobacteria 34.4 ± 21.3% • The most abundant genus: Enterococcus |
13:1 | Oakwood, 2000; Hernandez-Santin et al., 2016; Dunlop et al., 2017; Burke et al., 2018 |
| Koala | Specialist folivore |
Eucalyptus foliage (different populations feed on different types of Eucalyptus) | Eastern to Southern Australia Eucalypt forest and woodland communities. |
• Firmicutes 45% • Bacteroidetes 23% • Proteobacteria 15% • The most abundant genus: Bacteroides |
2:1 | Cork et al., 1983; Moore et al., 2005; Shiffman et al., 2017; Johnson et al., 2018 |
| Common wombat | Generalist herbivore |
Grass and snow grass | Tasmania and south-eastern Australia. Any elevation in south of their range; in mountainous areas in QLD. Rainforest, eucalyptus forest, woodland, alpine grassland, and coastal areas. |
• Firmicutes 61% • Bacteroidetes 18% • The most abundant genus: Bacteroides |
3.4:1 | Rishworth et al., 1995; Groves, 2005; Evans et al., 2006; Shiffman et al., 2017 |
| Macropods (Macropus giganteus, Macropus rufus, and Macropus robustus) | Generalist herbivores | Various grass and herbaceous plant species | A wide range of habitats across Australia, ranging from arid desert zones to temperate forests, and alpine regions. | • Bacteroidetes 48.3 ± 9.2% (mostly Prevotellaceae) • Firmicutes 47.3 ± 9.9% (mostly Lachnospiraceae) |
1:1 | Jarman, 1984; Gulino et al., 2013 |
aTasmanian devil, koala, and wombat data was collected using fecal samples; the quoll and macropod studies used cloacal swabs and foregut fluid, respectively. bRatios were estimated as (average relative abundance of Firmicutes)/(average relative abundance of Bacteroidetes); individual level F:B ratios may vary greatly.