Exploring the Bacterial Community in Aged Fecal Sources from Dairy Cows: Impacts on Fecal Source Tracking

Abstract

(1) Background: This paper discusses the impact of agricultural activities on stream health, particularly in relation to dairy cow fecal pollution. The study explores the fecal microbiome of cattle and the potential ecological implications of aging fecal pollution on waterways. (2) Methods: The study examines changes in the bacterial community available for mobilization from in-situ decomposing cowpats and the effects of simulated rainfall. The microbiome of individual cowpats was monitored over 5.5 months. We used 16S rRNA metagenomics and machine learning software, FEAST (Fast Expectation-mAximization for microbial Source Tracking), for bacterial and fecal source assignments. (3) Results: The phyla Bacillota and Bacteroidota are dominant in the fecal microbiota of fresh cow feces but shift to Pseudomonodota, Actinomycetota, and environmental Bacteroidota in aged cowpats. Potential impacts of these bacterial community shifts on inputs to local agricultural streams are discussed in relation to water quality monitoring and aging sources of fecal contamination. We identified taxon orders that are potential indicators of fresh cattle sources (Oscillospirales and Bacteroidales) and aged sources (Peptostreptococcales-Tissierellales) in water bodies. (4) The paper highlights that bacterial metagenomic profiling can inform our understanding of the ecology of microbial communities in aquatic environments and the potential impacts of agricultural activities on ecosystem health.

Unveiling the Impact of Human Urine Fertilization on Soil Bacterial Communities: A Path Toward Sustainable Fertilization

“…During storage, urea hydrolysis increases the pH of urine causing the death of most bacteria and pathogens (Chandran et al, 2009;Höglund et al, 1998), explaining the absence of E.coli and enterococci after storage. Nonetheless, our results suggest that some bacteria commonly found in urine or faeces such as species of Lactobacillales (Atopostipes), species of Peptostreptococcales-Tissierellales (Ignatzschineria) and species of Paenalcaligenes that include pathogenic strains like Ignatzschineria indica and Paenalcaligenes hominis may survive (Devane et al, 2023;Lee et al, 2020;Pearce et al, 2014;Snyder et al, 2020). However, none of these pathogenic OTUs appeared to have been transferred to the soil (data not shown).…”

High-resolution genomic analysis to investigate the impact of the invasive brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula) and other wildlife on microbial water quality assessments

“…Wildlife is a potential source of fecal contamination in waterways [ 10 ], therefore, our hypothesis was that in areas where no pest management is undertaken, invasive mammalian species may be an important deleterious source of freshwater microbial contaminants. The contribution, however, of FIB in waterways from invasive species such as brushtail possums, had not been investigated in detail until now.…”

“…coli strains in wildlife [ 8 ], they have remained understudied worldwide [ 9 ] and few studies have investigated E . coli present in New Zealand wildlife [ 10 ]. None have undertaken a detailed characterization of E .…”