Comparison of wildlife and captivity rattlesnakes (Crotalus durissus terrificus) microbiota

Abstract

Este estudo avaliou e comparou a microflora aeróbica da cavidade oral, cloaca e veneno de serpentes Crotalus durissus terrificus recém-capturadas da natureza e mantidas sob quarentena (WQ), mantidas em cativeiro coletivo (CC) e em cativeiro individual (IC). A eficácia de drogas antimicrobianas de agentes isolados foi também avaliada. Foram isolados microorganismos dos grupos I, II e III respectivamente: 29 (63.04%), 38 (90.48%) e 21 (42.86%) da cloaca; 15 (32.61%), 3 (7.14%) e 25 (51.02%) da cavidade oral, e finalmente 2 (4.35%), 1 (2.38%) e 3 (6.12%) do veneno. As bactérias mais frequentes foram Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Proteus vulgaris e Morganella morganii, com sensibilidade para amikacina, gentamicina, norfloxacina, sulfazotrina e tobramicina. Serpentes mantidas no cativeiro semi-aberto mostraram menor número de agentes infecciosos em cavidade oral, talvez devido ao ambiente de cativeiro com diferentes gradientes de temperatura, água corrente, ausência de manejo diário, ampla circulação de ar, possibilidade de movimentação pelos animais, limpeza diária e acesso ao Sol.

The study evaluated and compared the aerobic microbiota from the oral cavity, cloaca and venom of Crotalus durissus terrificus snakes, recently caught from the wild and kept under quarantine (WQ), individual captivity (IC) and collective captivity (CC). Antimicrobial drug effectiveness on isolated agents also was assayed. From group I, II and III were isolated, respectively, 29 (63.04%), 38 (90.48%) and 21 (42.86%) microorganisms from the cloaca; 15 (32.61%), 3 (7.14%) and 25 (51.02%) microorganisms from the oral cavity; and, 2 (4.35%), 1 (2.38%) and 3 (6.12%) microorganisms from venom. The most frequent bacteria were Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Proteus vulgaris and Morganella morganii, with sensitivity to amikacin, gentamicin, norfloxacin, sulfazotrin and tobramycin. Snakes kept in semi-open captivity exhibited the fewest microorganisms in oral cavities, perhaps due to the environment in captivity, with different temperature gradients, running water, absence of daily handling, circulating air, possibility of moving around, daily cleaning, and sunlight access.