Bacterial diversity of loggerhead and green turtle eggs from two major nesting beaches from the Turkish coast of the Mediterranean

Abstract

This study was conducted during the 2018 nesting season at the Sugozu Beaches (Adana-Turkey) and Goksu Delta (Mersin-Turkey). Egg samples (n = 63) from loggerhead and green turtle nests (n = 43) were collected. Isolated bacteria were initially identified by phenotypic methods and then by MALDI-TOF MS. The bacterial mass spectra were analyzed using Principal Component Analysis. Bacterial isolation was performed for 55 isolates belonging to 12 genera from two major nesting sites. In Sugozu Beaches 62.2% of the bacteria species belonged to Enterobacteriaceae and in Goksu Delta 44.4% of the bacteria species belonged to Morganellaceae. Klebsiella oxytoca and Staphylococcus haemolyticus had not previously been detected in any sea turtle nests. This is the first MALDI-TOF MS study conducted for determination of bacterial variability in loggerhead turtle eggs in Turkey and serves as a reference study for the assessment of bacterial threat in sea turtle nests, enabling the establishment of suitable conservation measures and treatment processes for both sea turtles and nesting sites.