Stress and the microbiome: linking glucocorticoids to bacterial community dynamics in wild red squirrels

Bacterial diversity within animals is emerging as an essential component of health, but it is unknown how stress may influence the microbiome. We quantify a proximate link between the oral microbiome and hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis activity using faecal glucocorticoid metabolites (FGM) in wild red squirrels (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus). Not only was bacterial diversity lower at higher levels of FGM, but also between capture periods a change in bacterial relative abundance was related to an increase in FGM. These linkages between the HPA axis and microbiome communities represent a powerful capacity for stress to have multi-dimensional effects on health.