S. aureus is a versatile pathogen capable of colonizing various hosts. Studying S. aureus in wildlife provides crucial insights into its ecology and evolution. Understanding the genetic diversity and distribution of these strains is essential for comprehending transmission dynamics, potential zoonotic risks, and the overall impact of wildlife reservoirs on public health and animal populations. This study compares different clonal lineages of S. aureus in wild animals, including owls, hares, rodents, and hedgehogs.

Mouth and rectal swab samples were collected from 204 wild rodents, 114 wild owls, 83 wild hares, and 110 wild hedgehogs. The samples were incubated in Brain Heart Infusion broth with 6.5% NaCl for 24 hours at 37°C. Subsequently, the inoculum was seeded onto Baird-Parker agar and CHROMagar MRSA. Multilocus Sequence Typing (MLST) and spa-typing were performed to investigate the genetic diversity of S. aureus isolates.

Three mecA-MRSA isolates were identified from hares, three from rodents, and two from hedgehogs. Additionally, one mecC-MRSA was isolated from owls, three from rodents, and three from hedgehogs. For MSSA, 22 isolates were found in owls, 28 in rodents, and 17 in hedgehogs. Regarding MLST and spa-typing, two mecC isolates from hedgehogs were ST130 (CC130) and spa-type t843, while another was ST49. The three mecC isolates from rodents were ST1945, and the owl isolate was ST1245; all belonged to CC130 and spa-types t1535 and t843. Most mecA-MRSA isolates were associated with human-related clonal lineages like CC8 (hedgehogs) and CC22 (rodents). The isolates from hares belonged to clonal lineages associated with rabbits for consumption (ST2855-t1190). The MSSA isolates showed high clonal diversity, including over 30 STs and 40 different spa-types.

These findings highlight the significant clonal diversity of S. aureus in wild animals, underscoring the importance of wildlife as reservoirs for various lineages, with implications for both animal and public health.