Analysis of Viruses Carried by Wild Animal Feces in the Wolong Nature Reserve

Wild animals are natural reservoirs of various viruses, and their feces carry complex viral communities associated with the transmission of multiple diseases. In this study, a total of 55 fecal samples from 10 species of wild animals in the Wolong Nature Reserve were collected, and the composition, diversity characteristics, and potential ecological associations of the viral communities were analyzed. Through metagenomic sequencing, a total of 681.84 G of raw data was obtained, and 4,496,107,637 high-quality reads were retained after quality control, with an average effective data rate of 98.84%. The results were classified and annotated to 151 viral families, covering various genomic types such as dsDNA, ssDNA, +ssRNA, -ssRNA, dsRNA, and reverse-transcribing viruses. The overall viral community was dominated by phage-related viruses, and multiple animal and plant virus groups were also detected. The dominant viral families included Orthoherpesviridae, Mimiviridae, Schitoviridae, Poxviridae and Herelleviridae.Alpha diversity analysis indicated that there were differences in viral richness and evenness among different host groups, although most group differences were not significant (P > 0.05). The LN group had the highest viral diversity and richness, while the MF group had the lowest. Beta diversity analysis showed that the viral community structures among different host groups were generally similar, with some significant differences observed among groups. Network model analysis indicated that the viral community had a distinct modular feature, and there were strong co-occurrence relationships among different viral groups. This study systematically revealed the compositional and structural characteristics of fecal viral communities in wild animals from the Wolong Nature Reserve, providing baseline data for the investigation of viral resources and the assessment of cross-species transmission risks in wild animals