Effects of diet, habitat, and phylogeny on the fecal microbiome of wild African savanna () and forest elephants ().

The gut microbiome, or the community of microorganisms inhabiting the digestive tract, is often unique to its symbiont and, in many animal taxa, is highly influenced by host phylogeny and diet. In this study, we characterized the gut microbiome of the African savanna elephant () and the African forest elephant (), sister taxa separated by 2.6-5.