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The marula and elephant intoxication myth
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Orientador(es)
Resumo(s)
The inebriation of wild African elephants from eating the ripened and rotting fruit of the marula tree is a persistent myth in Southern Africa. However,the yeasts responsible for alcoholic fermentation to intoxicate the elephants remain poorly documented.In this study, we considered Botswana, a country with the world’s largest population of wild elephants, and where the marula tree is indigenous, abundant and protected, to assess the occurrence and biodiversity of yeasts with a potential to ferment and subsequently inebriate the wild elephants. We collected marula fruits from over a stretch of 800 km in Botswana and isolated 106 yeast strains representing 24 yeast species. Over 93% of these isolates,typically known to ferment simple sugars and produce ethanol comprising of high ethanol producers belonging to Saccharomyces, Brettanomyces, and Pichia, and intermediate ethanol producers Wickerhamomyces, Zygotorulaspora, Candida, Hanseniaspora, and Kluyveromyces. Fermentation of marula juice revealed convincing fermentative and aromatic bouquet credentials to suggest the potential to influence foraging behaviour and inebriate elephants in nature. There is insufficient evidence to refute the aforementioned myth. This work serves as the first work towards understanding the biodiversity marula associated yeasts to debunk the myth or approve the facts.
Descrição
The research work was funded by Botswana International University of Science and Technology (BIUST). © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Guarantors of Brain.
Palavras-chave
African elephants fermentation fermenting marula fruits intoxication myth yeast biodiversity Microbiology Immunology and Microbiology (miscellaneous) Parasitology Virology SDG 17 - Partnerships for the Goals