Sonoran felids are threatened by drought and habitat fragmentation. Vector range expansion and anthropogenic factors such as habitat encroachment and climate change are altering viral evolutionary dynamics and exposure. However, little is known about the diversity of viruses present in these populations. Small felid populations with lower genetic diversity are likely to be most threatened with extinction by emerging diseases, as with other selective pressures, due to having less adaptive potential. We used a metagenomic approach to identify novel circoviruses, which may have a negative impact on the population viability, from confirmed bobcat (Lynx rufus) and puma (Puma concolor) scats collected in Sonora, Mexico. Given some circoviruses are known to cause disease in their hosts, such as porcine and avian circoviruses, we took a non-invasive approach using scat to identify circoviruses in free-roaming bobcats and puma. Three circovirus genomes were determined, and, based on the current species demarcation, they represent two novel species. Phylogenetic analyses reveal that one circovirus species is more closely related to rodent associated circoviruses and the other to bat associated circoviruses, sharing highest genome-wide pairwise identity of approximately 70% and 63%, respectively. At this time, it is unknown whether these scat-derived circoviruses infect felids, their prey, or another organism that might have had contact with the scat in the environment. Further studies should be conducted to elucidate the host of these viruses and assess health impacts in felids.

中文翻译：

---

在Sonoran Felids的粪便中检测到新型圆环病毒。

索诺兰猫科动物受到干旱和栖息地破碎的威胁。病媒传播范围的扩大和人为因素，例如栖息地的侵占和气候变化，正在改变病毒的进化动力学和暴露。但是，对于这些人群中存在的病毒多样性知之甚少。与其他选择压力一样，具有较低遗传多样性的小型猫科动物种群最有可能受到新发疾病的灭绝威胁，因为它们的适应能力较弱。我们使用了宏基因组学方法来鉴定新型圆环病毒，这可能会对确认的山猫（Lynx rufus）和美洲狮（Puma concolor）的种群生存能力产生负面影响）在墨西哥索诺拉（Sonora）收集的粪便。鉴于已知某些圆环病毒会在其宿主中引起疾病​​，例如猪和禽圆环病毒，我们采用了一种非侵入性方法，使用scat来识别自由漫游的山猫和美洲狮中的圆环病毒。确定了三个圆环病毒基因组，根据当前的物种划分，它们代表了两个新物种。系统发育分析表明，一种圆环病毒物种与啮齿动物相关的圆环病毒更紧密相关，而另一种与蝙蝠相关的圆环病毒更密切相关，它们在全基因组范围内具有最高的成对同一性，分别约为70％和63％。目前，尚不清楚这些源自粪便的圆环病毒是否会感染猫科动物，它们的猎物或可能与环境中的粪便接触的其他生物。