Enterobacteriaceae isolates in cloacal swabs from loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) in the Central Mediterranean Sea.

The cloacal microbial flora of 49 loggerhead sea turtles, Caretta caretta, was evaluated from two cloacal swabs for each individual. The predominant isolates in descending order of frequency were as follows: Escherichia coli (78 isolates), Proteus mirabilis and Proteus vulgaris (24 isolates), Citrobacter freundii (15 isolates), Providencia rettgeri (9 isolates) and Enterobacter sakazakii (6 isolates). This study provides data on cloacal microflora of loggerhead sea turtles impacted by hook and line fishery interactions, that may be useful for comparison with healthy sea turtles and with sea turtles affected by other conditions or exposed to other environmental conditions.