Comparison of the Diversity of Culturable Bacteria in three intertidal mudflat sites in Purok Minanga, Buayan, General Santos City

Intertidal mudflat biofilms are dynamic and ecologically important ecosystems located at the interface of land and water, experiencing tidal cycles. These biofilms support a diverse range of microorganisms, with bacteria playing a vital role in their structure and functioning. It is crucial to investigate and compare the culturable bacterial diversity within different intertidal mudflat biofilm sites to gain insights into their ecological processes and potential applications, including studying the antimicrobial resistance of these bacteria. Initially, water samples were collected and analyzed for salinity, pH, and temperature. Additionally, mudflat biofilm samples were obtained from three intertidal mudflat sites and sent to the laboratory for culture and isolation. The isolated bacteria were examined for their colony characteristics and subjected to gram staining to observe the gram reaction and cell morphology of the isolates. Statistical analysis, utilizing PAST Analysis Software and Excel Spreadsheet was utilized as a statistical tool to establish correlations between the number of isolates and the salinity, pH, and temperature variables. The microbial composition of the three intertidal mudflats accumulated a total of 26 combined distinct colonies. The isolates collected from the samples obtained on the three intertidal mudflat sites exhibited distinct cultural characteristics that can be presumptively associated with Staphylococcus, Micrococcus, Bacillus, and Pseudomonas genera. Microscopic observations revealed that the isolates exhibited similar characteristics with Enterococcus, Staphylococcus, Micrococcus, and Bacillus genera. But it should be acknowledged that these observations and morphological identification of colonies and cells were only presumptive. The statistical analysis indicated correlation coefficients above 0.5, suggesting a moderate positive relationship. However, the significance test (p-value) indicated no statistical significance (p>0.05), suggesting that the observed correlations could have occurred by chance. The findings of this study have significant implications for understanding the bacterial diversity, antimicrobial resistance, and potential risks associated with intertidal mudflat biofilms Purok Minanga, Buayan, General Santos City.