A lower number of facultative anaerobic bacteria was found in the ileum of the whole
wheat-fed birds, with no differences between treatments for Escherichia coli and for Lac-
tobacillus counts. In the jejunum and the caeca, no differences in microflora counts were
observed.
The present results showed that feeding whole grains to broilers led mainly to modifications in the
upper part of the digestive tract (gizzard, pancreas) and had little influence on the small and large
intestine.