Abstract
Microbiota affect many aspects of vertebrate biology and vertebrates provide diverse ecological niches for microorganisms. In avian systems, potential habitats for microorganisms include the feathers, skin, gastrointestinal tract, and eggshells. Eggshell microbiota may seed bird microbiota as the birds hatch and may be shaped by parental and environmental influences. Brood parasites are a natural system where parental and environmental influences are obligately decoupled. Here, we sequenced the V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene to characterize the eggshell microbiota of a brood parasite, the Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater), and its host, the Ovenbird (Seiurus aurocapilla), to explore the relationships between nest environment, host phylogeny, and the eggshell microbiota. Eggshell microbiota did not differ significantly between species. The observed variation was best explained by the nest in which an egg was laid and the collection site. Our study suggests that eggshell microbiota are influenced by the nest and local environment with significantly less influence by the species of the bird.
Zusamemnfassung
Das Mikrobiom auf der Eischale eines Brutparasiten spiegelt die Umwelt, nicht die Art wider.
Das Mikrobiom beeinflusst viele Aspekte der Wirbeltier-Biologie, wobei Wirbeltiere den Mikroorganismen vielfältige ökologische Nischen bieten. Bei Vögeln sind die potenziellen Lebensräume für Mikroorganismen u.a. die Federn und Haut, der Verdauungstrakt und die Eischalen. Das Mikrobiom der Eischale kann die Mikrobiom der Vögel beim Schlüpfen prägen und durch Einflüsse von Eltern und Umwelt weiter geformt werden. Brutparasiten stellen ein natürliches System dar, das von den Einflüssen durch Eltern und Umwelt zwangsläufig abgekoppelt ist. In unserer Untersuchung haben wir die V4-Region des 16S rRNA-Gens sequenziert, um das Eischalen-Mikrobiom eines Brutparasiten, des Braunkopf-Kuhstärling (Molothrus ater) und seines Wirts, dem Pieperwaldsänger (Seiurus aurocapilla), zu bestimmen und die Beziehungen zwischen Nestumgebung, Wirts-Phylogenie und der Eischalen-Mikrobiom zu erforschen. Das Mikrobiom der Eischalen beider Arten unterschieden sich nicht signifikant voneinander. Die beobachteten Unterschiede lassen sich am besten durch das Nest, in das ein Ei gelegt wurde, und durch die Umgebung des Nests erklären. Unsere Untersuchung deutet darauf hin, dass das Mikrobiom einer Eischale durch das Nest und die lokale Umgebung beeinflusst wird und deutlich weniger von der Vogelart.
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Acknowledgements
We thank Sarah Manstan, Amanda Minicucci, and Ben Ranelli for their help with data collection and Christopher Elphick for his feedback on the paper. Our work was conducted on the traditional and unceded land and territories of the Lenape, Mohegan, Mashantucket Pequot, Eastern Pequot, Schaghticoke, Golden Hill Paugussett, and Nipmuc peoples.
Funding
Our study was supported by a University of Connecticut Presidential Scholarship to EP, a University of Connecticut Jorgensen Fellowship and Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Zoology Award to EG, a University of Connecticut Research Excellence Program Grant to SAK, a National Science Foundation Grant awarded to Robert Bagchi (DEB-1557086).
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BB: analyzed data and wrote the manuscript. EP: performed experiments and analyzed data. EG: conceived idea, designed methods, and performed experiments. KG: oversaw data analysis and contributed to the manuscript. SAK: contributed materials/resources/funding, trained EP on DNA extractions. SMH: contributed materials/resources/funding, oversaw analyses, edited manuscript.
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Basso, B., Poryanda, E., Grames, E. et al. Eggshell microbiota of a brood parasite reflects environment, not species. J Ornithol 163, 757–766 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-022-01973-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-022-01973-6