Natural Foraging Selection and Gut Microecology of Two Subterranean Rodents from the Eurasian Steppe in China

As the most abundant group of mammals, rodents possess a very rich ecotype, which makes them ideal for studying the relationship between diet and host gut microecology. Zokors are specialized herbivorous rodents adapted to living underground. Unlike more generalized herbivorous rodents, they feed on the underground parts of grassland plants. There are two species of the genus <i>Myospalax</i> in the Eurasian steppes in China: one is <i>Myospalax psilurus</i>, which inhabits meadow grasslands and forest edge areas, and the other is <i>M. aspalax</i>, which inhabits typical grassland areas. How are the dietary choices of the two species adapted to long-term subterranean life, and what is the relationship of this diet with gut microbes? Are there unique indicator genera for their gut microbial communities? Relevant factors, such as the ability of both species to degrade cellulose, are not yet clear. In this study, we analyzed the gut bacterial communities and diet compositions of two species of zokors using 16S amplicon technology combined with macro-barcoding technology. We found that the diversity of gut microbial bacterial communities in <i>M. psilurus</i> was significantly higher than that in <i>M. aspalax,</i> and that the two species of zokors possessed different gut bacterial indicator genera. Differences in the feeding habits of the two species of zokors stem from food composition rather than diversity. Based on the results of Mantel analyses, the gut bacterial community of <i>M. aspalax</i> showed a significant positive correlation with the creeping-rooted type food, and there was a complementary relationship between the axis root-type-food- and the rhizome-type-food-dominated (containing bulb types and tuberous root types) food groups. Functional prediction based on KEGG found that <i>M. psilurus</i> possessed a stronger degradation ability in the same cellulose degradation pathway. Neutral modeling results show that the gut flora of the <i>M. psilurus</i> has a wider ecological niche compared to that of the <i>M. aspalax</i>. This provides a new perspective for understanding how rodents living underground in grassland areas respond to changes in food conditions.