Microbiome composition and turnover in the face of complex lifecycles and bottlenecks: insights through the study of dung beetles

As the influence of symbionts on host ecology, evolution, and development has become more apparent so has the importance of understanding how hosts facilitate the reliable maintenance of their interactions with these symbionts. A growing body of work has thus begun to identify diverse behaviors and physiological mechanisms underpinning the selective colonization of beneficial symbionts across a range of host taxa. Yet, how organisms with complex life cycles, such as holometabolous insects, establish and maintain key symbionts remains poorly understood. This is particularly interesting considering the drastic transformations of both internal and external host morphology, and the ecological niche shifts in diet and environment, that are the hallmark of metamorphosis. This work investigates the dynamic changes of the microbiota associated with the complex life cycle and host-constructed environments of the bull-headed dung beetle, <i>Onthophagus taurus</i>, a useful model for understanding how organisms may maintain and modulate their microbiota across development.