Sam’s paper assessing determinants of variation in Lycaeides melissa caterpillar gut microbiomes is out now in Scientific Reports. We were interested in whether evolutionary or plastic changes in gut microbiome were critical in colonizing novel host plants. Our results presented in this paper suggest that this isn’t the case, and join a growing body of evidence pointing towards a more limited role of gut microbes in Lepidoptera in general (relative to other taxonomic groups where gut microbes are clearly important for growth and development).

You can listen to Sam discuss this work and her research more generally on this Slightly Evolved podcast.