Data from: Cloacal microbial diversity is associated with competitive phenotypes in socially polyandrous jacanas

The composition of host-associated microbial communities may correlate
with the overall status of the host, including physiology and fitness. New
bi-directional hypotheses suggest that sexual behaviors can shape, and be
shaped by reproductive microbiomes, which may be particularly important
for species with mating systems that feature strong sexual selection.
These dynamics have been particularly understudied in female animals.
Using 16S rRNA sequencing, we compared the cloacal microbiome of females
and males from two socially polyandrous bird species that vary in the
strength of sexual selection, Jacana spinosa (Northern Jacana) and J.
jacana (Wattled Jacana). We hypothesized that the strength of sexual
selection would shape cloacal microbial diversity, such that the more
polyandrous J. spinosa would have a more diverse microbiome, and that
microbiomes would be more diverse in females than in males. If the
reproductive microbiome is indicative of competitive status, we also
hypothesized that cloacal microbial diversity would be associated with
competitive traits, including plasma testosterone levels, body mass, or
weaponry. We found no differences in microbial alpha diversity between
species or sexes, but we did find that microbial beta diversity
significantly differed between species. We also found a positive
relationship between microbial alpha diversity and testosterone in female
J. spinosa. Future experiments are needed to explore the potential drivers
of correlations between the cloacal microbiome and competitive phenotypes
in socially polyandrous jacanas.