The Effect of Co-housing with Males on the Female Gut Microbiome in Field Cricket Teleogryllus occipitalis (Orthoptera: Gryllidae)

Encountering males reprograms female insect behavior and physiology in ways that enhance reproductive success. Cohousing with males may also remodel the female gut microbiome, a community that supports digestion, nutrient uptake, immunity, mate choice, and fecundity. Such microbiome shifts could, in turn, influence female behavior and physiology, mediating the effects of male presence. Most earlier studies, however, have relied on 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing or qPCR. These methods give only coarse taxonomic resolution and scant functional detail, so the molecular basis of male-induced microbiome reorganization remains unclear. To close this gap, we used whole-genome shotgun metagenomics to study the field cricket Teleogryllus occipitalis, measuring changes in microbial diversity and functional gene composition when females were cohoused with males.