Bacteria associated with uropygial gland secretions Metagenome

Here we test whether manipulating the uropygial gland microbial community affects chemical profiles in the dark-eyed junco. We found an effect of antibiotic treatment targeting the uropygial gland on both bacterial and volatile profiles. In a second study, we cultured bacteria from junco preen oil, and found that all the cultivars produced at least one volatile compound common in junco preen oil, and that most cultivars produced multiple preen oil volatiles. In both studies, we identified experimentally generated patterns in specific volatile compounds previously shown to predict junco reproductive success.