UV-treatment of the digestive fluid of Nepenthes hemsleyana pitcher plants affects their digestive process, possibly via reducing microbial inquilines

Interactions with microbes are ubiquitous, and many of them are essential for the survival and success of plants. In Nepenthes pitcher plants, they occur as part of a diverse community of organisms, so-called inquilines, that live inside the digestive fluid of the pitcher traps. However, evidence is ambiguous regarding the role of microbial inquilines: they may complement the plants’ prey digestion, fix atmospheric N, act as competitors that reduce plant-available nutrients, or affect the plants in other ways unrelated to the breakdown of prey. In a field experiment on Borneo, we investigated the effect of a UV-disinfection of the digestive fluid on prey digestion of N. hemsleyana that captures and digests insects as well as bat faeces in its pitchers. We show that in the short term photosynthetic performance of plants with UV-treated digestive fluids decreases compared to untreated plants, likely due to lower abundances of microbial inquilines. However, at the end of two months, r..., , , # The ecological role of microbial inquilines in the digestive process of Nepenthes hemsleyana pitcher plants

[https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.00000009p](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.00000009p)

Julien L. Bota, 2025-05-28

In a field experiment on Borneo, we investigated the effect of UV-sterilisation of the digestive fluid in the pitchers on prey digestion in *N. hemsleyana.* We selected 24 *N. hemsleyana* plants and supplied two pitchers per plant with either arthropods or bat faeces as prey items. To assess the role of microbial communities in digestion, half of the plants in each feeding treatment were randomly assigned to a UV-sterilisation group, which likely reduced microbial abundance in the digestive fluid.

## Description of the data and file structure

We applied four treatments:

* Arthropods: 5 mg arthropods

- Arthropods + UV: 5 mg arthropods + UV sterilisation of digestive fluid for 48 s
- Faeces: 6 mg bat faeces

* Faeces + UV: 6 mg bat faeces + UV sterilisation of diges...,