Microbial ecology of New World screwwowm, Cochliomyia hominivorax

Control of the New World screwworm, Cochliomyia hominivorax, using sterile insect techinque (SIT) saves an estimated US$1.3 billion per year in eradicated countries. In this study we explored the microbiome of the C. hominivorax, in field collected and mass-reared flies used by the SIT program. Due to the importance of bacteria to insect fitness, including nutrition and mating performance, understanding the changes in microbiome between wild and mass-produced flies could lead to improvements to the eradication program.