Formica exsecta comparison of the bacterial and fungal microbiomes of nest material and the ants

This study explores the microbiome of the ant Formica exsecta, and compares this to the microbiome found in the nest material. We found fundamental differences in both the bacterial and the fungal communities between ants and their nest material, but no significant differences in the bacterial and fungal communities among colonies. Species diversity, species richness, and evenness were all significantly lower for bacteria in ants than in nest material, whereas for fungi only species richness was lower in ants, than in nest material. No such differences were found among ants from diffrent colonies.