Microbial community structure in a host-associated grasshopper

The spotted bird grasshopper, Schistocerca lineata Scudder, 1899 (Orthoptera: Acrididae), is a widely distributed species found throughout most of the continental United States and southern Canada.  This species is known to be highly variable in morphology, with many distinct ecotypes across its native range.  Some populations are known to be strongly associated with specific host plants, and may depend on that plant for survival.  The desert locust, Schistocerca gregaria, has been shown to acquire gut microflora from its diet.  Here, we investigate the relationship between host plant and microflora community structure in two well-characterized ecotypes of S. lineata.  One ecotype feeds on dewberry (Rubus spp.) and is cryptic in color.  The other ecotype feeds on the toxic wafer ash (Ptelea trifoliata) and is aposematically colored.  Multiple populations of each type were collected in Texas in May 2013.  Additionally, an experiment was carried out in which a Ptelea-feeding population was fed on Rubus sp. for 24 hours.  Specimens were curated in 100% EtOH to preserve natural or experimental microbial nucleic acids.  Presence/absence data as well as abundances for each microbial species are obtained by sequencing the 16S gene on the 454 platform.  Patterns are compared across populations and experimental specimens.