Exploring the Impact of Host Crop and Sex on the Microbiome of Spotted Wing Drosophila: Core Communities and Co-occurrence Dynamics
48 Specimens of the SWD were collected from one site in Columbia, Missouri (Elderberry, 11 samples), and three distinct sites within Oregon: Amity (blueberry, 11 samples), Corvallis (blackberry, 11 samples), and Jefferson (blueberry, 15 samples). A total of Post-collection, the SWD samples were then sorted into male (22 samples) and female (24 samples) categories. This experimental design helps us to investigate the influence of geographic location, sex, and crop on the microbial community composition within the SWD.