Does host diversity beget microbiome diversity?  Effects of zooplankton diversity and composition on environmental and host-associated microbes
Microbial transmission between hosts shapes microbiome assembly. A diverse host community may either promote microbiome diversity by horizontal transmission among heterospecifics or reduce it through dilution effects. We experimentally manipulated the composition and diversity of pond zooplankton (Daphnia, Copepoda, and Cylopoida) communities to test how zooplankton host diversity and density alter host and environmental microbiomes. Our study demonstrates that the abundance and diversity of zooplankton hosts reshapes their associated microbiomes.