Effects of long-term fertilization on the associated microbiota of soil collembolan

Abstract

Soil fauna plays crucial roles in litter decomposition and nutrient cycling and their associated microbiota contributes to nutrient absorption, health, metabolism and immunity. However, only a few studies have focused on the associated microbiota of soil fauna, and the effects of fertilization on the bacterial community assembly of soil fauna are poorly understood. Here we collected specimens of the collembolan Folsomia quadrioculata and the soils they lived in from a long-term fertilization experiment (including urea, sewage sludge and chicken manure). The bacterial communities of the collembolans and soils were investigated using 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing. A dominant core microbiot..