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ViewAttendees 7

Member Symposium

Plant-Insect Ecosystems

Trophic Interactions in the Age of the Microbiome

How sociality regulates carrion digestion across trophic levels: Lessons from vulture bee microbiomes and beyond

Sunday, November 5, 2023
2:00 PM – 2:20 PM ET
Location: Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center, Maryland A
In-Person
Carrion poses an interesting paradox: in one sense it is an abundant and rich food source once found, but in another sense very limited because of how quickly it is consumed and transformed. Thus, in carrion-feeding efficiency is key and oftentimes forming social phenotypes is the most efficient form of extracting nutrients. Given that social phenotypes form in both times of scarcity and abundance (and can carrion represent both) we hypothesize that there is a higher proportion of social scavengers. This talk will explore examples of social phenotypes at various tropic levels, with an emphasis on vulture bees. We will elucidate the different ways sociality enables organisms to overcome challenges inherent to carrion feeding and explore the ways the “necrobiome” regulate interactions on carrion across trophic levels.