Characterization of the Internal Microbiome of a Lab-Reared Urban Arthropod Pest, the Western Black Widow Spider

Student First Name

Hasti

Student Last Name

Asrari

School Affiliation (multiple allowed)

School of Mathematical and Natural Sciences

Is the research affiliated with NCUIRE

Yes

Project Description

This work investigates the internal microbiome of four Western black widow spiders (Latrodectus hesperus) born and raised in the lab. This preliminary analysis looks to analyze which bacterial taxa live within the widows and deduce their functional importance in preparation for future work with a larger sample of wild-caught widows.