Shelter-building insects are important ecosystem engineers, playing
critical roles in structuring arthropod communities. Nonetheless, the
influence of leaf shelters and arthropods on plant-associated microbiota
remains largely unexplored. Arthropods that visit or inhabit plants can
contribute to the leaf microbial community, resulting in significant
changes in plant-microbe interactions. By artificially constructing leaf
shelters, we provide evidence that shelter-building insects influence
not only the arthropod community structure but also impact the
phyllosphere microbiota. Leaf shelters exhibited higher abundance and
richness of arthropods, leading to changes in the associated arthropod
community composition. These shelters also altered the composition and
community structure of phyllosphere microbiota, promoting greater
richness and diversity of bacteria at the phyllosphere. In leaf
shelters, microbial diversity increased with the richness and diversity
of herbivores. These findings demonstrate the critical role of leaf
shelters in structuring arthropod communities by facilitating
colonization and influencing microbial communities through altered
microhabitats and community interactions.