Hybrid status of honey bee populations near the historic origin of Africanization in Brazil

Sheppard, Walter S.; Soares, Ademilson Espencer Egea; Jong, David De; Shimanuki, H.

doi:10.1051/apido:19910607

Cited by 72 publications

(54 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…Controversy over the relative contribution by Apis mellifera scutellata and European subspecies to the genetic makeup of Africanized honeybees has been engendered by apparent discordance of data from mitochondrial DNA (Smith et al, 1989;Hall and Muralidharan, 1989;Sheppard et al, 1991a,b) and allozymes or morphology (Lobo et al, 1989;Del Lama et al, 1990;Sheppard et al, 1991a,b). Allozymic and morphological character analyses suggest that about 20 to 30% of the genes of established populations of Africanized honeybees are of European ancestry (Lobo et al, 1989;Del Lama et al, 1990), whereas mtDNA haplotypes from such populations have been assigned almost exclusively to Apis mellifera scutellata (Smith et al, 1989;Hall and Muralidharan, 1989;Sheppard et al, 1991b). Hypotheses explaining the paucity of European mitochondrial DNA found in Africanized populations include subspecific differences in reproductive rates and other fitness parameters in the tropics, sizeable differences in colony densities, and asymmetrical fitness of hybrids with European or African matrilines.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Genetic structure of honeybee populations from southern Brazil and Uruguay

et al. 2003

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Apis mellifera scutellata was introduced to Brazil in 1956 and Africanized honeybee populations have now spread from Argentina to the southwestern United States. Temperate climatic restrictions seem to be a natural limit to Africanized honeybee expansion around parallels 35°to 40°SL. We used allozyme loci (Mdh-1 and Hk-1) and mtDNA haplotypes to characterize honeybee populations in southern Brazil and Uruguay and define a possible transition area between Africanized and European bees. Samples of 194 bee colonies were collected from ten localities between 30°-35°SL and 52°-59°WL. The mtDNA restriction patterns of these colonies were obtained through digestion of the mitochondrial genome by Eco RI, or by digestion by Bgl II and Xba I of the cytochrome B locus and the COI-COII intergenic region, respectively. The distribution limit of African bee colonies, i.e., those populations with only the African mtDNA haplotype and with a high proportion of African genes as shown by allozyme analysis, is located in northern Uruguay, with a hybridization zone located farther south in Uruguay. A gradual cline from north to south was observed, confirmed by mtDNA, racial admixture, and genetic distance analyses. No evidence of either gametic disequilibrium between nuclear markers or cytonuclear disequilibrium among the nuclear and mtDNA genotypes was detected, suggesting that the hybridization process has been completed.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Genetic structure of honeybee populations from southern Brazil and Uruguay

et al. 2003

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“…The so called Africanised honeybees that resulted from this hybridisation spread to most parts of South, Central and North America (Sheppard et al 1991;Winston 1992;Visscher et al 1997;Page 1998;Sheppard and Smith 2000). A significant amount of research has been done on the genetic and behavioural composition of the invasive Africanised honeybee, with most of the research indicating that a high percentage of African characters are conserved within these populations (Schneider et al 2004;Moritz et al 2005;Whitfield et al 2006;Kraus et al 2007).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of Varroa destructor on honeybee (Apis mellifera scutellata) colony development in South Africa

et al. 2014

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The devastating effects of Varroa destructor on European honeybee colonies (Apis mellifera L.) have been well documented. Not only do these mites cause physical damage to parasitised individuals when they feed on them, they also transmit viruses and other pathogens, weaken colonies and can ultimately cause their death.Nevertheless, not all honeybee colonies are doomed once Varroa mites become established. Some populations, such as the savannah honeybee, A. m. scutellata, have become tolerant after the introduction of the parasite and are able to withstand the presence of these mites without the need for acaricides. In this study, we measured daily Varroa mite fall, Varroa infestation rates of adult honeybees and worker brood and total Varroa population size in acaricide treated and untreated honeybee colonies. In addition, honeybee colony development was compared in order to measure the cost incurred by Varroa mites to their hosts. Daily Varroa mite fall decreased over the experimental period with different dynamics in treated and untreated colonies. Varroa infestation rates in treated adult honeybees and brood were lower than in untreated colonies, but not significantly so. Thus indicating a minimal benefit of treatment thereby suggesting that A. m. scutellata have the ability to maintain mite populations at low levels. We obtained baseline data on Varroa population dynamics in a tolerant honeybee over the winter period. Varroa mites appeared to have a low impact on this honeybee population, given that colony development was similar in the treated and untreated colonies.

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“…Nevertheless, apart from a few populations where the introgression of African genes has been investigated in detail, most honey bee populations in North America have remained unstudied. This type of study is important because the large European-derived resident population of honey bees in Mexico could numerically favor a symmetric introgression between European-and African-derived subspecies compared to other areas of the neotropics (Del Lama et al 1990;Sheppard et al 1991).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Climate is probably the main abiotic factor determining the distribution of Africanized bees in the Americas (Sheppard et al 1991;Hall and McMichael 1992;Quezada-Euán et al 2003). Mexico is a climate-diverse country, and accordingly, there are five recognized beekeeping regions, namely the following: North, Central highlands, Pacific coast, Gulf coast, and the Yucatan Peninsula (Labougle 1991).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Stock composition of northern neotropical honey bees: mitotype and morphotype diversity in Mexico (Hymenoptera: Apidae)

et al. 2015

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-The stock of honey bees in the northern neotropics is likely a composite of European and African lineages, but the genetic makeup of most populations in this region has remained unstudied. We analyzed the genetic composition of honey bees across temperate and tropical regions of Mexico using mitochondrial and morphometric analyses. The results showed that honey bees from Mexico are descendent almost in similar proportion from matrilines of African and European origins. However, morphometrics indicate that most colonies are the result of extensive introgressive hybridization with Africanized bees. While large-scale displacement of European honey bees seems to have occurred in the tropical regions, higher frequencies of colonies with a mixed range of AfricanEuropean markers were identified in the temperate areas. Our results suggest that the outcome of the hybridization between Africanized and European honey bees in Mexico has been significantly associated with climate.Apis mellifera / Africanization / introgressive hybridization / mtDNA / morphometrics

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Hybrid status of honey bee populations near the historic origin of Africanization in Brazil

Cited by 72 publications

References 23 publications

Genetic structure of honeybee populations from southern Brazil and Uruguay

Genetic structure of honeybee populations from southern Brazil and Uruguay

Impact of Varroa destructor on honeybee (Apis mellifera scutellata) colony development in South Africa

Stock composition of northern neotropical honey bees: mitotype and morphotype diversity in Mexico (Hymenoptera: Apidae)

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