Orientador(es)
Resumo(s)
Honey bee abdominal pigmentation is one of the most recognisable traits and it is often used by
beekeepers as an indicator of M-lineage subspecies purity. However, this approach may negatively impact
population diversity and is futile if there is no association between tergite colour patterns and the genetic
background. To assess whether this trait can be used as a proxy for introgression proportions in M-lineage
subspecies, we genotyped, with highly informative SNP assays, A. m. mellifera and A. m. iberiensis individuals
displaying four different colour phenotypes. The SNP data detected highly introgressed bees exhibiting a black
phenotype and, at the same time, pure or marginally introgressed bees with yellow banding patterns, in both
subspecies. Despite these observations, contrary to A. m. iberiensis , in A. m. mellifera , introgression proportions
revealed to be a significant predictor of abdominal pigmentation. Therefore, abdominal pigmentation could be used
by A. m. mellifera conservationists to guide colony selection when genetic tools are unavailable.
Descrição
Palavras-chave
Apis mellifera iberiensis Apis mellifera mellifera Conservation SNPs Yellow banding
Contexto Educativo
Citação
Henriques, Dora; Lopes, Ana R.; Ferrari, Roberto; Neves, Cátia J.; Quaresma, Andreia; Browne, Keith A.; McCormack, Grace P.; Pinto, M. Alice (2020). Can introgression in M-lineage honey bees be detected by abdominal colour patterns?. Apidologie. ISSN 0044-8435. p. 1-11