Genetic and phenotypic differentiation in endemic Scaptotrigona hellwegeri (Apidae: Meliponini): implications for the conservation of stingless bee populations in contrasting environments

Abstract

1. The western forests of Mexico are rich in species of stingless bee, possibly a consequence of the diverse habitats found across different altitudes of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt (TMVB) and the Pacific coast (PAC).2. Scaptotrigona hellwegeri is an example of a stingless bee species found across the TMVB and PAC. It is currently considered a single species. Its TMVB populations have become rare and rapidly impacted by human-modified habitats. Translocation of S. hellwegeri colonies from the PAC tropical lowlands to TMVB subtropical highlands has been considered, as colonies at PAC are more abundant and even used in stingless beekeeping.3. Morphometric analyses of meristic characters plus genetic analysis at microsatellite loci and sequencing of the cox1 region of mtDNA were used to evaluate phenotypic and genetic differentiation in S. hellwegeri from TMVB and PAC.4. Significant morphometric differences were detected between S. hellwegeri from TMVB and PAC. Corrected nuclear multilocus F¢ ST was 0.592 (P < 0.01), supporting the view that TMVB and PAC populations are markedly genetically differentiated. A 573 bp sequence of the cox1 region of mtDNA showed six sites of divergence, with sequence divergence between PAC and TMVB populations of 1.1%. 5. Our morphometric and genetic results make evident that S. hellwegeri from TMVB and PAC are significantly differentiated and represent two genetic lineages. An immediate recommendation is to restrict the movement of colonies from the lowland PAC regions to TMVB, where colonies are currently scarce.

Population structuring of the ubiquitous stingless bee Tetragonisca angustula in southern Brazil as revealed by microsatellite and mitochondrial markers

“…Similar population structuring as detected by mtDNA has been observed for other stingless bee species (Brito & Arias, ; Francisco & Arias, ; May‐Itzá et al ., ; Quezada‐Euán et al ., ; Brito et al ., ; Francisco et al ., ; Bonatti et al ., ). Nonetheless, some T. angustula populations are not well differentiated from others.…”

“…Other physical barriers, such as rivers or mountain ranges, or the presence or absence of forest appear to be unrelated to population structuring in T. angustula . Stingless bee populations seem to diverge even when there are no apparent obstacles to gene flow, as observed in Melipona yucatanica (May‐Itzá et al ., ), Scaptotrigona hellwegeri (Quezada‐Euán et al ., ), Trigona nigerrima and Trigona corvina (Solórzano‐Gordillo et al ., ) in Mexico, Tetragonula hockingsi in Australia (Brito et al ., ), and Trigona spinipes in Brazil (Jaffé et al ., ). Factors that shape population structure include low dispersal, different ecological conditions (selection) and isolation by distance (genetic drift) (Beebee & Rowe, ), which can act alone or in combination.…”

Estudio de microsatélites en las abejas sin aguijón Melipona colimana y M. beecheii de Mesoamérica

“…Por ello, es fundamental evaluar la diversidad genética de las poblaciones ya que su disminución conlleva una reducción del potencial adaptativo de las especies. Entre las herramientas moleculares, los microsatélites han sido usados en estudios de genética de poblaciones de abejas sin aguijón (Borges et al, 2010;Quezada-Euán et al, 2007, 2012. Lopes et al (2010) demostraron que el uso de microsatélites especí-ficos dio una mayor frecuencia de polimorfismo y de alelos por locus en dos especies del género Melipona que al usar marcadores diseñados para otras especies del mismo género.…”

Genetic variability in captive populations of the stingless bee Tetragonisca angustula

“…2). High population structuring reported by mtDNA analysis has also been observed for wild populations of several stingless bees (Quezada-Euán et al 2007;Brito and Arias 2010;Francisco and Arias 2010;May-Itzá et al 2010;Thummajitsakul et al 2011;Quezada-Euán et al 2012;Brito et al 2013;Francisco et al 2013;Bonatti et al 2014;Francisco et al 2015). However, this pattern in natural populations has been attributed to the female philopatric behavior.…”