Genome Sequencing of Museum Specimens Reveals Rapid Changes in the Genetic Composition of Honey Bees in California.

ABSTRACT: The western honey bee, Apis mellifera, is an enormously influential pollinator in both natural and managed ecosystems. In North America, this species has been introduced numerous times from a variety of different source populations in Europe and Africa. Since then, feral populations have expanded into many different environments across their broad introduced range. Here, we used whole genome sequencing of historical museum specimens and newly collected modern populations from California (USA) to analyze the impact of demography and selection on introduced populations during the past 105 years. We find that populations from both northern and southern California exhibit pronounced genetic changes, but have changed in different ways. In northern populations, honey bees underwent a substantial

SUBMITTER: Cridland JM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5795354 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature