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RELATEDNESS AND POPULATION STRUCTURE OF THE PRIMITIVELY EUSOCIAL BEE LASIOGLOSSUM ZEPHYRUM (HYMENOPTERA: HALICTIDAE)
R H Crozier1, B H Smith2, Y C Crozier1
1School of Zoology, University of New South Wales, Kensington, N.S.W., 2033, Australia.
Summary
This study on Lasioglossum zephyrum bees found genetic differentiation among nests and aggregations. Relatedness estimates suggest kin selection likely plays a role in these primitively eusocial bee populations.
Area of Science:
- Behavioral Ecology
- Population Genetics
- Evolutionary Biology
Background:
- Lasioglossum zephyrum, a primitively eusocial bee, forms small colonies (up to 20 individuals).
- Nests are found in patchy aggregations along disturbed stream and river banks in eastern North America.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate geographic genetic structure in Lasioglossum zephyrum populations.
- To estimate relatedness among individuals within nests and across aggregations.
- To assess the role of kin selection in the social behavior of this bee species.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of five polymorphic allozyme loci in eight nest patches from five aggregations in Douglas Co., Kansas.
- Autocorrelation analysis of gene frequencies to detect geographic structure.
- Multilocus G test to assess differentiation among nests, patches, and aggregations.
Main Results:
- A low but significant tendency for genetic differentiation was observed among nests within patches, patches within aggregations, and among aggregations.
- Relatedness estimation was limited by sample size, but one patch of 20 nests yielded informative confidence limits.
- The estimated relatedness (around 0.7) suggests a significant role for kin selection, despite some nests showing complex genetic makeup (more than expected from single-mated females).
Conclusions:
- Lasioglossum zephyrum populations exhibit genetic structuring at multiple spatial scales.
- Relatedness values are sufficiently high to support the importance of kin selection in the evolution of sociality in this species.
- The genetic complexity of nests indicates social dynamics more intricate than simple single-female reproduction.
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