Assessment of genetic diversity and population structure of Eulaema nigrita (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Euglossini) as a factor of habitat type in Brazilian Atlantic forest fragments

Author(s)

Costa, Claudineia Pereira ^{[1, 2]} ; Machado, Clycie Aparecida da Silva ^[3] ; Francoy, Tiago Mauricio ^[4]

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Sao Paulo, Fac Med Ribeirao Preto, Dept Genet, BR-14049900 Ribeirao Preto, SP - Brazil

^[2] Univ Calif Riverside, Dept Entomol, Riverside, CA 92521 - USA

^[3] Univ Sao Paulo, Dept Biol, Fac Filosofia Ciencias & Letras Ribeirao Preto, BR-14049900 Ribeirao Preto, SP - Brazil

^[4] Univ Sao Paulo, Escola Artes Ciencias & Humanidades, BR-03828000 Sao Paulo, SP - Brazil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: CANADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST; v. 153, n. 4, p. 446-460, AUG 2021.
• Web of Science Citations: 0

Abstract

In many organisms, habitat affects ecological and genetic diversity and, for certain species, it is expected that a large population should have higher genetic diversity than a smaller population. We analysed the genetics of males of the orchid bee, Eulaema nigrita (Hymenoptera: Apidae) and examined the links between local abundance and habitat with genetic diversity. We also investigated the impact of landscape features on genetic population structure, through microsatellite and mitochondrial DNA analysis, among populations found across 700 km of Brazilian Atlantic forest fragments. We found that genetic variation was not a function of local abundance, but it correlated significantly with habitat. There was significant but low genetic differentiation among populations. We found a single mitochondrial DNA haplotype in all sequenced specimens, which may be widespread throughout the Atlantic forest. Our results reinforce the idea that orchid bees can fly long distances. High-dispersal capacity, together with insufficient time in eventual isolation, can directly contribute to the high degree of similarity among populations for this species, despite their wide geographical distribution. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 13/02158-0 - Altitudinal and geographic effects on the genetic variability of orchid bees (Apidae, Euglossini) populations of the State of São Paulo
• Grantee: Claudinéia Pereira Costa
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• FAPESP's process: 11/07857-9 - Populational characterization of orchid bees (Apidae, Euglossini) from São Paulo State using geometric morphometrics of wings, mitochondrial DNA variability and cuticular hydrocarbons
• Grantee: Tiago Mauricio Francoy
• Support Opportunities: BIOTA-FAPESP Program - Young Investigators Grants