Population genomics and morphological features underlying the adaptive evolution of the eastern honey bee (Apis cerana)

AbstractBackgroundThe adaptation of organisms to changing environments is self-evident, with the adaptive evolution of organisms to environmental changes being a fundamental problem in evolutionary biology. Bees can pollinate in various environments and climates and play important roles in maintaining the ecological balance of the earth.ResultsWe performed an analysis of 462Apis cerana(A. cerana) specimens from 31 populations in 11 regions and obtained 39 representative morphological features. We selected 8A. ceranasamples from each population and performed 2b-RAD simplified genome sequencing. A total of 11,506 high-quality single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) loci were obtained. For these SNPs, the minor allele frequency (MAF) was > 1%, the average number of unique labels for each sample was 49,055, and the average depth was 72.61x. The ratios of the unique labels of all samples were 64.27–86.33%.ConclusionsUsing 39 morphological characteristics as the data set, we proposed a method for the rapid classification ofA. cerana. Using genomics to assess population structure and genetic diversity, we found thatA. ceranahas a large genetic difference at the ecotype level. A comparison ofA. ceranain North China revealed that some physical obstacles, especially the overurbanization of the plains, have isolated the populations of this species. We identified several migration events in North China and Central China. By comparing the differences in the environmental changes in different regions, we found thatA. ceranahas strong potential for climate change and provides a theoretical basis for investigating and protectingA. cerana.