Abstract:
The genetic diversity of Varroa destructor (Anderson & Trueman) is limited outside its natural range due to population bottlenecks and its propensity to inbreed. In light of the arms race between V. destructor and its honeybee (Apis mellifera L.) host, any mechanism enhancing population admixture of the mite may be favored. One way that admixture can occur is when two genetically dissimilar mites coinvade a brood cell, with the progeny of the foundresses admixing. We determined the relatedness of 393 pairs of V. destructor foundresses, each pair collected from a single bee brood cell (n = five colonies). We used six microsatellites to identify the genotypes of mites coinvading a cell and calculated the frequency of pairs with different or the same genotypes. We found no deviation from random coinvasion, but the frequency of cells infested by mites with different genotypes was high. This rate of recombination, coupled with a high transmission rate of mites, homogenized the allelic pool of mites within the apiary.
Description:
Table S1 Observed and expected genotype association.
Matrices showing the number of mites we observed (top) and expected (bottom) for each of the 10 most prevalent genotypes combinations (G1–G10) and combinations with other genotypes (Others). F represents the overall frequency of each genotype sampled in the colonies. The F was used to calculate the expected frequencies of each genotype association and overall. Recombinant genotypes are italicized.
Fig. S1 Distribution of the five main genotypes (G) among sampled Varroa destructor in the five Apis mellifera colonies. The percentage of the six main genotypes (dark to light blue, from the most frequent to the least common) and the other 68 genotypes (grouped together in white) in the each of the five sampled colonies.
