Abstract:
Many parts of the globe experience severe losses and fragmentation of habitats,
affecting the self-sustainability of pollinator populations. A number of bee species coexist
as wild and managed populations. Using honey bees as an example, we argue that
several management practices in beekeeping threaten genetic diversity in both wild
and managed populations, and drive population decline. Large-scale movement of
hive stocks, introductions into new areas, breeding programs and trading of queens
contribute to reducing genetic diversity, as recent research demonstrated for wild and
managed honey bees within a few decades. Examples of the effects of domestication
in other organisms show losses of both genetic diversity and fitness functions. Cases of
natural selection and feralization resulted in maintenance of a higher genetic diversity,
including in a Varroa destructor surviving population of honey bees. To protect the
genetic diversity of honey bee populations, exchange between regions should be
avoided. The proposed solution to selectively breed all local subspecies for a use in
beekeeping would reduce the genetic diversity of each, and not address the value of the
genetic diversity present in hybridized populations. The protection of Apis mellifera’s,
Apis cerana’s and Apis koschevnikovi’s genetic diversities could be based on natural
selection. In beekeeping, it implies to not selectively breed but to leave the choice of the
next generation of queens to the colonies, as in nature. Wild populations surrounded
by beekeeping activity could be preserved by allowing Darwinian beekeeping in a buffer
zone between the wild and regular beekeeping area.
