Geometric Morphometric Analysis of Wing Shape to Identify Populations of Apis mellifera in Camagüey, Cuba

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Bees are one of the most important creatures on Earth because of their pollination processes, which contribute to food security and ecosystem maintenance. The practice of apiculture is regarded as secondary. Nonetheless, producers find this activity appealing due to the added value of its products. Researchers have been paying attention to the genetic erosion processes of pollinators for decades. To propose a conservation plan for these insects, identification studies from individuals from those locations must be carried out in the same way because different environmental conditions promote individuals with distinct characteristics that are harder to see with the naked eye. ABSTRACT: A total of 45 Apis mellifera colonies were sampled from nine centers for rearing queens in the Camagüey province, Cuba. Wing geometric morphometric analysis was used to determine the ancestry and identify Africanization processes at different altitudes in managed honeybee populations on the island. A total of 350 reference wings were obtained from the pure subspecies: Apis mellifera mellifera, Apis mellifera carnica, Apis mellifera ligustica, Apis mellifera caucasia, Apis mellifera iberiensis, Apis mellifera intermissa, and Apis mellifera scutellata for the study. Our results showed that altitude influences wing shape; and that 96.0% (432) of the individuals were classified as Cuban hybrids, with a tendency to the formation of a new morphotype. In addition, a great similarity was found with the subspecies Apis mellifera mellifera, and it was confirmed that there is no Africanization due to the low presence of 0.44% (2) of this morphotype in the population under study. The greatest Mahalanobis distances were obtained for the comparisons between the center rearing of queens in the Camagüey province with the subspecies A. m. scutellata (D(2) = 5.18); A. m. caucasia (D(2) = 6.08); A. m. ligustica (D(2) = 6.27); and A. m. carnica (D(2) = 6.62). The well-defined pattern of wing shape produced by honeybee populations in Camagüey’s centers for queen rearing suggests a Cuban hybrid. Moreover, it is essential to note that the populations of bees under investigation lack Africanized morphotypes, indicating that Camagüey bees have not interacted with the African lineage.