Country specific hybridization of honey bees from lineage M.

Over 63% of honey bee colonies in Europe belong to lineage M, with regional variations highlighting conservation concerns across different countries.

• Why it matters: Understanding the distribution of honey bee lineages is crucial for protecting genetic diversity and preventing erosion caused by introduced commercial queens, which threaten native populations.
• What they did: Researchers analyzed 29,043 wing images from 1,342 colonies across ten countries, using morphological classification to assign colonies to four evolutionary lineages.
• The result: Findings show strong regional differences in lineage M persistence, emphasizing the need for coordinated conservation efforts and improved discrimination between native and introduced honey bee phenotypes.