Population structure and genetic diversity of the orchid bee Eufriesea violacea (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Euglossini) from Atlantic Forest remnants in southern and southeastern Brazil

Gabriele Freiria , Juliana Ruim , Rogério Souza , Silvia Sofia

In this study, both the genetic diversity and population genetic structure of Eufriesea violacea from six Atlantic Forest fragments, located in four Brazilian states, were assessed using microsatellite markers. The results showed that genetic diversity was high in all populations and the genetic differentiation (Φ ST), based on allelic frequency differences, for all population pairwise comparisons was found to be significantly different from zero, indicating from low to moderate genetic differentiation among populations. Considerably higher genetic differentiation values were revealed by the D est estimator, indicating very high levels of differentiation for some pairs of populations. The present results on the population structure of E. violacea suggest a restriction in gene flow among populations from different Atlantic Forest remnants. Thus, considering the intense threats over the current Atlantic Forest remnants, more attention should be paid to populations of this euglossine species.

Mots clés: genetic variation; euglossine bees; forest fragments; microsatellites

Domaines: Zoologie des invertébrés; Biodiversité; Ecologie, Environnement; Science des productions animales

Gabriele Freiria, Juliana Ruim, Rogério Souza, Silvia Sofia. Population structure and genetic diversity of the orchid bee Eufriesea violacea (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Euglossini) from Atlantic Forest remnants in southern and southeastern Brazil. Apidologie, 2012, 43 (4), pp.392-402. ⟨10.1007/s13592-011-0104-y⟩. ⟨hal-01003527⟩