Estimation of the number of matings inApis mellifera: extensions of the model and comparison of different estimates

Abstract

The multiple mating behaviour of Apis mellifera queens is an important reproductive characteristic of this species. Estimates of the number of drones that mate with a queen can be obtained through segregation analysis of genetic markers in samples of workers from several colonies. Statistical methods have been developed that allow estimation of this parameter using segregations of worker genotypes at one locus for which the genotypes of queens are known. Here we present simple modifications of previous models that allow estimation of the number of matings in Apis mellifera from multiple loci and genotypic segregations of workers and drones. Estimates of the mean and the variance are obtained by maximum likelihood. A sample consisting of 200 colonies of Africanized honeybees from Sâo Paulo State, Brazil, gives an estimate of 16.1 matings per queen, very close to the previous estimate (17.2) obtained 15 years before with a different gene marker and a different population of Africanized honeybees.