How shall summer’s honey breath hold out? Introgression, local adaptation and conservation of free-living honey bees

There is an exciting opportunity to join our bee molecular ecology research group in the School of Biological and Marine Sciences at the University of Plymouth to conduct research on genetic introgression in populations of free-living honey bees in the UK.

Honey bees are not just threatened by colony collapse disorder, emerging diseases and use of neonicotinoid pesticides, but by the human movement of subspecies. Unrestricted movement of bees threatens genetic resources which are the product of local adaptation and selection. These processes have led to the evolution of ~27 subspecies of honey bee of which at least ten exist in Europe. These belong to four main lineages denoted M, C, A and O. Because beekeepers favour bees of the C lineage, there has been widespread hybridisation leading to genetic introgression of C lineage genotypes into M lineage bees. In some parts of Europe this has led to near replacement of native subspecies. This is important because native subspecies outperform non-native subspecies in local environments and because the maintenance of natural population structure is a central goal of conservation biology. This PhD aims to develop existing research further to assess local adaptation and introgression in free-living honey bees, a group of pollinators that to-date has been overlooked in research studies.

The specific goals of the project are to: (1) bring new knowledge and data on the identity and distribution of free-living honey bees in the UK; (2) use state-of-the-art genetic methods to assess levels of introgression in free-living bees; (3) assess the ecological dynamics of free-living populations through time; (4) investigate the extent of locally adapted traits and morphometry of free-living bees.

The successful candidate will be mature, self-motivated and able to work both independently and as part of a team. You should have good writing and analytical skills and be able to organise different aspects of a multi-faceted project, including being enthusiastic about working with social and other media platforms. Conducting a PhD where part of your time is also spent teaching is an excellent training opportunity, offering a longer time period to complete a PhD, but demands good time management and organisational skills so you should be able to work efficiently and demonstrate resilience and determination. Experience of molecular and/or insect ecology is highly desirable. Prior experience of beekeeping is not necessary. You should have a minimum of a 2.1 BSc degree, or equivalent, in biological sciences or a related relevant field.

You will be involved with citizen science, engaging with media (TV, newspapers, magazines, social media and beekeeper communication channels) and Honey Bee Watch to receive reports of free-living colonies. Reports of nests will be followed by site visits where bees will be sampled for morphometric and genotypic analyses. Long-term monitoring of colonies will also allow assessment of colony persistence, ecological characteristics of sites and phenology and behaviour of bees. To assess introgression, SNP-chip genotyping will be carried out in collaboration with a bespoke genotyping service. Morphometric studies will include microscopy and imaging, use of software such as DrawWing and statistical analysis in ‘R’.

During the project you will receive training in these methods, be part of an active research team and member of the Ecology and Evolution Research Group. You will also further develop your skills as a graduate researcher through Plymouth University’s researcher development framework programme. You will be expected to write papers from the project for submission to academic journals as well as writing articles for a broader lay audience. Training and guidance will be provided in writing and science communication. As a DTA studentship, part of your time will be spent teaching so the successful candidate will also have an interest and enthusiasm for working with undergraduate students.