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From: cik@l.cc.purdue.edu (Herman Rubin)
Newsgroups: sci.bio
Subject: Re: Killer bee invasion?
Summary: Do not ignore genetic variability and drift
Message-ID: <2609@l.cc.purdue.edu>
Date: 5 Oct 90 13:25:48 GMT
References: <AawARSW00h5K4VwEUY@cs.cmu.edu> <34370@cup.portal.com>
Organization: Purdue University Statistics Department
Lines: 16

In article <34370@cup.portal.com>, mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes:
> Technically speaking, they are not African bees but Brazilian bees, i.e. a
> hybrid produced as a result of the accidental release of some African queens.
> (hmm... good name for a movie)  None of these bees are more than 50% African.

This is not true.  Not even all chromosomes, let alone genes, have a 
constant survival rate.  There is random variation and selection operating.
Now I have no information on this, but it is quite possible that of the
genes which are mainly responsible for the difference in behavior, the
great majority are of African origin.  In fact, the original purpose of
the experiment which went astray was to breed a type of bee which had the
advantages of both; this meant selection for the appropriate genes.
-- 
Herman Rubin, Dept. of Statistics, Purdue Univ., West Lafayette IN47907
Phone: (317)494-6054
hrubin@l.cc.purdue.edu (Internet, bitnet)	{purdue,pur-ee}!l.cc!cik(UUCP)