Skip to main content
ARS Home » Plains Area » Sidney, Montana » Northern Plains Agricultural Research Laboratory » Pest Management Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #305396
Title: From hybrid swarms to swarms of hybrids

Author
item STOHLGREN, THOMAS - Colorado State University
item SZALANSKI, ALLEN - University Of Arkansas
item Gaskin, John
item YOUNG, NICHOLAS - Colorado State University
item WEST, AMANDA - University Of Arkansas
item JAMEVICH, CATHERINE - United State Geological Service
item TRIPODI, AMBER - University Of Arkansas

Submitted to: Environmental and Ecology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 11/1/2014
Publication Date: 11/1/2014
Publication URL: http://handle.nal.usda.gov/10113/60048
Citation: Stohlgren, T., Szalanski, A., Gaskin, J.F., Young, N., West, A., Jamevich, C., Tripodi, A. 2014. From hybrid swarms to swarms of hybrids. Environment and Ecology Research. 2(8):311-318.

Interpretive Summary: The breeding of modern humans with Neanderthals 40,000 YBP after a half-million years of separation, may have led to the best example of a hybrid swarm on earth. Modern trade and transportation in support of the human hybrids has continued to introduce additional species, genotypes, and hybrids to every country on the globe. We assessed the utility of species distribution modeling of invasive saltcedar plants and Africanized honeybees to assess the risk of current and future invaders. Our results suggest that rapid evolutionary change may be underway in the Africanized bees, allowing the bees to spread into new areas and extending their total range. Protecting native species and ecosystems may benefit from preliminary risk maps of harmful invasive species, hybrids, and genotypes.

Technical Abstract: The introgression of modern humans (Homo sapiens) with Neanderthals 40,000 YBP after a half-million years of separation, may have led to the best example of a hybrid swarm on earth. Modern trade and transportation in support of the human hybrids has continued to introduce additional species, genotypes, and hybrids to every country on the globe. We assessed the utility of species distribution modeling of genotypes to assess the risk of current and future invaders. We evaluated 93 locations of the genus Tamarix for which genetic data were available. Maxent models of habitat suitability area showed that the hybrid T. ramosissima x T. chinensis was slightly greater than the parent taxa (AUCs > 0.83). Generalized linear models of Africanized honey bees, a hybrid cross of Tanzanian Apis mellifera scutellata and a variety of European honey bees including A. m. ligustica, showed that the Africanized bees (AUC = 0.81) may be displacing European honey bees (AUC > 0.76) over large areas of the southwestern U.S. More important, Maxent modeling of sub-populations (A1 and A26 mitotypes based on mDNA) could be accurately modeled (AUC > 0.9), and they responded differently to environmental drivers. This suggests that rapid evolutionary change may be underway in the Africanized bees, allowing the bees to spread into new areas and extending their total range. Protecting native species and ecosystems may benefit from preliminary risk maps of harmful invasive species, hybrids, and genotypes.