cape honeybee

Study: Single Gene Causes ‘Virgin Births’ in Cape Honeybees

A protein-coding gene called GB45239 is responsible for thelytokous parthenogenesis — the ability to produce daughters asexually — in the Cape honeybee (Apis mellifera capensis), a subspecies of honeybee found in the two southern provinces of South Africa, according to a new paper published in the journal Current Biology. The female worker caste of the [...]