Populations: Forms of Measurement

Abstract

In order to understand the structure of natural populations of honeybees and to identify the nature and dynamics of the selection processes that operate on them, a wide range of suitable traits of high heritability is required. Until very recently morphological characters were the primary means for such studies, even though environmental effects might modify the expression of the genotype thus detracting from the discriminatory power of the morphometric technique. It has long been recognised that because quantitative morphometric characters are polygenic in origin, the genotypes cannot be directly established through phenotypes. Nonetheless, the usefulness of morphometric studies, coupled to multivariate techniques of analysis remains well established (Ruttner 1988, 1992).