APIDOLOGIE, cilt.54, sa.1, ss.1-14, 2023 (SCI-Expanded)
Many investigations were carried out on how environmental factors affect the reproductive characters
of drones. The genetic variation in the reproductive characters of drones has been understudied, however.
This research aimed to compare the variation in the reproductive characters of drones bred from two widely
used subspecies in apiculture, Caucasian (A. m. caucasica) and Italian (A. m. ligustica), considering the colony
effect. The experimental drones reared under the same spatiotemporal conditions were used to measure semen
characters (ejaculate volume and the number, concentration, and viability of spermatozoa) and ejaculation
ability characters (ejaculation proportion, ejaculation efficiency, and semen collection efficiency). The results
displayed significant differences between subspecies in body weight, ejaculate volume, spermatozoa number in
seminal vesicles and ejaculates, ejaculation proportion, ejaculation efficiency, and semen collection efficiency.
The differences in the number of spermatozoa in seminal vesicles, ejaculation proportion, and semen collection
efficiency were significant between the Italian colonies, whereas no significant difference was found in these
characters between the Caucasian colonies. The concentration and the viability of spermatozoa were not significantly
different both in subspecies and in colonies. These findings suggest that Caucasian drones appeared
to be somewhat fitter than Italian drones.