Peter > Personally, I wonder if the bees in the US can be classified as Italian, Carniolan, or they are mostly a mix. I thought the only difference is color,

I also think there's evidence that the C1 and C2 haplotypes dominate our current bee stock in the US. In this study, the two main breeding populations, one in the west and the other in the southeastern US were analyzed and it was determined that the individual bees were, genetically speaking, about equal parts both Italian and Carniolan. But I still hear folks swear they have Italian bees that act one way and Carniolans that act another way, something I have not observed as haplotype related but have seen at the colony level regardless of the color of the bees or their advertised ancestry.
 

>ABSTRACT: Genetic diversity levels within and between the two commercial breeding areas in the United States were analyzed..... 

>The western commercial breeding population (WCBP) and the southeastern commercial breeding population (SCBP) were sampled in 1993 and 1994 and again in 2004 and  2005. The goal of this study was to characterize the genetic composition of these populations and to measure potential changes in genetic diversity and composition across the sampling period. The mitochondrial DNA haplotypes C1 and C2, characteristic of the most popular bee strains (Italians and Carniolans, respectively) sold in the United States, were the dominant haplotypes at both sample dates. 


>Genetic Characterization of Commercial Honey Bee
(Hymenoptera: Apidae) Populations in the United States by Using
Mitochondrial and Microsatellite Markers
D. A. DELANEY, M. D. MEIXNER, N. M. SCHIFF, AND W. S. SHEPPARD


Bill Hesbach
Cheshire Ct

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