>I have trouble with the term "locally adapted". Don't we really mean
"locally compatible"?
"Locally compatible" would apply to a single colony at a moment in time.
"Locally adapted" refers to a population (a group that exchanges genes via
mating) that nature over time has selected to be locally compatible. That
selection, as Christina points out, could be due to a combination of
genetics and epigenetics. Over time, the epigenetic effects would tend to
become fixed genetically, but may be up or down regulated according to
environmental factors.
--
Randy Oliver
Grass Valley, CA
www.ScientificBeekeeping.com
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