> Can this selected material be thrown out into the real world of beekeeping and persistence of the traits be expected? The answer to the question is no, for obvious reasons. Expecting a different outcome is unrealistic.
But somehow, with every other "domesticated" animal or plant that humans found agriculturally significant or otherwise useful, they were able to make significant changes that did persist through subsequent generations in "real world conditions".
Watermelons, bananas, corn, rice, wheat, carrots, cows, sheep, dogs, cats, horses, the list goes on, and includes virtually everything humanity has ever touched. We fiddled with everything.
Playing devil's advocate, why is this doing this same thing (breeding in traits that "stick") such an impossibility with bees, and why should we consider this "obvious"?
Granted, it took thousands of years for some of these enhancements to be bred, and work on bees started for more recently, but we have much sharper tools, and an exquisite comprehension of the mechanics.
Taking the broader view, one would think that success should be "inevitable", given humanity's track record to date with everything else.
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