Kin selection theory and the honeybee

[Bakersdozen]

My son found this article about research being done concerning how a sterile honey bee can pass on good and positive mutations to  the next generation.  The article also has interesting links to previously posted stories about honey bees. http://io9.com/why-honeybees-are-a-strange-example-of-darwinian-evolut-1538074226?utm_campaign=socialflow_io9_facebook&utm_source=io9_facebook&utm_medium=socialflow

[apisbees]

First line from article

Darwin's idea of natural selection is simple. Good mutations are passed on, because the animals who have them will survive to reproduce. But how do you pass on those good mutations in honeybee colonies, where most bees are sterile workers who never have babies? A group of researchers decided to find out.

They thought about this way to hard. If they would of studied Darwin's theory on natural selection. If the bees produced by the queen do not have the genes to cause them to survive and thrive in their environment, they will not survive. Queens that have had their genes changed or modified to produce the bee that is more suitable to the environment that the colonies find themselves in have a greater chance of survival. But the queen is only 1/2 the answer in the equation as the drones can also play a great role in the genetic diversity of the hives. It is the genome mix in the Queen that is being past to the workers, the make up of her offspring is what effects the colony's survival and whether she will get the chance to pass on any special genetic diversity that she may have. Which is Darwin's theory on natural selection.