In the present study on the bumblebee Bombus terrestris, we investigated the influence of inbreeding on queen fitness by comparing diapause survival and egg‐laying success of queens mated with nestmate and non‐nestmate males. We then compared the early stage of colonies with or without diploid males and analysed colony characteristics to identify a factor predictive of colony outcome. Diapause survival was no different between queens mated with nestmates and non‐nestmates, but in the latter case, egg‐laying success was significantly higher. Queens mated with nestmates gave rise to a percentage of diploid male colonies (52.6%) compatible with brother–sister coupling. We obtained 18.6% of colonies with diploid males even from queens mated with non‐nestmates, indicating that the colonies of origin were in some way related or homozygous at the sex determination loci. There was no difference in the early growth stage between colonies with or without diploid males, except in the number of workers emerging in the first brood, which was significantly higher in the latter. Among diploid male colonies, the number of workers and the male/worker ratio in the first brood was highly variable and was not a good predictor of subsequent colony growth. Out of 49 colonies with diploid males that reached full development, only 11 had a sufficient size to assume that they could survive in the field or, in a commercial breeding, to be suitable for pollination purposes.

中文翻译：

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近亲繁殖对熊蜂人工饲养菌落早期的影响

在本研究中，大黄蜂Bombus terrestris，我们通过比较同窝和不带窝的雄性交配后的滞育存活率和产卵成功率，研究了近交繁殖对女王适应性的影响。然后，我们比较了有或没有二倍体雄性的菌落的早期阶段，并分析了菌落的特征，以确定预测菌落结局的因素。与巢友和非巢友交配的女王的滞育存活率没有差异，但在后者的情况下，产卵成功率要高得多。皇后与巢友交配产生了与兄弟姐妹伴侣相配的二倍体雄性菌落百分比（52.6％）。我们甚至从与非巢穴交配的女王那里获得了18.6％的二倍体雄性菌落，这表明起源的菌落在性别决定位点上以某种方式相关或纯合。有或没有二倍体雄性的菌落在早期生长阶段没有区别，除了在第一个育雏中出现的工人数量显着高于后者。在二倍体雄性菌落中，第一个育雏中的工人数量和男性/工人比率是高度可变的，并且不能很好地预测随后的菌落生长。在49个具有二倍体雄性的菌落已经完全发育的菌落中，只有11个菌落具有足够的大小，可以推测它们可以在野外生存或在商业繁殖中适合传粉目的。第一个群体中的工人数量和男性/工人比率变化很大，并且不能很好地预测随后的菌落生长。在49个具有二倍体雄性的菌落已经完全发育的菌落中，只有11个菌落具有足够的大小，可以推测它们可以在野外生存或在商业繁殖中适合传粉目的。第一个群体中的工人数量和男性/工人比率变化很大，并且不能很好地预测随后的菌落生长。在49个具有二倍体雄性的菌落已经完全发育的菌落中，只有11个菌落具有足够的大小，可以推测它们可以在田间生存或在商业繁殖中适合传粉目的。