In Cameroon, there is a diversity of stingless bee species but the lack of information on their genetic characteristics, their multiplication and the quality of their honey leads to their under-exploitation. Thus, the study was initiated and based on the species of the genus Meliponula and aimed at contributing to a better knowledge of these species for their valorization and conservation. To do this, 30 bees and honey will be collected per site, the GPS coordinates of the various collection sites will be recorded and hives will be installed to assess the rate of colonization. After recording the biometric characteristics, mtDNA will be extracted from 4 bees per site and genotyping will be performed according to the RFLP protocol, honey will be subjected to physicochemical analyses, the collected data will be subjected to statistical analysis and the expected results will be: The variability of the biometric characteristics; The structure of the population; The physicochemical and pollen quality of the honey; The distribution of the different species, and the rate of colonization of the hives in the different study zones.
This award was supported by JRS Biodiversity.