Honey compositional convergence and the parallel domestication of social bees

Abstract

Honey collection evolved from simple honey hunting to the parallel and independent domestication of different species of bees in various parts of the world. In this study, we investigate the extent to which the composition of Apis and stingless bee honeys has been a driver in the selection of different bee species for domestication in Mesoamerica (Mexico) and Asia (Thailand) using a sampling design that combines peak honey profiling by H1 NMR spectroscopy with the collection of honeys from domesticated and undomesticated bee species. Our results show that, independently of the region of the world considered, domesticated stingless bees produce honey whose compositional profiles differ from those of the non-domesticated species and exhibit more similarities towards honeys produced by the domesticated Apis species. Our results provide evidence for the first time that the search for natural sweeteners in the environment by our ancestors led to the parallel and independent domestication of social bees producing honeys with similar compositional profiles.