Complete mitochondrial genome of the honeybee Apis cerana native to two remote islands in Japan

The honeybee species native to two remote islands (Amami-Oshima and Tsushima) in Japan were previously reported to be morphologically distinct from the Japanese honeybee Apis cerana japonica . To our knowledge, this is the first study to analyze the complete mitochondrial genome of the honeybee species from the two islands. The mitochondrial genome was a circular and approximately 1.5 kbp molecule that included 13 protein-cording genes (PCGs), 22 tRNA genes, 2 rRNA genes, and 1 AT-rich control region. The average AT content of the mitochondrial genome was 84%. The genetic distance suggested that the honeybee species from the two remote islands were more closely related to A. cerana japonica , among the A. cerana subspecies. Although the mitochondrial genome of the honeybee species from the two remote islands showed genetic variation distinct from those found in the A. cerana group, they were classified as the Japanese honeybee A. cerana japonica .