Decoding Diversity: A Morpho-Molecular Approach to Andrena Bees in Kashmir Valley

Decoding Diversity: A Morpho-Molecular Approach to Andrena Bees in Kashmir Valley | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Decoding Diversity: A Morpho-Molecular Approach to Andrena Bees in Kashmir Valley Tamjeeda Nisar, Sajad A. Ganie, M. A. Paray, Shakeel Ahmad Mir, and 4 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7221976/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 13 Apr, 2026 Read the published version in International Journal of Tropical Insect Science → Version 1 posted 19 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract The family Andrenidae comprises a diverse group of solitary bees that pose considerable taxonomic challenges due to their pronounced morphological variability. This study focuses on four species within the genus Andrena : A. (Agandrena) agillissima , A. (Micrandrena) fucata , A. (Taeniandrena) ovatula , and A. (Zonandrena) gravida . These species display notable variation in body size, length, and coloration, complicating accurate identification and classification. To address these issues, a comprehensive morphometric analysis was conducted using 23 morphological characters to delineate species boundaries more precisely. Specimens were collected from three districts in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir: Srinagar, Pulwama, and Budgam. The detailed examination revealed distinct morphological patterns among the species, aiding in their identification and contributing to a clearer understanding of their taxonomic status. Additionally, the study offers insights into the population genetics and biogeographical distribution of the selected Andrena species, highlighting their adaptation to varied ecological conditions in the region. The observed morphological diversity reflects potential evolutionary divergence influenced by environmental pressures and geographic isolation. These findings underscore the importance of integrative taxonomic approaches that combine classical morphology with modern genetic tools. Such methods are essential for resolving the complex taxonomy of the genus Andrena and for improving our understanding of its evolutionary history. Future studies should incorporate molecular data and ecological parameters to refine species boundaries further and assess their conservation status in the rapidly changing landscapes of the Himalayan region. Morphological characters Andrena species DNA Diversity Western Himalayas Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 13 Apr, 2026 Read the published version in International Journal of Tropical Insect Science → Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 02 Nov, 2025 Reviews received at journal 23 Oct, 2025 Reviews received at journal 23 Oct, 2025 Reviews received at journal 22 Oct, 2025 Reviews received at journal 19 Oct, 2025 Reviews received at journal 18 Oct, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 15 Oct, 2025 Reviews received at journal 15 Oct, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 13 Oct, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 12 Oct, 2025 Reviews received at journal 10 Oct, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 10 Oct, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 10 Oct, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 10 Oct, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 10 Oct, 2025 Reviewers invited by journal 10 Oct, 2025 Editor assigned by journal 04 Aug, 2025 Submission checks completed at journal 04 Aug, 2025 First submitted to journal 26 Jul, 2025 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7221976","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":534136816,"identity":"c50f09d3-c628-49ee-9d31-6c84b4fe689d","order_by":0,"name":"Tamjeeda Nisar","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAABYUlEQVRIie2RMWvCQBiGvyCY5STrhVL9CxcOUooR/0qCcC5VCl0cOpwU4tKS1am/4aBQKHQIHI1DLa7npghOCoUuFlJpDG2NIs4d8nDDx/E+fB+8ADk5/xQCUEgfaGunbEDx9xcBuOms8Uwc7ShQZNTkqUKOKvCT3yjSI2FWOUBdf3Uv3zvVypmuTz86iLl0FDG8imNqBG8vYvoMFYMX/ElmC2oJqz9sWk83iJpD7LRtxSLzzic2Vm2m3DlY/VDrkexhLUFLvtSERGBywq5spfu4xIkDCtnKDUEToPk4oxhLQb/Wsi6kPvvkrvQegoFvxjFxKqNhqtT3FZxs0bj0hATb5GEyAItOUJHYJLxIFW9fUUth3UbNRnKYfd7ljGLFGtVTn1JLpQpu9OWOogetR7K6rtbEaDAbd3lSZRBZ40Vctu6Tw8ar0KkFvd48o2y6IHAMvG3tj8LkQDAnJycnZ8s3FY6EuCsPH+4AAAAASUVORK5CYII=","orcid":"","institution":"Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Tamjeeda","middleName":"","lastName":"Nisar","suffix":""},{"id":534136817,"identity":"c81e0f8b-1d33-4bc9-ab81-ff51bbff5dc4","order_by":1,"name":"Sajad A. 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This study focuses on four species within the genus \u003cem\u003eAndrena\u003c/em\u003e: \u003cem\u003eA. (Agandrena) agillissima\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eA. (Micrandrena) fucata\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eA. (Taeniandrena) ovatula\u003c/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eA. (Zonandrena) gravida\u003c/em\u003e. These species display notable variation in body size, length, and coloration, complicating accurate identification and classification. To address these issues, a comprehensive morphometric analysis was conducted using 23 morphological characters to delineate species boundaries more precisely. Specimens were collected from three districts in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir: Srinagar, Pulwama, and Budgam. The detailed examination revealed distinct morphological patterns among the species, aiding in their identification and contributing to a clearer understanding of their taxonomic status. 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Future studies should incorporate molecular data and ecological parameters to refine species boundaries further and assess their conservation status in the rapidly changing landscapes of the Himalayan region.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Decoding Diversity: A Morpho-Molecular Approach to Andrena Bees in Kashmir Valley","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2025-10-25 16:01:14","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7221976/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0},{"type":"decision","content":"Revision requested","date":"2025-11-02T08:51:30+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2025-10-23T19:12:03+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2025-10-23T07:16:37+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2025-10-22T06:41:07+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2025-10-20T03:38:01+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2025-10-18T13:08:55+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"285830043742117474956856269158616731354","date":"2025-10-16T03:59:10+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2025-10-15T13:04:26+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"183584667540685042748781796877569386458","date":"2025-10-13T13:24:44+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"52115014828168316755800179463418111740","date":"2025-10-12T18:40:45+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2025-10-11T03:36:03+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"254507586784554064608675019371163707185","date":"2025-10-10T18:57:25+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"11456306352380614940065052721387608402","date":"2025-10-10T15:40:43+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"34447124234115994424464605117379301235","date":"2025-10-10T14:06:26+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"153550145465350460039415779953600746735","date":"2025-10-10T14:04:06+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewersInvited","content":"","date":"2025-10-10T13:58:59+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorAssigned","content":"","date":"2025-08-05T03:46:08+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"checksComplete","content":"","date":"2025-08-05T03:46:00+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"submitted","content":"International Journal of Tropical Insect Science","date":"2025-07-26T14:53:04+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"international-journal-of-tropical-insect-science","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"jtis","sideBox":"Learn more about [International Journal of Tropical Insect Science](http://link.springer.com/journal/42690)","snPcode":"42690","submissionUrl":"https://www.editorialmanager.com/jtis/default2.aspx","title":"International Journal of Tropical Insect Science","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"em","reportingPortfolio":"Springer Hybrid","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"84cdaa40-2154-4723-aed7-cbdff7f6ed8e","owner":[],"postedDate":"October 25th, 2025","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"published-in-journal","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-04-20T16:00:21+00:00","versionOfRecord":{"articleIdentity":"rs-7221976","link":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s42690-026-01831-5","journal":{"identity":"international-journal-of-tropical-insect-science","isVorOnly":false,"title":"International Journal of Tropical Insect Science"},"publishedOn":"2026-04-13 15:57:01","publishedOnDateReadable":"April 13th, 2026"},"versionCreatedAt":"2025-10-25 16:01:14","video":"","vorDoi":"10.1007/s42690-026-01831-5","vorDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s42690-026-01831-5","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-7221976","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-7221976","identity":"rs-7221976","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"8U1c8b4HqxoKbykW_rLl7","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}