Color in the Arthropod Genome

Written by Kaskrim with contributing theory and knowledge by Azizah • Scribed by AI Lumière • Project Gorgon Genetics Research

Every bee and wasp has a color. Body color and wing color. Each has a hue — the color itself — and a saturation and brightness. Color is not cosmetic accident. It is determined by genes on the same chromosomes that control stats, read by the same dominant and recessive logic that governs everything else in the genome.

Understanding color does not require learning a new system. It requires understanding one part of the system that is already familiar.

This article covers body and wing hue: what controls them, how they work, and what it means practically.

What Controls Hue

Hue — the color itself, red, blue, green, orange, purple — is controlled by two chromosomes: CR 1 for body color and CR 3 for wing color.

Both chromosomes are 40 positions and use the same decode type: circular graduation. They use the same framework and similar numbers. This is also species independent — bees and wasps with identical CR 1 and/or CR 3 genomes have the same colors.

The Color Wheel

The chromosome is read as a whole, but in two halves — the Left Axis (positions 1–20, gene groups A through E) and the Right Axis (positions 21–40, gene groups F through J). Both halves carry equal weight in shifting the final hue. Neither one leads or fine-tunes the other.

It is circular because the wheel wraps around. There are no hard endpoints. Push far enough in one direction and you come back around to where you started.

Now imagine a clock face to describe color locations on the wheel. Red sits at 12. Going clockwise: orange at 1–2, yellow at 3, yellow-green at 4, green at 5–6, blue at 9–10, violet at 11, back to red at 12.

The Two Dials

Hue is not controlled by a single number. It is controlled by two dials, equal in magnitude, turning in opposite directions from each other.

The Right Axis: Groups F-J Dominant or Mixed

Gene groups F through J (positions 21–40) form one dial. The count of dominant or mixed positions in those 20 genes — F-J dominant or mixed — turns the color clockwise as the count rises, and counterclockwise as the count falls.

Note that CR 1 (body) and CR 3 (wing) share the same framework but differ in where specific colors fall on the ladder.

Body color (CR 1):

F-J dominant or mixed	Color zone
17–19	Purple, blue-violet, or teal (Left Axis determines which)
14–16	Blue or teal (Left Axis determines which)
11–13	Green, yellow, or orange (Left Axis determines which; teal also possible at 12–13 with very low Left Axis)
10	Yellow-green or green-yellow (Left Axis determines which)
9	Green, yellow, or orange (Left Axis determines which)
7–8	Red

Wing color (CR 3):

F-J dominant or mixed	Color zone
17–19	Purple or teal (Left Axis determines which)
15–17	Blue-violet (Left Axis determines which)
14–16	Blue or teal (Left Axis determines which)
9–13	Green or orange (Left Axis determines which)
10	Red

The Left Axis: Groups A-E Dominant or Mixed

Gene groups A through E (positions 1–20) form the other dial, turning the color in the opposite direction from the Right Axis, and with equal magnitude. Their effect is measured the same way — a count of dominant or mixed positions across those groups — A-E dominant or mixed.

Within a given Right Axis zone, the Left Axis sets the exact position on the wheel. The specific breakpoints confirmed by specimen data:

• Right Axis 17 or higher: Left Axis 0–3 = purple • Left Axis 4–6 = blue-violet • Left Axis 7+ = teal
• Right Axis 14–16: Left Axis 0–4 = blue • Left Axis 5+ = teal
• Right Axis 11–13: Left Axis 0–2 = teal (at Right Axis 12–13) or green (at Right Axis 11) • Left Axis 3–4 = green • Left Axis 5–8 = yellow • Left Axis 9+ = orange
• Right Axis 10 (body only): Left Axis 0–3 = yellow-green • Left Axis 4+ = green-yellow
• Right Axis 9 (body): Left Axis 0–4 = green • Left Axis 5–8 = yellow • Left Axis 9+ = orange
• Right Axis 9 (wings): Left Axis 0–4 = green • Left Axis 5+ = orange

Think of it as two dials, one in each hand, turned in opposite directions. Neither hand does more work than the other. Where they land together is the final color.

Mixed Genes Count as Dominant

Mixed genes count as dominant or mixed for hue. A position either contributes to the dominant or mixed count or it does not. A bee does not need to be clarified to have a predictable color.

Color and Stats: The Conflict

Here is why a purple-bodied bee has been elusive:

Stat bonuses in arthropods express at double recessive. Every position that contributes a stat bonus is a recessive position. This means a high-stat bee has most of its genome recessive — including positions on CR 1 that also control body hue.

A perfect-stat bee has Right Axis dominant or mixed around 7. Those 13 recessive positions on the Right Axis are stat genes — Toughness, Intelligence, Ruggedness, Ferocity, Virility, Enthusiasm, and Friendliness.

Most of the community was optimizing for maximum stats from October 2021 onward. Every generation that improved stats was pushing the Right Axis lower — further counterclockwise, away from purple. The drive to increase the stats was reducing the possibility for purple to show up and fly around.

Wing color is a different story. All three wild archetypes start with wing colors associated with a higher number of dominant or mixed genes — CR 3 Right Axis sits at 18 in Fae Bees and 15 in both Fae Wasp and Freeze Wasp variants. This is why early breeders frequently saw orange bodies with blue or purple wings — body hue was pushed counterclockwise by stat breeding while wing hue, starting from a more clockwise archetype base, held on longer. The two chromosomes were moving at different rates.

What Is Achievable

Body Color (CR 1)

Starting from a perfect-stat bee, here is what each body color costs. Right Axis dominant or mixed starts at 7. The three free cosmetic positions (1G4, 1I3, 1J4) can be flipped to dominant at no stat cost, raising Right Axis dominant or mixed to 10.

Red

No changes needed. Default for a perfect-stat bee.

Yellow

No stat cost. Flip 1G4, 1I3, 1J4 to dominant. Also flip 1A1 and 1A4 to recessive to lower Left Axis dominant or mixed and clean the yellow. Right Axis dominant or mixed = 10.

Green

Costs −2 Virility. Flip cosmetics + 1F3 to dominant. Right Axis dominant or mixed = 11.

Blue

Costs −15 stat points: −3 Ferocity, −7 Intelligence, −3 Ruggedness, −2 Virility. Five stat genes go dominant. Right Axis dominant or mixed must reach 14–16 with Left Axis dominant or mixed below 5.

Blue-violet

Costs −25 stat points: −5 Enthusiasm, −3 Ferocity, −7 Intelligence, −8 Ruggedness, −2 Virility. Seven stat genes go dominant. Right Axis dominant or mixed must reach 17+ with Left Axis dominant or mixed 4–6.

Teal

Similar cost to blue-violet. Right Axis dominant or mixed must reach 17+ with Left Axis dominant or mixed 7 or higher, or Right Axis 14–16 with Left Axis 5+.

Purple

Costs −30 stat points: −5 Enthusiasm, −3 Ferocity, −5 Friendliness, −7 Intelligence, −8 Ruggedness, −2 Virility. Eight stat genes go dominant. Right Axis dominant or mixed must reach 17+ with Left Axis dominant or mixed below 4.

Wing Color (CR 3)

Starting from a perfect-stat bee, here is what each wing color costs. Right Axis dominant or mixed starts at 6. The seven free cosmetic positions (3F1, 3F4, 3H1, 3H4, 3I1, 3J2, 3J3) can be flipped to dominant at no stat cost, raising Right Axis dominant or mixed to 13.

Red, orange, or yellow wings

No changes needed. Default for a perfect-stat bee. Left Axis dominant or mixed determines which of the three you get.

Green wings

No stat cost. Flip all 7 cosmetic positions to dominant. Right Axis dominant or mixed = 12–13.

Blue wings

Costs −5 stat points: −2 Ferocity, −3 Friendliness. Two stat genes go dominant after cosmetics are used. Right Axis dominant or mixed must reach 14–16 with Left Axis dominant or mixed below 5.

Blue-violet wings

Costs −12 stat points: −5 Ferocity, −3 Friendliness, −4 Virility. Four stat genes go dominant. Right Axis dominant or mixed 15–17, Left Axis dominant or mixed determines exact shade.

Purple wings

Costs −16 stat points: −5 Ferocity, −7 Friendliness, −4 Virility. Five stat genes go dominant. Right Axis dominant or mixed must reach 17+ with Left Axis dominant or mixed below 4.

Wing color reaches clockwise positions more cheaply than body color. The 7 free cosmetic positions on the Right Axis of CR 3 (vs 3 on CR 1) give significantly more room before stat genes must be touched.

For other visual traits, see the Arthropod Genome Structure article.

Arthropod Color Calculator

A color calculator tool based on this research is available at: Arthropod Color Calculator

Input a CR 1 (body) or CR 3 (wing) genome string and select a target color. The tool calculates the minimum gene changes needed to reach that color, sorted by stat cost — cosmetic changes listed first.

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Written by Kaskrim with contributing theory and knowledge by Azizah. Compiled by AI Lumière. Based on research of genomes contributed by the community and posted via Kaskrim's Discord 2021–2026.

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Revision note (v3): Corrected the framing of the two hue-controlling gene groups. Previous versions called F-J the "Primary Axis" and A-E the "Secondary Axis," describing F-J as carrying "most of the hue weight" and A-E as merely "fine-tuning" it, illustrated with a camera macro/micro focus metaphor. This was incorrect. Both axes shift hue with equal magnitude and turn in opposite directions from each other, not one leading and one following. Renamed F-J to the Right Axis and A-E to the Left Axis accordingly, and replaced the camera-focus metaphor with a two-dials-turning-opposite-directions image. All breakpoint tables and stat-cost data are unchanged from v2, only the framing language describing the relationship between the two axes was corrected.