Analysis of the population structure ofMacrolophus pygmaeus(Rambur) (Hemiptera: Miridae) in the Palaearctic region using microsatellite markers

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Abstract
Macrolophus pygmaeus(Rambur) (Hemiptera: Miridae) is widely distributed throughout the Palaearctic region. The aim was to explain the current geographic distribution of the species by investigating its genetic population structure. Samples ofM. pygmaeuswere collected in 15 localities through its range of distribution. A sample from a commercial producer was also analyzed. A total of 367 M. pygmaeuswere genotyped for nine microsatellite loci. Isolation by distance was tested by Mantel's test. The molecular structure ofM. pygmaeuspopulations was inferred byUPGMA,AMOVA, Principal component and Bayesian analyses. The average number of alleles per locus per population was 5.5 (range: 3.1–7.8). Istanbul (Turkey) and Nimes (France) had the lowest (0.291) and the highest (0.626) expected heterozygosity (He), respectively. There was an increase inHefrom the Canary Islands to Nimes, and a progressive decrease thereafter. A significant negative correlation was found between allelic richness andHe, and the distance of each population to the easternmost locality (Canary Islands). Significant linkage disequilibrium was observed in the populations from Turkey.FST(0.004–0.334) indicated a high population differentiation, with isolation by distance supported by a high correlation. Bayesian analyses,PCA, andUPGMApointed to three main clusters: (1) Greece and Turkey, (2) Italy and France, and (3) southern Iberia and the Canary Islands. The recent evolutionary history ofM. pygmaeusis inferred from the data as follows: (1) the reduction in the geographic distribution of the species to the Iberian, Italian, and Balkan peninsulas, and possibly southern France, during glaciations and re‐colonization of northern Europe from its southern refuges; (2) the maintenance of high diversity in Iberia and Italy (and possibly southern France) during contraction periods, and bottlenecks in the Balkans; (3) introgression of the Italian–French lineage in northern Spain, naturally or through trade.

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