Asexual reproduction of a few genotypes favored the invasion of the cereal aphid <i>Rhopalosiphum padi</i> in Chile

Abstract

Populations of <i>R. padi</i> in Chile are characterized by a low clonal diversity (<i>G</i>/<i>N</i> = 62/377 = 0.16) and the overrepresentation of a few widely distributed MLGs. One of the MLGs constituted roughly half of the sample and was observed in all sampled populations at high frequencies. Furthermore, this putative aphid "superclone" exhibited variations in its reproductive performance on cereals most commonly cultivated in Chile. The sampled populations also exhibited weak signs of genetic differentiation among hosts and localities. Our findings suggest that (1) obligate parthenogenesis is the primary reproductive mode of <i>R. padi</i> in Chile in the sampled range and (2) its introduction involved the arrival of a few genotypes that multiplied asexually.