The pear pest, Cacopsylla jukyungi (Hemiptera: Psyllidae), is one of the most damaging insect to commercial pears in South Korea. In this study, we developed eight microsatellite markers specific to C. jukyungi and genotyped 132 individuals collected from 11 localities throughout South Korea. Populations showed lower observed heterozygosity than expected heterozygosity and slightly or highly positive values of inbreeding coefficients, suggesting that C. jukyungi is subjected to inbreeding. The nationwide expansion of pear orchards and the replacement with a popular new cultivar during the last 50 years, which may have accompanied the spread of C. jukyungi-bearing pear grafts and scions, are likely sources of such facilitated dispersal. Thus, a management strategy against unintended anthropogenic dispersal of the pear psyllid will be required for better control of C. jukyungi.

• Ah Rang Kang(Pear Research Institute, National Institute of Horticultural & Herbal Science, Rural Development Administration, Naju, Republic of Korea, Department of Applied Biology, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, Republic of Korea) Corresponding author
• Jeong Sun Park(Department of Applied Biology, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, Republic of Korea)
• Min Jee Kim(Experiment and Analysis Division, Honam Regional Office, Animal and Plant Quarantine Agency, Gunsan 54096, Republic of Korea)
• Jee-Young Pyo(Department of Applied Biology, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, Republic of Korea)
• Iksoo Kim(Department of Applied Biology, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, Republic of Korea)