The cryptic habitats of termites make determination of their nesting habits and population structure difficult. The identification of variable microsatellite loci can facilitate these studies by providing a sensitive means of assessing the relatedness of individuals within and between colonies. Individuals of the dampwood termite, Zootermopsis angusticollis, were collected from 96 colonies found in either Pebble Beach or Oakland, California. From these individuals, 28 simple microsatellite motifs were identified. Sixteen sequences, with five or more repeats of di-, tri- or tetranucleotides, were chosen. These were screened against individuals of five colonies drawn from each of the two major populations sampled. From these sequences, primers were designed that exhibited adequate heterozygosity both within and between populations.
Species 1: Isoptera Termopsidae Zootermopsis angusticollis
Keywords: microsatellite, primers
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