Foucaud J. auteur aut IRD Orivel J. auteur aut IRD Loiseau A. auteur aut IRD Delabie J. H. C. auteur aut IRD Jourdan Hervé auteur aut IRD Konghouleux Djoël auteur aut IRD Vonshak M. auteur aut IRD Tindo M. auteur aut IRD Mercier J. L. auteur aut IRD Fresneau D. auteur aut IRD Mikissa J. B. auteur aut IRD McGlynn T. auteur aut IRD Mikheyev A. S. auteur aut IRD Oettler J. auteur aut IRD Estoup A. auteur aut IRD text journalArticle eng text/pdf reformatted digital access Biological invasions are generally thought to occur after human aided migration to a new range. However, human activities prior to migration may also play a role. We studied here the evolutionary genetics of introduced populations of the invasive ant Wasmannia auropunctata at a worldwide scale. Using microsatellite markers, we reconstructed the main routes of introduction of the species. We found three main routes of introduction, each of them strongly associated to human history and trading routes. We also demonstrate the overwhelming occurrence of male and female clonality in introduced populations of W. auropunctata, and suggest that this particular reproduction system is under selection in human-modified habitats. Together with previous researches focused on native populations, our results suggest that invasive clonal populations may have evolved within human modified habitats in the native range, and spread further from there. The evolutionarily most parsimonious scenario for the emergence of invasive populations of the little fire ant might thus be a two-step process. The W. auropunctata case illustrates the central role of humans in biological change, not only due to changes in migration patterns, but also in selective pressures over species. specialized biological invasion introduction routes parthenogenesis reproduction system Wasmannia auropunctata 080 3 4 363-374 2010 1752-4571 https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010049577 10.1111/j.1752-4571.2010.00119.x 1752-4571 [F B010049577] https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010049577 https://horizon.documentation.ird.fr/exl-doc/pleins_textes/divers19-02/010049577.pdf IRD - Base Horizon / Pleins textes 2010-07-09 2019-03-06 fdi:010049577 fre