B₁ was the ancestor B chromosome variant in the western Mediterranean area in the grasshopper Eyprepocnemis plorans

We analyzed the distribution of 2 repetitive DNAs, i.e. ribosomal DNA (rDNA) and a satellite DNA (satDNA), on the B chromosomes found in 17 natural populations of the grasshopper Eyprepocnemis ploransplorans sampled around the western Mediterranean region, including the Iberian Peninsula, Balearic Islands, Sicily, and Tunisia. Based on the amount of these repetitive DNAs, 4 types of B variants were found: B₁, showing an equal or higher amount of rDNA than satDNA, and 3 other variants, B₂, B₂₄ and B ₅, bearing a higher amount of satDNA than rDNA. The variants B ₁ and B₂ varied in size among populations: B₁ was about half the size of the X chromosome in Balearic Islands, but two-thirds of the X in Iberian populations at Alicante, Murcia and Albacete provinces. Likewise, B₂ was about one-third the size of the X chromosome in populations from the Granada province but half the size of the X in the populations collected at Málaga province. The widespread geographical distribution of the B₁ variant makes it the best candidate for being the ancestor B chromosome in the whole western Mediterranean region.