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The island of Corsica is a Mediterranean hotspot of plant biodiversity characterized by a high rate of plant endemism, but also by a lack of studies combining genetic diversity and conservation. In Corsica, the dioecious and Corso-Sardinian endemic Mercurialis corsica Cosson (Euphorbiaceae) occurs across a wide ecological gradient, but the number of populations have decreased considerably over the last century. The main aim of this study was to examine the patterns of genetic diversity occurring in the Corsican populations of M. corsica, depending on their location and demographic structure. The rDNA sequences did not show the existence of any polymorphism, whereas the cpDNA sequences revealed the divergence of the western Corsican populations. By contrast, when the AFLP markers were examined, although significant levels of differentiation were detected between populations, no distinct …