Wild Ussurian pear is native to the northeastern part of China, but whose habitats are currently being destroyed by environmental changes and human deforestation. An investigation of population structure and genetic diversity of wild Ussurian pear is a priority in order to acquire fundamental knowledge for conservation.

A total of 153 individuals of wild Ussurian pears, from their main habitats, northeastern China, were divided into 5 sub-populations based on the Bayesian clustering method and haplotype distributions using 20 nSSRs and 16 cpSSRs, and the populations in Inner Mongolia represented unique genotypes. Haplotype E, positioned in the center of the cpSSR analysis network, represented the most primitive haplotype. It was found in populations in the northeastern Heilongjiang. This study also revealed the genetic diversity of the populations in Inner Mongolia and northeastern Heilongjiang was especially low.

Inner Mongolia and the northeastern Heilongjiang are two areas that need urgent conservation because of their genetic vulnerability and peculiarity.