Two AFLP fingerprinting methods were employed to estimate the potential of AFLP fingerprints for the detection of genetic diversity within single founder lineages of grape phylloxera (Daktulosphaira vitifoliae Fitch). Eight clonal lineages, reared under controlled conditions in a greenhouse and reproducing asexually throughout a minimum of 15 generations, were monitored and mutations were scored as polymorphisms between the founder individual and individuals of succeeding generations. Genetic variation was detected within all lineages, from early generations on. Six to 15 polymorphic loci (from a total of 141 loci) were detected within the lineages, making up 4.3% of the total amount of genetic variation. The presence of contaminating extra-genomic sequences (e.g., viral material, bacteria, or ingested chloroplast DNA) was excluded as a source of intraclonal variation. Sequencing of 37 selected polymorphic bands confirmed their origin in mostly noncoding regions of the grape phylloxera genome. AFLP techniques were revealed to be powerful for the identification of reproducible banding patterns within clonal lineages.