Despite their potential as endogenous tools for forward and reverse genetics, members of the hobo, Ac, Tam3 (or hAT) superfamily of transposable elements have been characterized in but a limited number of plant species. To expedite their isolation, we developed a PCR-based assay for the detection of hAT-like transposon sequences in plants which was applied to isolate and initially characterize such sequences from Petunia hybrida, Phaseolus vulgaris, Bambusa vulgaris, Brassica napus and Rhododendron simsii.