Chloroplast microsatellite (cpSSR) markers were developed for three ecologically and economically important tree species in the mangrove family, Rhizophoraceae: Bruguiera gymnorrhiza, Kandelia candel, and Rhizophora stylosa. Noncoding regions of chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) from each species were separately amplified using universal chloroplast primers. Six, two, and three polymorphic cpSSR loci in B. gymnorrhiza, K. candel, and R. stylosa, respectively, were developed from amplified noncoding cpDNA regions. Characterization of 216, 156, and 253 individuals of B. gymnorrhiza, K. candel, and R. stylosa, respectively, collected from different natural mangrove populations (B. gymnorrhiza, 9; K. candel, 7; R. stylosa, 9) on Iriomote Island in Japan showed that these loci provide cpSSR markers with polymorphisms ranging from two to four alleles per locus and gene diversity between 0.027 and 0.480. These cpSSR markers will be useful for analyzing the maternal lineage distributions and population genetic structures of the three species. Several of these markers may also be useful in similar studies of other mangrove species.Keywords cpSSR Á Mangrove Á Maternal lineage Á Rhizophoraceae Bruguiera gymnorrhiza, Kandelia candel, and Rhizophora stylosa are ecologically and economically important tree species of a widely distributed mangrove family, the Rhizophoraceae. Ecologically, these three species serve as important components of the coastal mangrove ecosystem, as they protect shorelines by controlling coastal erosion and reducing the damaging effects of tidal surges and cyclonic storms in the coastal areas, and maintain the food web of coastal marine ecosystems. These species are important economically to communities living adjacent to mangroves, because of their use as timber and fuelwood and as raw materials for cottage industries. Information on population genetics and mating systems can provide effective guidelines for ecological management and conservation of these species. In the present study, chloroplast microsatellite (cpSSR) markers were isolated from B. gymnorrhiza, K. candel, and R. stylosa in order to investigate their maternal lineages, population genetic structures, and mating systems.Genomic DNA was extracted from silica gel-dried leaves using a modified cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB) method . cpSSR regions were isolated from B. gymnorrhiza, K. candel, and R. stylosa by sequencing the noncoding regions of chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) following the method of Lian et al. (2003). Briefly, the cpDNA fragments of each species were amplified by PCR using 11 universal chloroplast primer pairs developed by Taberlet et al. (1991), Demesure et al.