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Different Stimuli Reduce Attraction to Pollinators in Male and Female Figs in the Dioecious Fig Ficus hispida
Author(s) -
Hu HaoYuan,
Jiang ZiFeng,
Niu LiMing,
Fu YueGuan,
Peng ZhengQiang,
Huang DaWei
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
biotropica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.813
H-Index - 96
eISSN - 1744-7429
pISSN - 0006-3606
DOI - 10.1111/j.1744-7429.2009.00536.x
Subject(s) - ficus , pollinator , attraction , biology , dioecy , pollination , mutualism (biology) , plant reproductive morphology , obligate , hymenoptera , inflorescence , zoology , ecology , botany , pollen , linguistics , philosophy
Fig trees ( Ficus ) and their obligate pollinating wasps (Hymenoptera, Chalcidoidea, Agaonidae) are a classic example of a coevolved mutualism. Pollinating wasps are attracted to figs only when figs are receptive. It has been shown that figs will lose their attraction to pollinators sooner in monoecious and male dioecious figs when multiple pollinators have entered the enclosed inflorescence. However, little is known about the nature of the stimulus inducing the loss of attraction. By conducting experiments on the functionally dioecious fig, Ficus hispida , we show that (1) different stimuli induce the loss of attraction in each sex, pollination in female figs, and oviposition in male figs; and (2) foundress number affects the loss of attraction in both sexes only when the prerequisites ( i.e ., pollination in female figs and oviposition in male figs) have been satisfied. In general, the more foundresses that enter, the earlier the fig will lose its receptivity. We argue that the stimuli in male and female figs are adaptations to the fulfillment of its respective reproduction.