__NOTOC__ ''Apocrypta'' is an

Old World The "Old World" is a term for Afro-Eurasia that originated in Europe , after Europeans became aware of the existence of the Americas. It is used to contrast the continents of Africa, Europe, and Asia, which were previously thought of by the ...

genus of parasitic

fig The fig is the edible fruit of ''Ficus carica'', a species of small tree in the flowering plant family Moraceae. Native to the Mediterranean and western Asia, it has been cultivated since ancient times and is now widely grown throughout the world ...

wasps in the family

Pteromalidae The Pteromalidae are a very large family of mostly parasitoid wasps, with some 3,450 described species in about 640 genera (the number was greater, but many species and genera have been reduced by synonymy in recent years). The subfamily-level d ...

. They are

parasitoid In evolutionary ecology, a parasitoid is an organism that lives in close association with its host (biology), host at the host's expense, eventually resulting in the death of the host. Parasitoidism is one of six major evolutionarily stable str ...

s of gall-wasps in the Sycophagini tribe, and especially '' Ceratosolen'' species, pollinators of the ''Sycomorus'', ''Sycocarpus'' and ''Neomorphe'' sections of '' Ficus''. They seem to be fig species-specific.

Biology

They parasitize certain species of the fig wasp genera ''

Apocryptophagus ''Sycophaga'' is a mainly Afrotropical gall wasp genus of the superfamily Chalcidoidea that live on the section ''Sycomorus'' of the monoecious fig subgenus, ''Sycomorus'', and one of several fig wasp genera to exploit its mutualism with ''Ce ...

'' and '' Ceratosolen''. The long ovipositor is pierced through the fig wall to infect the fig wasp larvae during their development inside the flower

gall Galls (from the Latin , 'oak-apple') or ''cecidia'' (from the Greek , anything gushing out) are a kind of swelling growth on the external tissues of plants, fungi, or animals. Plant galls are abnormal outgrowths of plant tissues, similar to be ...

s. Penetration of the syconium wall may last from 6 to 55 minutes, depending on the wasp and fig species. ''Ceratosolen'' wasps are key pollinator species, and their production is consequently reduced. ''Apocryptophagus'' wasps are however gall forming non-pollinators. Some differences in ''Apocrypta'' behaviour and morphology reflect the variety in fig inflorescence morphology.

Morphology

The adult female has an elongate external ovipositor, some 2 to 5 mm long, which reflects the thickness of the syconium wall of the host fig species. To stabilize the long ovipositor during oviposition, the proximal gastral segments can telescope outwards as the abdomen is lifted up, which in some species leans forward beyond the head. The ovipositor is enclosed and guided by a flexible ovipositor sheath. As in several genera of parasitic wasp, the highly flexible sheath supports the ovipositor's tip during the initial stages of oviposition. In some species, such as ''Apocrypta westwoodi'', the ovipositor has zinc-hardened drill bits.

Species

There are some 27 described species which include: *''

Apocrypta acaeta __NOTOC__ ''Apocrypta'' is an Old World genus of parasitic fig wasps in the family Pteromalidae. They are parasitoids of gall-wasps in the Sycophagini tribe, and especially ''Ceratosolen'' species, pollinators of the ''Sycomorus'', ''Sycocarpus'' ...

'' Ulenberg, 1985 *''

Apocrypta bakeri ''Apocrypta bakeri'' is a species of fig wasps in the family Pteromalidae. It has ''Ficus hispida'' as its host, where it parasitizes the other fig wasp ''Ceratosolen solmsi ''Ceratosolen solmsi'' is a species of fig wasps in the family Agaoni ...

'' (Joseph, 1952) – host fig ''F. hispida'', host ''C. solmsi'' Mayr *''

Apocrypta brachycephala __NOTOC__ ''Apocrypta'' is an Old World genus of parasitic fig wasps in the family Pteromalidae. They are parasitoids of gall-wasps in the Sycophagini tribe, and especially ''Ceratosolen'' species, pollinators of the ''Sycomorus'', ''Sycocarpus'' ...

'' Grandi, 1916 *''

Apocrypta caudata __NOTOC__ ''Apocrypta'' is an Old World genus of parasitic fig wasps in the family Pteromalidae. They are parasitoids of gall-wasps in the Sycophagini tribe, and especially ''Ceratosolen'' species, pollinators of the ''Sycomorus'', ''Sycocarpus'' ...

'' (Girault, 1915) *''

Apocrypta guineensis __NOTOC__ ''Apocrypta'' is an Old World genus of parasitic Ficus, fig wasps in the family Pteromalidae. They are parasitoids of gall-wasps in the Sycophagini tribe, and especially ''Ceratosolen'' species, pollinators of the ''Sycomorus'', ''Sycoca ...

'' Grandi, 1916 – host fig '' F. sur'', host ''C. capensis'', etc. *''

Apocrypta perplexa __NOTOC__ ''Apocrypta'' is an Old World genus of parasitic fig wasps in the family Pteromalidae. They are parasitoids of gall-wasps in the Sycophagini tribe, and especially '' Ceratosolen'' species, pollinators of the ''Sycomorus'', ''Sycocarpus' ...

'' Coquerel, 1855 – host fig '' F. mauritiana'' *''

Apocrypta polyspina __NOTOC__ ''Apocrypta'' is an Old World genus of parasitic fig wasps in the family Pteromalidae. They are parasitoids of gall-wasps in the Sycophagini tribe, and especially '' Ceratosolen'' species, pollinators of the ''Sycomorus'', ''Sycocarpus' ...

'' Ulenberg, 1985 *''

Apocrypta regalis __NOTOC__ ''Apocrypta'' is an Old World genus of parasitic Ficus, fig wasps in the family Pteromalidae. They are parasitoids of gall-wasps in the Sycophagini tribe, and especially ''Ceratosolen'' species, pollinators of the ''Sycomorus'', ''Sycoca ...

'' Grandi, 1916 *''

Apocrypta robusta __NOTOC__ ''Apocrypta'' is an Old World genus of parasitic fig wasps in the family Pteromalidae. They are parasitoids of gall-wasps in the Sycophagini tribe, and especially '' Ceratosolen'' species, pollinators of the ''Sycomorus'', ''Sycocarpus' ...

'' Grandi, 1916 – host fig '' F. vallis-choudae'' *''

Apocrypta setoptera __NOTOC__ ''Apocrypta'' is an Old World genus of parasitic fig wasps in the family Pteromalidae. They are parasitoids of gall-wasps in the Sycophagini tribe, and especially '' Ceratosolen'' species, pollinators of the ''Sycomorus'', ''Sycocarpus' ...

'' Ulenberg, 1855 *'' Apocrypta suprasegmenta'' Ulenberg, 1985 *'' Apocrypta tanyceraea'' Ulenberg, 1985 *''

Apocrypta varicolor __NOTOC__ ''Apocrypta'' is an Old World genus of parasitic fig wasps in the family Pteromalidae. They are parasitoids of gall-wasps in the Sycophagini tribe, and especially ''Ceratosolen'' species, pollinators of the ''Sycomorus'', ''Sycocarpus'' ...

'' (Mayr, 1885) *''

Apocrypta westwoodi __NOTOC__ ''Apocrypta'' is an Old World genus of parasitic fig wasps in the family Pteromalidae. They are parasitoids of gall-wasps in the Sycophagini tribe, and especially ''Ceratosolen'' species, pollinators of the ''Sycomorus'', ''Sycocarpus'' ...

'' Grandi, 1916 – host fig '' F. racemosa'', host ''C. fusciceps'' *''Apocrypta'' sp. – host fig '' F. semicordata'', host ''C. gravelyi'' Grandi

Gallery

File:Apocrypta guineensis, volw-wyfie op F sur, Manie vd Schijff BT, l.jpg, Ovipositing female positioning her flexible ovipositor sheath File:Apocrypta guineensis, volw-wyfie op F sur, Manie vd Schijff BT, c.jpg, Ovipositor protruding from tip of ovipositor sheath File:Apocrypta guineensis, volw-wyfie op F sur, Manie vd Schijff BT, f.jpg, Females congregating on a young fig

References

External links

Pteromalidae Hymenoptera genera Taxa named by Charles Coquerel {{Chalcidoidea-stub