The lack of pollinator specificity in a dioecious fig tree : sympatric fig-pollinating wasps of Ficus septica in southern Taiwan
Document Type
Journal article
Source Publication
Biotropica
Publication Date
3-2011
Volume
43
Issue
2
First Page
200
Last Page
207
Publisher
Wiley-Blackwell Publishing, Inc.
Keywords
Ceratosolen, coexistence, fig wasp, pollination
Abstract
Although species specificity between fig trees and their pollinators has been considered a classic example of obligate mutualism, increasing exceptions to the one-to-one relationship suggest that multiple pollinator species per fig host species may be a pervasive phenomenon. Based on both mitochondrial DNA and microsatellite analyses, we found three putative pollinator species (Ceratosolen spp.) associated with Ficus spetica in southern Taiwan, two of which, that differ in color, routinely coexist within single figs. These three pollinators are substantially divergent from the pollinator of F. spetica in New Guinea, implying that wasp diversity may be highly underestimated when the one-to-one rule is assumed. Our findings not only provide the first case of coexistence of pollinators within single figs on a shared dioecious Ficus host, but also an ideal system to investigate interspecific competition and sex allocation, especially when coexisting pollinators are visually distinguishable by their colors.
DOI
10.1111/j.1744-7429.2010.00686.x
Print ISSN
00063606
E-ISSN
17447429
Publisher Statement
Copyright © 2010 The Author(s). Journal compilation © 2010 by The Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation. Access to external full text or publisher's version may require subscription.
Full-text Version
Publisher’s Version
Language
English
Recommended Citation
Lin, R.-C., Yeung, C. K.-L., Fong, J. J., Tzeng, H.-Y. & Li, S.-H. (2011), The lack of pollinator specificity in a dioecious fig tree: Sympatric fig-pollinating wasps of ficus septica in southern Taiwan. Biotropica, 43(2), 200–207. doi: 10.1111/j.1744-7429.2010.00686.x