__NOTOC__ ''Apocrypta'' is an

Old World The "Old World" () is a term for Afro-Eurasia coined by Europeans after 1493, when they became aware of the existence of the Americas. It is used to contrast the continents of Africa, Europe, and Asia in the Eastern Hemisphere, previously ...

genus of parasitic fig wasps in the family

Pteromalidae The Pteromalidae are a large family of wasps, the majority being parasitoids of other insects. They are found throughout the world in virtually all habitats, and many are important as biological control agents. The oldest known fossil is known fr ...

. 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 A pollinator is an animal that moves pollen from the male anther of a flower to the female stigma of a flower. This helps to bring about fertilization of the ovules in the flower by the male gametes from the pollen grains. Insects are the ma ...

of the ''Sycomorus'', ''Sycocarpus'' and ''Neomorphe'' sections of ''

Ficus ''Ficus'' ( or ) is a genus of about 850 species of woody trees, shrubs, vines, epiphytes and hemiepiphytes in the family (biology), family Moraceae. Collectively known as fig trees or figs, they are native throughout the tropics with a few spe ...

''. They seem to be fig species-specific.

Biology

They parasitize certain species of the fig wasp genera '' Apocryptophagus'' 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. Plant galls are abnormal outgrowths of plant tissues, similar to benign tumors or war ...

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'' Ulenberg, 1985 *'' Apocrypta bakeri'' (Joseph, 1952) – host fig ''F. hispida'', host ''C. solmsi'' Mayr *''

Apocrypta brachycephala __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, Pollinator, pollinators of the ''Sycomoru ...

'' Grandi, 1916 *'' Apocrypta caudata'' (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, Pollinator, pollinators of the ''Sycomoru ...

'' Grandi, 1916 – host fig '' F. sur'', host ''C. capensis'', etc. *'' Apocrypta perplexa'' Coquerel, 1855 – host fig '' F. mauritiana'' *'' Apocrypta polyspina'' Ulenberg, 1985 *'' Apocrypta regalis'' Grandi, 1916 *'' Apocrypta robusta'' Grandi, 1916 – host fig '' F. vallis-choudae'' *'' Apocrypta setoptera'' Ulenberg, 1855 *'' Apocrypta suprasegmenta'' Ulenberg, 1985 *'' Apocrypta tanyceraea'' Ulenberg, 1985 *'' Apocrypta varicolor'' (Mayr, 1885) *'' Apocrypta westwoodi'' 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

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