''Sycophaga'' is a mainly

Afrotropical The Afrotropical realm is one of the Earth's eight biogeographic realms. It includes Sub-Saharan Africa, the southern Arabian Peninsula, the island of Madagascar, and the islands of the western Indian Ocean. It was formerly known as the Ethiopi ...

genus of

fig wasp Fig wasps are wasps of the superfamily Chalcidoidea which spend their larval stage inside fig syconia. Some are pollinators but others simply feed off the plant. The non-pollinators belong to several groups within the superfamily Chalcidoidea, ...

s that live on the

section Section, Sectioning, or Sectioned may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Section (music), a complete, but not independent, musical idea * Section (typography), a subdivision, especially of a chapter, in books and documents ** Section sig ...

''Sycomorus'' of the monoecious fig

subgenus In biology, a subgenus ( subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus. In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between the ge ...

, ''Sycomorus'', and one of several fig wasp genera to exploit its mutualism with '' Ceratosolen'' wasps. They enter the fig during the receptive phase of development, and oviposit inside the short-style flowers. This induces the growth of endosperm tissue and the enlargement and ripening of the

syconium Syconium (: syconia) is the type of fruit borne by figs (genus ''Ficus''), formed by an enlarged, fleshy, hollow receptacle with multiple ovaries on the inside surface. In essence, it is really a fleshy stem with a number of flowers, so it is co ...

which holds the wasp-bearing drupelets, without

pollination Pollination is the transfer of pollen from an anther of a plant to the stigma (botany), stigma of a plant, later enabling fertilisation and the production of seeds. Pollinating agents can be animals such as insects, for example bees, beetles or bu ...

taking place. The genus can be characterized by having a long ovipositor, non-metallic coloration, a square mesoscutellum, and a long propodeum.

Species

The described species include: * '' Sycophaga afflicta'' Grandi, 1916 * '' Sycophaga callani'' Grandi, 1955 * '' Sycophaga cyclostigma'' Waterston, 1916 * '' Sycophaga depressa'' Risbec, 1956 * '' Sycophaga gigantea'' Grandi, 1916 * '' Sycophaga gigas'' Mayr, 1906 * '' Sycophaga insularis'' Grandi, 1916 * '' Sycophaga silvestrii'' Grandi, 1916 * '' Sycophaga sycomori'' Linnaeus, 1758 * '' Sycophaga tenebrosa'' Grandi, 1917 * '' Sycophaga valentinae'' Grandi, 1952 * '' Sycophaga vicina'' Mayr, 1906 * ''

Sycophaga viduata ''Sycophaga'' is a mainly Afrotropical realm, Afrotropical genus of fig wasps that live on the Section (botany), section ''Sycomorus'' of the monoecious Ficus, fig subgenus, ''Sycomorus'', and one of several fig wasp genera to exploit its mutual ...

'' Grandi, 1916

References

Hymenoptera genera Agaonidae {{Chalcidoidea-stub