Fig trees (Ficus spp.) and Agaonine fig-wasps participate in an obligate mutualism. Fig wasps can only develop within fig inflorescences (syconia) and they are the only organisms capable of pollinating fig flowers.Other non-pollinating wasps that lay eggs by inserting their ovipositors from the outside can also develop in syconia. These parasitic wasps may be parasitoids of either pollinating or other nonpollinating wasps, or form galls in fig flowers or other tissues. Depending on this interaction, parasitic wasps may have various effects on the production of pollinating wasps and seeds. Wasps in the genus Idarnes, which parasitize New World figs (subgenus Urostigma), have an effect on wasp production but not on seed production. Heterandrium spp., which have short ovipositors and lay on external flowers, are infrequent and no effect on seed production has been documented. In the Colombian Andes, Idarnes spp. and Heterandrium spp. are the most frequent parasites of the Ficus andicola -Pegoscapus sp. mutualism, affecting 62 and 43 percent of syconia, respectively. Controlling for other factors that influence wasp and seed production, such as number of foundresses, syconium size and tree, we found that Idarnes reduced pollinator production by almost half but did not reduce seed production, whereas Heterandrium reduced seed production by 40 percent, and marginally affected pollinator production. Our results provide the first clear documentation of Heterandrium spp. impact on fig seed production. Whether the relative abundance of this genus is a generalized phenomenon in montane forest remains to be determined.Abstract in Spanish is available in the online version of this article.

Aquatic entomofauna from Gorgona National Natural Park, Colombian Pacific, with emphasis in Ephemeroptera and Plecoptera. Gorgona is a Colombian continental island that biogeographically belongs in the Choco region. This work constitutes a first approximation to the aquatic insects, with emphasis in Ephemeroptera and Plecoptera: distribution, ecology, and associations to the continental mainland. Between October 2010 and June 2011, immature and adult specimens were collected in five streams of the island´s Western sector using entomological nets, Malaise traps, and light traps. A total of nine orders, 28 families, 39 genera and 16 species of aquatic insects were found. New geographical records for Gorgona include: Dytiscidae (Coleoptera), Zelusia, Farrodes and Terpides (Ephemeroptera), Leucotrichia and Wormaldia (Trichoptera), Laccodytes, Neoelmis and Pheneps (Coleoptera), Maruina and Limonia (Diptera). As part of this study, four new species for each, Ephemeroptera and Plecoptera, were found. Leptohyphes jodiannae, L. maculatus and Hagenulopsis esmeralda are recorded for the first time for Colombia. Farrodes caribbianus, F. roundsi, Hagenulopsis zunigae, Zelusia principalis and Anacroneuria choco are reported for the first time for the National Park. The high abundance of families, genera, and species is similar to that of low order streams in the tropic mainland, particularly those associated to the Choco bio-geographical province. Rev. Biol. Trop. 62 (Suppl. 1): 221-241. Epub 2014 February 01.

Biotic invasion in mutualistic communities is of particular interest due to the possible establishment of new relationships with native species. Ficus species are widely cultivated as ornamental plants, and they host specific communities of chalcid wasps that are strictly associated with the fig inflorescences. Some introduced fig species are capable of establishing new relationships with the local fig wasps, and fig wasp species may also be concomitantly introduced with their host plants. Ficusbenjamina L. is widely cultivated across the world, but the associated fig wasps are not reported outside of the species native range. We describe for the first time a non-pollinating fig wasp associated with F.benjamina inflorescences outside its native distribution. Sycobiahodites Farache & Rasplus, sp. n. is the third known species of the genus and was recorded in populations of F.benjamina introduced in the Neotropical region throughout several localities in Argentina, Brazil and Colombia. Sycobia is a gall-inducing non-pollinating fig wasp genus associated with fig trees in the Oriental and Australasian regions. This species competes with pollinators for oviposition sites and may hinder the future establishment of the native pollinator of F.benjamina, Eupristinakoningsbergeri Grandi, 1916 in the New World. However, the occurrence of a gall inducing species in this host plant may open ecological opportunities for the establishment of species belonging to other trophic levels such as cleptoparasite and parasitoid wasps.

La especie Pelargonium odoratissimum (geranio de olor) pertenece a la familia Geraniaceae. Dentro de su composición química, presenta flavonoides tales como quercetina, kaempferol y miricetina; el aceite esencial de sus hojas es rico en metil-eugenol, limoneno y fencona. A partir de hojas y flores de la especie P. odoratissimum se obtuvo el aceite esencial por hidrodestilación (rendimiento 0,3% m/v); la composición química se determinó por cromatografía de gases acoplada a espectrometría de masas (CG-EM), comparando los índices de retención y los espectros de masas con  los datos reportados en la literatura. Se determinó la presencia de 4 monoterpenos, 20 sesquiterpenos y algunos compuestos oxigenados entre ellos 7 ésteres y un ácido, los cuales constituyen cerca del 74% de la composición relativa total del aceite. Los monoterpenos identificados representan el 22,60% de la composición del aceite esencial, en los cuales los componentes mayoritarios encontrados fueron geraniol (12,69%) y citronelol (8,99%). La actividad antimicrobiana medida como la Concentración Mínima Inhibitoria (CMI) se realizó por el método de microdilución en placas de 96 pozos utilizando como indicador de viabilidad el MTT (bromuro de 3-[4,5dimetiltiazol-2-il]-2,5-difeniltetrazolio). El aceite esencial mostró actividad frente a todas las cepas microbianas ensayadas. La mayor actividad se encuentra frente a Staphylococcus aureus, Proteus mirabilis, Aspergillus brasiliensis y Candida albicans con una CMI < 3,9 µg/mL. Se encontró una menor actividad inhibitoria, aunque no menos importante, contra Trichophytum rubrum (CMI = 62,5 µg/mL) y Trichophytum mentagrophytes (CMI = 125 µg/mL).

Se realizó el estudio fitoquímico de hojas de Cavendishia compacta. La separación de extractos y fracciones por cromatografías en columna, capa delgada y capa delgada preparativa, permitieron obtener una mezcla de diterpenos conformada por kaurano, rimuneno y biformeno; una mezcla de compuestos aromáticos constituida por acetofenona y benzaldehído; una mezcla de triterpenos constituida por α-amirina y β-amirina y el aislamiento de morina y miricetina. La actividad antiinflamatoria se evaluó al extracto etanólico y las fracciones de hexano, dicolorometano y acetato de etilo, utilizando el modelo de edema auricular inducido por TPA, siendo el extracto etanólico y la fracción de dicolorometano los que presentaron un efecto antiinflamatorio moderado de 49,3% y 39,8% respectivamente.