FLOWERING CYCLES AND FRUIT TYPES OF FICUS SYCOMORUS IN ISRAEL

Abstract

SUMMARYFlowering cycles in the 'Balami' variety of Ficus sycomorus, the sycomore, were studied in connection with the sycophilous wasps Svcophaga sycomori and Apocrypta longitarsus. In the coastal plain of Israel the syconia of Ficus sycomorus may follow either of two developmental courses: most of the syconia swell rapidly, when still at an early stage of anthesis, thus producing genuinely 'vegetative parthenocarpic' fruit; some of them, however, become inhabited by Svcophaga svcomori and then follow a full developmental course, ultimately producing 'stimulative parthenocarpic' fruit. The latter type of fruit is seedless, as is the former, and the stimulus for its development is provided by the wasps ovipositing in the flower ovaries and by the subsequent activity of the wasp larvae within. In order to ascertain the reason for the absence of seeds, controlled pollination experiments were conducted. These experiments, and also systematic observations on the sequence of flowering generations throughout the year, have yielded information on seed-setting and the interrelations between the sycomore and its wasps.

Fruit characteristics and factors affecting fruit removal in a Panamanian community of strangler figs

“…Although Ficus are perhaps best known for the intricate mutualism with their generally species-specific wasp pollinators (Corner 1940;Galil and Eisikowitch 1968;Ramirez 1969;Janzen 1979;Herre 1996), the ripe fruit that is one product of that interaction also provides an important food source for a wide range of frugivores that, in turn, usually disperse the viable fig seeds. The perception that Ficus species constitute important "keystone" resources for many frugivore groups has been supported by many authors working in many different tropical regions (Corner 1940;Janzen 1979;Foster 1982;Milton et al 1982;Leighton and Leighton 1983;Terborgh 1986;McKey 1989;Windsor et al 1989;Lambert and Marshall, 1991;Wrangham et al 1993;Herre 1996;O'Brien et al 1998; but see Gautier-Hion and Michaloud 1989;Levey et al 1994;Goodman et al 1997).…”

Comment on "Early Domesticated Fig in the Jordan Valley"

“…The case described in (1) is, however, true for another cultivated species, Ficus sycomorous, in which a local parthenocarpic variety never sets seeds and all such trees are planted by farmers (5). Because all parthenocarpic fig types can produce seeds, the finds described in (1) cannot serve as an unambiguous sign of cultivation and lend no support to the notion that horticulture predated grain crops in the Near East.…”

Number and Structure of Anthers in Fig Syconia in Relation to Behaviour of the Pollen Vectors

“…Although in Israel sycornore figs are not inhabited by their legitimate pollinators (Cerazosoien arubicus hlayr), they nevertheless complete their developmental cycle and reach the D (male) and E (post-floral) phases due to inhabitation by the parasitic wasp Sycophaga sycomori L., which penetrates into the syconia and induces development of stimulativeparthenocarpic fruit (Galil and Eisikowitch, 1968a;Galil, 1968). T h e syconium remains closed throughout the male (D) phase and opens only at the end of that phase, when the syconial wall is tunnelled by the males of the wasp in the vicinity of the ostiole.…”