INFLUENCE OF FIG SURFACE AREAS ON BROOD PRODUCTION AND GENDER DISTRIBUTION IN Blastophaga POLLINATORS OF Ficus deltoidea

Qurratu'Aini Syasya Shamsuri, Nur Badrina Mohammad Naser, Nur ‘Aliyaa Nizam, Norashirene Mohamad Jamil, Siti Khairiyah Mohd Hatta

Abstract


Fig trees belonging to the genus of Ficus (Moraceae) are known for their diversity formed through obligate mutualism with their pollinators, known as the fig wasps (Agaonidae). The interaction occurs in both directions where the fig serves as the breeding site for the wasp, and the wasp in return, pollinate the fig’s flower. Studies revealed that fig surface area exhibits influence on the wasp brood productivity by stating that the larger fig surface area is capable of supporting numerous wasp’s offspring. Furthermore, the gender distribution of fig wasp of Ficus fig is commonly reported to exhibit a female-biased. However, it remains unclear whether fig surface area influences brood productivity (brood size), and the female-bias gender distribution in a Malaysian fig species, Ficus deltoidea. Therefore, this study conducted to determine the influence of the fig surface area and the gender distribution of the pollinator, Blastophaga fig wasp that oviposited in 100 figs of F. deltoidea of var. angustifolia and var. deltoidea from Banting and Batu Pahat, respectively. The surface area of figs was measured, then dissected, followed by gall extraction for detailed observations. The results indicate the fig surface area and the wasp brood size of var. deltoidea are significantly higher than var. angustifolia (P<0.005). However, in each host variety, the linear regression determined the fig surface area is a weak predictor, addressing only 2% and 25% of variance on the brood size, respectively. In addition, the chi-square determined the gender distribution deviated from 1:1 expected ratio, indicating the imbalanced in the gender distribution and the wasp brood of both host varieties are female-biased. In conclusion, the brood size of Blastophaga wasp is not entirely influenced by the fig surface area of F. deltoidea var. angustifolia and var. deltoidea, and female-bias in the wasp was observed across the two host varieties.


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