| Agaonidae Temporal range:
| |
|---|---|
| |
| Blastophaga psenes | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Superfamily: | Chalcidoidea |
| Family: | Agaonidae Walker, 1848 |
| Subfamilies | |
The family Agaonidae is a group of pollinating fig wasps. They spend their larval stage inside the fruits of figs. The pollinating wasps (Agaoninae, Kradibiinae, and Tetrapusiinae) are the mutualistic partners of the fig trees. Extinct forms from the Eocene and Miocene are nearly identical to modern forms, suggesting that the niche has been stable over geologic time.[1]
Females emerge from ripe figs and fly to another fig tree with developing syconia (which contain the flowers). They enter the syconium via the ostiole, pollinate the flowers, and lay their eggs in some of the ovules. The parasitized ovules develop into galls that support the growth of the wasp larvae. Prior to the final ripening of the fig, wingless males emerge from the galls they developed in. The males enter the galls of their winged sibling females and mate with them.[2]
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Compton-2010was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ van Noort, Simon; Rasplus, Jean-Yves. "Figs and fig wasps of the world". figweb. Retrieved 7 July 2024.