Alien "fig wasps" associated with Ficus microcarpa on Cyprus
🌿 The Chinese banyan (Ficus microcarpa) is an Australasian fig tree species commonly planted in urban and semi-urban sites throughout the warmer parts of the world. Many tiny wasp species (also called fig wasps) develop in the figs of Ficus species, with increasing numbers of species native to Asia being recorded from the Mediterranean. These appear to influence the pace of colonisation of F. microcarpa. Assisted by its pollinator wasp Eupristina verticillata (Agaonidae), F. microcarpa often manages to colonise urban areas outside its native range and can invade natural habitats.
🐝 In Cyprus, this fig tree species is widely planted in city centres, town squares and parks. Surveys in Cyprus during the last 7 years have uncovered a total of 11 alien fig wasp species associated with F. microcarpa. Amongst them, two species are reported for the first time from the Western Palearctic: Sycophila petiolata Chen (Eurytomidae) and an undescribed species of uncertain generic affinity (Pteromalidae, Epichrysomallinae) that we refer to as “Eufroggattisca sp. indesc.”.
🛑 In contrast to the pollinator E. verticillata, other “non-pollinating fig wasps” have been identified as possible biological control agents of the invasive F. microcarpa that could slow its spreading. In Cyprus, only 3 out of 11 species are likely to be beneficial to the reproductive success of F. microcarpa, whereas all the remaining species will reduce the numbers of seeds or pollinating wasps produced by the tree.
🌱 Some establishment of the Chinese banyan in Mediterranean natural habitats has been reported although in Cyprus such instances have not yet been observed. Nevertheless, young trees of various alien Ficus species including F. microcarpa have been observed in the historical centre of Limassol, where they develop on sidewalks and wall crevices. Fig wasp communities of F. microcarpa in Cyprus are unquestionably in need of a thorough quantitative evaluation, with yearly monitoring which is the subject of an upcoming study.
📖 Find our publication here: https://tinyurl.com/yc8ee2jw
Demetriou J, Koutsoukos E, Mavrovounioti N, Radea C, Arianoutsou M, Roy HE, Compton SG, Martinou AF (2023) A rather unfruitful relationship? Fig wasps (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea) of the alien invasive Ficus microcarpa in Cyprus. BioInvasions Records 12(2): 573–580. https://doi.org/10.3391/bir.2023.12.2.20
