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Psyche 
[Vol. 91 
stage the pistillate florets are mature and the staminate florets are 
small and not fully developed (‘female-phase’ according to Galil and 
Eisikowitch 1968). The stigmata are intertwined to form a continu- 
ous mat (synstigma) that lines the inner surface of the spherical 
cavity. During entry into the syconium the hypopygium (a movable, 
sclerotized plate) is flush against the ventral surface of the abdomen, 
and the abdomen is flattened dorsoventrally. With her rear legs the 
wasp now kicks the hypopygium down perpendicular to the abdo- 
men (position of hypopygium as in Fig. 16 of Galil and Eisikowitch 
1969), and the abdomen becomes slightly compressed laterally. She 
also uses her rear legs to move the ovipositor shaft from within the 
ovipositor valves, which protrude distally from the abdomen, to a 
perpendicular position braced against the triangular hypopygium. 
The rear legs are also used to groom the ovipositor shaft. When the 
positioning of the ovipositor is first accomplished the tip of the 
ovipositor shaft protrudes just beyond the tip of the of the hypopy- 
gium. The female is now prepared to oviposit, and searches by 
probing the stigmata with the tip of her ovipositor. Eggs are laid by 
extending the ovipositor down the style and into the ovary of a 
pistillate floret, where the larva will develop while feeding on the 
tissues associated with the developing seed or on the seed itself. 
Within these fig inflorescences there is polymorphism in style length 
among the pistillate florets. The fig wasp’s ovipositor is long enough 
to reach down shorter-styled florets and into the ovary, but is usually 
not long enough to reach down longer styles and into the ovary. 
Thus the short-styled florets usually produce wasps, while the long- 
styled florets usually produce seeds. While ovipositing the wasp 
stands on all six legs, with the body and head well clear of the 
stigmata, and the tip of the hypopygium just touching the top of the 
stigma being oviposited in. Oviposition lasts 105-300 seconds (n=9). 
The wasps usually spread pollen nearby after each oviposition. 
Pollination consists of four behaviors: (i) loosening a few pollen 
grains from the caches kept in special sternal mesothoracic pockets, 
(ii) collecting these loose pollen grains in scoopers (arolia) on the 
foretarsi, (iii) transferring the pollen from the arolia to the surface of 
the hypopygium, and (iv) dragging the pollen-dusted hypopygium 
over the stigmata. 
(i) Loosening pollen from the thoracic pockets. Towards the end 
of an oviposition act the wasp lifts her forelegs and begins a rhyth- 
mic motion with the front part of her body. The pronotum and head 
