• DOI:10.2307/2395337
• Corpus ID: 85844296

A New Classification of Ficus

@article{WilliamRamirez1977ANC,
  title={A New Classification of Ficus},
  author={B. William.Ramirez},
  journal={Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden},
  year={1977},
  volume={64},
  pages={296-310}
}

• B. William.Ramirez
• Published 1977
• Environmental Science
• Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden

The taxa of Ficus are classified on the basis of the specificity and morphology of their symbiotic wasps (Agaonidae), systems of pollination, and morphology and physiology of the figs. The new classification is a modification of Corner's system with the following changes. In subgenus Ficus, subsection Eriosycea is elevated to sectional rank. Series Rivulares and Pseudopalmae do not belong to the group of Blastophaga-pollinated figs and are transferred to the new Cerotosolen-pollinated complex of subgenus Sycomorus. Two subsections, Scabrae and Varinga, are recognized in section Sycidium, and series Phaeopilosae and subsection Paleomorphe are recognized as sections. The subgenus Sycomorus is much expanded to include eight sections: Adenosperma, Neomorphe, Prostratae, Pungentes, Pseudopalmae, Rivulares, Sycocarpus, and Sycomorus. The object of this study is to group the taxa of Ficus into related groups considering the specificity and morphology of their symbiotic agaonids, the different systems of pollination, as well as the morphology and physiology of the figs. The last systematic arrangement of Ficus was made by Corner (1965) and is summarized in Table 1. A parallel list of the pollinating agaonids (genera or subgenera reported up to now for each fig taxon) is also included. The list of agaonids was taken from Hill (1967) and modified by me. Parallel to the groups of wasps there are columns showing the absence or presence of corbiculae in the wasps (Ramirez, 1974). THE NEW CLASSIFICATION OF Ficus AND ITS POLLINATORS The proposed classification of Ficus is found in Table 3. Modifications are extended only to the level of series.