We examined the effects of host quality (as measured by gall size) and local mate competition (LMC) on the sex ratio of inquilines emerging from cynipid oak galls. In the galls of Trigonaspis sp. (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae), which were solitarily parasitized by the inquiline, the proportion of males decreased significantly with increasing gall size. Large galls produced large inquiline females and large numbers of offspring, but gall size did not affect mortality rate. In the galls of Cynipidae sp. 1 and sp. 2, which were parasitized by the inquilines either solitarily or gregariously, the overall sex ratio was female biased, and it did not change with increasing number of inquilines emerging from a single gall. Thus, in these galls, LMC is likely to have little effect on the sex ratio of the inquiline. The inquiline seems to manipulate its offspring sex ratio only in accordance with gall size.
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1 November 2007
Sex Ratio of Inquiline Wasps on Cynipid Oak Galls in Relation to Gall Characteristics
N. Ikai,
N. Hijii
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Annals of the Entomological Society of America
Vol. 100 • No. 6
November 2007
Vol. 100 • No. 6
November 2007
gall size
galling cynipid
inquiline
LMC
sex ratio