Sexual specialization in phenology in dioecious Ficus benguetensis and its consequences for the mutualism

BACKGROUND: Timing of reproductive events has become central in ecological studies linking success in pollination and seed dispersion to optimizing the probability and periods of encounters with pollinators or dispersers. Obligate plant–insect interactions, especially Ficus–fig wasp mutualisms, offer striking examples of fine-tuned encounter optimization as biological cycles between mutualistic partners are deeply dependent on each other and intertwined over generations. Despite fig flowering phenology being crucial in maintaining Ficus–fig wasp mutualisms, until now, the forces of selection shaping the phenological evolution of dioecious fig trees have received little attention. By conducting a 2-year survey of a population of Ficus benguetensis in Northern Taiwan, we assessed whether environmental factors or other selective pressures shape the phenology of male and female fig trees. RESULTS: Constraints by mutualistic pollinating wasps and seed dispersers, rather than climatic factors, appeared to mainly shape fig phenology and allometry in F. benguetensis. We identified a new sexual specialization in dioecious fig trees: the position of fig production. We propose that the continuous male fig production on tree trunks can enhance the survival of pollinating fig wasps through faster localization of receptive figs while reducing the mutualistic conflict between the fig and its obligate pollinators. By contrast, in female trees, fig production is massive in summer, located on the twigs of the foliar crown and seem more related to seed dispersal and germination. CONCLUSIONS: Identifying variations in the allometry and phenology of dioecious figs provide valuable insights into how monoecious and dioecious species resolve mutualism conflicts and into the emergence of dioecy in fig trees. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s40529-015-0113-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.