Wingless-males
Guides
Agaonidae
fig wasps
Agaonidae is a family of minute chalcidoid wasps comprising the pollinating fig wasps, which maintain an obligate mutualism with Ficus species. Females are winged and darkly pigmented, while males are typically wingless and pale. The family has undergone significant taxonomic revision based on molecular phylogenetics, with former subfamilies Epichrysomallinae, Otitesellinae, Sycoecinae, Sycoryctinae, and Sycophaginae excluded and transferred to other families.
Cardiocondyla venustula
Larger Black Sneaking Ant
Cardiocondyla venustula is a small myrmicine ant native to Africa, with introduced populations in the Caribbean and North America. The species belongs to the C. shuckardi group and exhibits an intermediate reproductive strategy among congeners, with wingless males that attack freshly eclosing rivals but rarely engage in lethal combat with established competitors. Instead, males establish and defend small territories within their natal nests. The species shows considerable genetic diversity across its native range, with multiple mtDNA lineages detected in South Africa, Angola, and Côte d'Ivoire that are morphologically and nuclearly similar, indicating a complex taxonomic history.