Figs rely on tiny wasps for pollination
Figs and tiny wasps share an ancient, essential partnership: wasps pollinate figs and lay eggs inside, while figs provide a nursery, though no intact wasps remain in edible fruit.
Many fig varieties depend on a unique partnership with tiny fig wasps for pollination. A female wasp, no bigger than a grain of rice, enters the fig through a narrow opening, carrying pollen from another fig. Inside, she pollinates the fig's inverted flowers and lays her eggs, often losing her wings and dying shortly after.
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