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Fig Wasps on a Weeping Fig
2 tiny fig wasps escaping from the ripe fruit of the Weeping Fig (Ficus benjamina) when I cut it open. These are possibly Eupristina koningsbergeri (Agaonidae) which is the sole beneficial pollinator species of the Weeping Fig (Ficus benjamina). This female is black-colored, only 2mm, and have a curved ovipositor while the wingless male is much smaller. There is a study showing that up to 16 fig wasp species are associated with Weeping Fig but not all of them are beneficial.
Eupristina koningsbergeri is a species of Hymenoptera in the family fig wasps.
Similar species: Wasps, Bees, Sawflies And Ants
By _ChunXingWong_
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Uploaded Nov 7, 2020. Captured Sep 11, 2020 13:57 in Jalan Haji Hamzah, 91000 Tawau, Sabah, Malaysia.
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Here’s a fun fact: figs are the nesting ground for tiny fig wasps. Fig trees and figs wasps have a unique, mutualistic relationship. Fig trees need the wasps in order to make seeds, while the wasps use the figs as a sort of “womb” in which they lay eggs.
This relationship is super fascinating! First off, figs are not fruit. They are actually inverted flowers! Fig flowers bloom inside a pod. Those flowers need to be pollinated, but they are hidden inside themselves! Sounds like a problem, but it isn’t—thanks to fig wasps!
Here’s how it works: A fig tree produces male and female figs. Female fig wasps instinctively know that they have to get inside a fig to lay eggs. So, a female wasp crawls in through a tiny opening called an ostiole, which is so narrow that her wings and antennae are ripped off her body in the process. She is now forever trapped in that fig. And, sadly, if the fig is female, she can’t even lay her eggs in it. Instead, she pollinates the flowers and then dies of starvation.
But, if the fig is male, she can lay eggs inside. She will still die afterwards; but, at least in this scenario, she was able to deposit her eggs first. The eggs hatch, with the male wasps (who are blind and flightless) hatching first. These fellas then mate with the females, as they emerge. The male wasps then chew a tunnel through to the surface of the fig for the females to escape through! These ladies are covered in pollen, full of eggs, and are ready to begin the cycle again.
Only the female figs are edible and, if you have followed along, you are now realizing that there are dead wasps inside of the figs that we eat. Don’t fret though because: 1. There are insect parts in most of the food you eat anyway, you just don’t know it; and 2. Fig wasps are super tiny and figs produce an enzyme, called ficin, that breaks down the wasp bodies into proteins, which get absorbed by the plant. So, those crunchy bits you eat when biting into a fig are not bug parts, but seeds. Or, are they? #JungleDragon #Figwasp #Figs #Ficus #Agaonidae
We hope you enjoy these fantastic photos, taken by Chun Xing Wong Claveria! He is currently documenting the fig species of Borneo with 1StopBorneo Wildlife!
For more of Chun’s photos, highlighting the incredible biodiversity of Borneo: https://www.jungledragon.com/user/3336/popular
Check out the 1StopBorneo Wildlife website. Their goal is to conserve rainforests through education, wildlife rescue, and more: https://www.1stopborneo.org/
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