The Royal Botanic Gardens of Sydney

Exploring Fig Wasps

Figs can be enormous park trees or small fruit trees, and whatever the plant’s size they produce unusual fruit which have a specific arrangement with a little wasp.

learn about Fig wasps

Did you know that the fig fruit is actually a bunch of internal flowers and is home to wasp eggs and larvae?

This relationship is called mutualism and benefits the plant by providing pollination, and benefits wasps by providing a safe nursery for their babies. Each different type of fig has its own unique fig wasp species. The male wasp spends its whole life inside the fig and then dies after it’s made a tunnel out for the female to fly away!

Find out more about the Moreton Bay Fig.

Watch the fig wasps up close inside a fig.

Activities - Exploring Fig Wasps

  1. Imagine life inside a fig: 

    Watch the video of the fig wasps living inside a fig. Think about and write down some words to describe what it might feel like inside the fig.

  1. Read and act

    Read the Waspy World story below, which includes images of the fig wasp's life cycle. Pretend you are Flo and act out her life as it is read to you or as you read it yourself.

  • Moreton Bay Fig
    Moreton Bay fig: Prof. George Weiblen injecting fig wasps as part of a research project.
  • Moreton Bay fig fruits
    Moreton Bay fig fruits: A collection of figs. Figs are actually inside out flowers and are known as synconia.
  • Pollinating wasps on a fig
    Pollinating wasps on a fig: Pollinating female fig wasps (Pleistodontes froggatti) on a Moreton Bay Fig (Ficus macrophylla) synconia.
  • Parasitic wasps
    Parasitic wasps: Sometimes other wasps try to enter the figs. These are parasitic and can be harmul to the fig.
  • Wasps inside a fig fruit:
    Wasps inside a fig fruit: A fig is actually an internal collection of flowers (inflorescence). Here you can see the wasps too.
  • Figs under a microscope
    Figs under a microscope: Can you see any fig wasps in here?
  • A large Moreton Bay fig tree
    A large Moreton Bay fig tree: This fig tree can be found at the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney and is affectionaly known as the Children's Fig.
  • Image of fig and flo
    Image 1: This is Flo and this is Fig. Fig needs Flo and Flo needs Fig.
  • Flow lay eggs in fig
    Image 2:When it's time to lay her eggs, Flo finds Fig and crawls inside. But believe me she's not trying to hide!
  • Flow squeezes through tiny hole
    Image 3: She squeezes through a tiny hole. Her wings fall off; it takes its toll.
  • Flo lays eggs
    Image 4: Once inside she lays her eggs. She'll live inside till the very end.
  • Flo eggs hatch
    Image 5: Then the eggs hatch and new wasps arrive. It's time to mate and dance a jive.
  • Male Flow dig a tunnel out
    Image 6: The males dig a tunnel out. But without wings they cannot leave. So, the girls say thanks and out they weave.
  • Flow fly to find a fig
    Image 7: Off they fly to find a fig. Because Fig needs Flo and Flo needs Fig!.
  • Image of fig and flo
    Image 8: Because why does Fig need Flo you say? Well, Flo brings pollen... Hooray! Hooray!
  1. Think deeper

    The Waspy World story showed how the fig and wasp need each other. Can you remember what word describes this special relationship? Can you find examples of other relationships like this in nature? (Hint: sharks and ?; ants and ?; fruit bats and ?) 

Life cycle of Fig Wasp

Life Cycle of a Fig Wasp