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submitted 3 weeks ago by fossilesque@mander.xyz to c/science_memes@mander.xyz

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[-] Luccus@feddit.org 103 points 3 weeks ago

As someone who grows figs in their living room:

Most commercial (and even hobbyist) fig varieties are parthenocarpic, meaning they don't require pollination.

And fig wasps don't look like that. They're tiny little guys that most people would probably mistake for a very small ant.

And even if the fig was pollinated by a wasp, it uses enzymes to break down the insects body, to protect itself from mold and other pathenogens that such may cause.

Basically; fig waps are itsy bitsy wittle wupies, while figs are digesting their dead mothers corpses, because they are metal as fuuuuuck.

[-] fossilesque@mander.xyz 7 points 3 weeks ago

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apoica_pallens

[-] loaExMachina@sh.itjust.works 13 points 3 weeks ago

Not a fig wasp. In fact, the article for Apoica Pallens doesn't mention figs even once. It says that they're used in folk medecine in Brazil, but that's far from it being a popular food...