WEBVTT - Short Stuff: Figs & Wasps

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<v Speaker 1>Hey, and welcome to the Short Stuff. I'm Josh, and

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<v Speaker 1>there's Chuck and Jerry's here too, sitting in for Dave.

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<v Speaker 1>So this is short Stuff.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, this is an episode where I was very surprised,

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<v Speaker 2>and I even went back that when we did our

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<v Speaker 2>episode on wasps, we even got emails about this, so

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<v Speaker 2>I'm pretty sure we did not cover it.

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah, but we're talking.

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<v Speaker 2>About fig wasps of the fig tree specifically, not the

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<v Speaker 2>kind that you see. Almost all fig tree varieties are

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<v Speaker 2>not ones that you eat the fruit of. That's a

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<v Speaker 2>very specific one. The ones like you have out in

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<v Speaker 2>your yard. They develop without pollination, which means they're parthenocarpic.

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<v Speaker 2>But the ones that where you eat the figs, they

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<v Speaker 2>are grown commercially, mainly in California here in the United States.

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<v Speaker 2>They are Calimerna figs, and they are imported from Turkey,

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<v Speaker 2>and the Ficus carica, or the fig wasp, is also

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<v Speaker 2>imported from Turkey because they have a very special relationship.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, so fig wasps and that specific kind of fig

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<v Speaker 1>apparently co evolved over the last sixty million years to

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<v Speaker 1>form a mutually symbiotic relationship. As our friend Connor from

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<v Speaker 1>Love on the spectrum would say, where the fig wasp

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<v Speaker 1>depends on the fig for its reproductive cycle, the fig

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<v Speaker 1>depends on the fig wasp for its reproductive cycle. And

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<v Speaker 1>if you didn't have one or the other, the other

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<v Speaker 1>one would not exist.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, totally, And we're going to tell you how that

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<v Speaker 2>happens right now. I was gonna say right for this,

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<v Speaker 2>but that'd be way too soon for the first thing

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<v Speaker 2>we need to say is that the fig, the thing

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<v Speaker 2>that you're eating, it's something within a larger structure, and

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<v Speaker 2>it's called a seconium, is what you're actually eating. It's

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<v Speaker 2>sort of like an inverted flower. It's not really a

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<v Speaker 2>fruit necessarily, No. And what happens is these Calimurna farmers

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<v Speaker 2>in California, they have female trees that are going to

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<v Speaker 2>produce that edible version of the sinconia, and they have

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<v Speaker 2>male trees that produce an inedible version called a golf fig.

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<v Speaker 2>And if they want to pollinate those, a wasp has

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<v Speaker 2>to crawl into that sinconium, a female wasp. She loses

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<v Speaker 2>her wings on the way because she has a squeeze

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<v Speaker 2>through a tight little passage. It's a one way trip,

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<v Speaker 2>which is very sad, and you end up eating that

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<v Speaker 2>female wasp. She's broken down by something called physine. It's

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<v Speaker 2>a protein digesting enzyme.

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<v Speaker 3>So when you.

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<v Speaker 2>Eat a fig, there is a little bit of female

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<v Speaker 2>wasp inside of that thing, just broken down and becoming

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<v Speaker 2>part of that edible fig.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, but essentially you're not going to be able to

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<v Speaker 1>detect it on your tongue. Some people think that the

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<v Speaker 1>little tiny seeds inside of a fig are wasp parts

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<v Speaker 1>because there's been such a legend that developed about like

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<v Speaker 1>fig wasps, and it is true to some degree, but

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<v Speaker 1>for the most part, No, you're not detecting a fig

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<v Speaker 1>wasps like body or exo skeleton. When you're eating a fig.

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<v Speaker 1>You are eating part of a wasp though, Like, don't

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<v Speaker 1>make no mistake for sure.

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<v Speaker 3>And I mentioned it was the one way trips.

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<v Speaker 2>It's fairly sad that that happens, but it's all in

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<v Speaker 2>good service of that mutual arrangement. Before that happens, this

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<v Speaker 2>female wasp is gonna come out of an inedible male fig.

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<v Speaker 2>I guess I'm gonna call it a fruit because she

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<v Speaker 2>was born there and she has mate it by that

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<v Speaker 2>point with a blind, wingless male wasp who never leaves

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<v Speaker 2>that male fig. So she exits that inedible male fig,

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<v Speaker 2>she picks up some pollen.

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<v Speaker 3>She got all these eggs, and at that.

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<v Speaker 2>Point she can either go to a male fig tree

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<v Speaker 2>or a female fig tree. But if she lands on

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<v Speaker 2>that female fig tree, her ovipositor is too short to

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<v Speaker 2>reach into this really you know, long styled female flower,

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<v Speaker 2>so she can't lay those eggs in there. She does

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<v Speaker 2>end up pollinating it, but she sacrifices her life in

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<v Speaker 2>doing so.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, she makes it all the way to the synconium

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<v Speaker 1>and finds like, I literally just wasted my life. But

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<v Speaker 1>her life is not a waste because if she didn't

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<v Speaker 1>accidentally enter a female fig where she was trying to

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<v Speaker 1>reproduce or lay her eggs in a male fig, then

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<v Speaker 1>the figs would not get pollinated. So figs get pollinated

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<v Speaker 1>because fig wasps sometimes make mistakes when choosing a male

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<v Speaker 1>or a female fig to burrow into and lay their eggs.

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<v Speaker 1>I find that amazing.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, it's pretty great, Like it works both ways. If

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<v Speaker 2>she goes into that male fig, then she's gonna deposit

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<v Speaker 2>those fertilized eggs, and that circle just kind of keeps

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<v Speaker 2>going on and on. Farmers separate these trees out to

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<v Speaker 2>try and keep them from doing that.

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<v Speaker 1>I protest that I'm protesting.

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<v Speaker 3>Oh you're protesting them doing that.

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<v Speaker 1>I protest that there are male and female fig trees.

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<v Speaker 1>I've seen that they're self pollinating and hermaphroditic, including the

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<v Speaker 1>ones that you eat. So I'm going on record as

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<v Speaker 1>saying that.

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<v Speaker 2>Well, you're wrong, my friend, because this farmer that was

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<v Speaker 2>interviewed said that they separate those male and female trees.

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<v Speaker 2>I don't think he's just making that up to aggravate you.

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<v Speaker 1>What if he's completely off his rocker.

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<v Speaker 2>I mean, are all the farmers and all the sources

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<v Speaker 2>completely off their rocker?

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<v Speaker 1>So I think this is just one of those times

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<v Speaker 1>where we're gonna have to agree to disagree. Do you agree?

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<v Speaker 3>Uh?

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<v Speaker 1>Sure, that's very agreeable.

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<v Speaker 3>All right, we'll be back right after this.

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<v Speaker 2>So a few things that we can remember is that

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<v Speaker 2>the female wasp dies inside that edible fig. And there

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<v Speaker 2>have been people like vegans that there are vegans and say,

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<v Speaker 2>there have been there are literally vegans who won't eat that.

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<v Speaker 2>But it's there are bugs in almost every fruit that

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<v Speaker 2>you eat. There are levels of bug so i'd say infestation,

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<v Speaker 2>but just bug activity. That's acceptable for the USDA Tomato Ketchup.

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<v Speaker 2>Apparently it has the highest USDA grade standard possible and

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<v Speaker 2>it can have no more than thirty fruit.

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<v Speaker 3>Fly eggs for every one hundred grams of ketchup.

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<v Speaker 1>Like, surely, I guess there's some quality control where they

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<v Speaker 1>take some like one hundred ounces or one hundred grams

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<v Speaker 1>of ketchup and count the fruitfly eggs in it, right,

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<v Speaker 1>I don't know how they do that, and if that

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<v Speaker 1>is they like, if they find thirty one or even

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<v Speaker 1>one hundred, that doesn't necessarily mean that the next bottle

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<v Speaker 1>is going to have the same amount, because I mean

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<v Speaker 1>we're talking fruitfly eggs right from all sorts of different

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<v Speaker 1>tomatoes in each bottle. Yeah, it boggles my mind. I

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<v Speaker 1>don't know how they do this, no, or how they

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<v Speaker 1>enforce it, I guess, is what I mean.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, I bet someone or it might be one of

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<v Speaker 2>those things where like no one's even paying attention to.

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<v Speaker 1>This, right the vegans are vegans are watching you?

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<v Speaker 3>Yes, they're always watching.

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<v Speaker 2>I did mention though, that the farmers try and control

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<v Speaker 2>the separating those trees out to control because it can

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<v Speaker 2>be a problem if there are too many seeds that

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<v Speaker 2>fruit can burst open and all of a sudden, it's

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<v Speaker 2>not you know, it's good for the plant, but it's

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<v Speaker 2>not good to harvest for the farmers. So they're trying

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<v Speaker 2>to sell these things. So they separate those trees out

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<v Speaker 2>over some pretty great distances and also control the number

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<v Speaker 2>of new wasp that they bring in. They're like, they're

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<v Speaker 2>wasp wranglers as well as farmers, and they get these

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<v Speaker 2>things delivered to their house, to their farm and paper sacks,

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<v Speaker 2>and they can pretty much control exactly how many females

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<v Speaker 2>have access to the correct plant.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, and those paper sacks also usually include a tiny

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<v Speaker 1>cowboy hat and a tiny glat so and then just

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<v Speaker 1>one more time to just kind of go over this again,

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<v Speaker 1>just to calm anybody's fears, you probably are eating some insects,

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<v Speaker 1>so vegans, you're right. If you don't want to eat insects,

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<v Speaker 1>you probably should steer clear of figs. But the fig

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<v Speaker 1>is designed to digest the female wasp that dies inside

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<v Speaker 1>of it and breaks it down for nutrients for itself.

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<v Speaker 1>So just don't worry about eating wasps. I don't know

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<v Speaker 1>why everybody's so worried about eating wasps. Chuck, Yeah, I.

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<v Speaker 3>Mean it is fig.

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<v Speaker 2>At that point that wasp becomes fig. In fact, that's

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<v Speaker 2>a great t shirt. Wasp becomes fig.

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<v Speaker 1>I agree wholeheartedly. Well, since we came up with a

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<v Speaker 1>t shirt, obviously everybody that means short stuff is opps.

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