24x11 - The Queen of the Trees

[bunniefuu]

In Africa there lives an extraordinary tree

She is the queen of the riverbank

A monarch whose story stretches
back millions of years

In tribal cultures, have curious ways
have fueled myth and legend

They set her apart from other trees

She is a sycomore fig

Queen of Africa's trees

She appears never to flower

Yet mysteriously she fruits
several times a year

She seems to have no regard for season

and drops her leaves when she pleases

Strangest of all is the relationship
upon which she completely depends

The two partners couldn't be more different

One can withstand a river in flood

the other can drown in a dew drop

One lives for centuries, the other only hours

They differ in size a billion times over

At about 1mm long the fig wasp is so small
that it could fly through the eye of a needle

but no fig tree could exist without it

Sycomore figs are found
throughout tropical Africa

In Southern Kenya
they thrive along river banks

This is the story of one of those trees

Our African queen is a mature sycomore fig

She started life as a seed
a hundred years ago

She provides for many animals

To some, she is a hunting ground

To others, she is home

She feeds a greater variety
than any tree in Africa

that only a few even notice

Every few months, the queen
produces up to a ton of fruit

To reproduce, she must transfer pollen
to make seeds

and then disperse them inside figs

The last crop fell only days ago,
but up above she is starting again

Over the next two weeks,
the tiny buds swell to become young figs

Hidden inside each
are the queen's tiny flowers

At this stage a fig is not a fruit

but a secret garden whose delicate perfume
attracts a flock of fig wasps

Their arrival will trigger a sequence of events
that will resonate out through the bush

The wasps are all females,
laden with pollen and eggs

They must enter the fig
via the garden gate to pollinate
the flowers and lay their eggs inside

A one-way passage leads
to the secret garden which is lined
with hundreds of microscopic white flowers

Some of these flowers will become seeds,
others will be a nursery for fig wasps

The tree will surround each wasp egg
with a capsule, called a gall

which will nourish and protect it

The wasps will soon die,
but inside each hanging garden
their offspring will live on

The queen is now their surrogate mother

and will care for them until
they hatch in 2 months' time

The fig wasps aren't the only ones
to lay eggs in the tree

for a pair of grey hornbills is nesting

This female's confinement will be temporary

She seals herself into the hollow trunk
leaving only a slit

through which her mate can feed her

The swelling figs place
a big demand on the queen

To feed her wasps and grow seeds,
she needs to make sugar with her leaves

Animals that eat leaves are a major threat

If the queen loses too many,
she might have to abort her figs

The only thing more damaging
is a direct attack on the nursery

To protect her leaves and young figs
the queen pumps them up with a milky latex

which is foul-tasting and sticky

Small offenders get stuck down

and it's unpleasant enough to ensure
that others don't stay too long to feed

Sycomore figs have been under attack
for millions of years

In that time, some insects have evolved
strategies to overcome the defenses

A fig long horn beetle bites
through the veins to
disrupt the flow of latex

It starts with the main vein
and works outwards

Downstream of the damage, the flow
is cut off and the beetle can feed

The fig katydid cuts the flow of latex
by cutting off the leaf

The pink mantis is a predator
but it's still very young

and a katydid this size is
more monster than meal

The mantis can't fly so to get off the leaf
it has to get pass the green giant

Beneath the tree, the fermenting juice
in the last crop of figs attracts vinegar flies

An ideal size, the mantis still
wants to snatch a bite to eat

The male hornbill is working hard
for he now has 3 extra mouths to feed

For hornbills, nesting is always a risk

To try and plan her family for when
most food is available the female
had to lay before the rains

This year they're late, and every day that they are
delayed will make finding food a little harder

and the chicks a little weaker

To try and protect the wasp nursery from parasites

after the females enter,
the queen close the gate

and flooded the garden with an antiseptic liquid

He doesn't work against nematode worms

which used a female wasp as a Trojan horse
and stowed away in her body to get into the fig

Inside they burst out

and are now breeding to be ready to
infect the next generation of fig wasps

Outside the nursery is under attack
from parasitic wasps

They can't get in by the gate so they
drill through the long ovipositor, an egg-laying
device that works like a hypodermic

Forced deep inside, it will deposit
an egg on a developing fig wasp

The grub that hatches will k*ll
the wasp and take over its gall

The driller seems to have evolved
the perfect strategy

but over time,
even parasites can be exploited

A smaller banded wasp has an ovipositor

just as long but more flexible

The little wasps fight for access and
when the driller pulls out

the winner goes straight for its hole

It will use the same shaft
to lay its egg on the driller's

for these smaller wasps
are parasites of parasites

In the queen's battle to protect
her fig wasps her allies are ants

They will k*ll any parasites they capture

Anything they can't subdue,
they bite and sting to drive away

The ants appear to be protecting
the figs and in a sense they are

for all are attacted

All that is, except one

These tiny bug eggs should
be the ideal snack for an ant

but instead, the ants look after them

As they hatch,
the ants gather up the babies

They're nymphs of a bug called hilda

which are herded up to graze
as if they were sheep

Almost every fig now becomes a paddock

The ants are so attentive because a nymph
has hollow piercing mouthparts

that enable it to tap into the fig's sap

The sweet liquid is under pressure
so it passes rapidly through the nymph

When it comes out, it still
contains plenty of sugar

So in return for being nursemaids
and bodyguards the ants receive
the supply of sweet honeydew

The wounds made by the nymphs and
parasites are heal for the latex

that drives to form a natural rubber

The bee doesn't eat it but collects it
to take back to seal holes in its own nest

It's been two weeks since the hornbill
chicks hatched and still it hasn't rained

Now the female must break out
to help feed her family

as soon as she leaves,
the eldest chick instinctively starts
to plaster up the hole again

using droppings and debris from the nest

It will be a while before it is ready to leave

The rains arouse some that
had been sleeping for months

They will bring the expected
flush of insects

but they have come too late
for the youngest chick

When their mother left the largest
chick dominated the food supply

The chicks differed in size because
the eggs were laid a few days apart

and hatched at different times

There is a distinct pecking order,
so in lean times

the chick with the best chance of survival
gets to feed first and takes most of the food

Even now when both parents providing
the smallest dare not feed
until the larger is full

Despite clear skies, beneath the tree
it still seems to be raining

These are fig cicadas

they emerge after rain and
tap straight into the sap

Like hilda they vent what they can't absorb

But to avoid getting their wings sticky
they don't drip but squirt

From the trees' point of view
this is a major as*ault

In the fight against cicadas, the queen
needs all the help she can get

For the ants have changed their allegiance

Each time a cicada pulls out
it leaves a drop of sweet sap

which bribes the security

The ants are too busy drinking
to protect the tree

The sap is the only thing
the ants will defend

But if news of it gets back to the hive

then the bees will be back in force

At the peak of the invasion
the trunk runs with sap

and branches and leaves are sticky
with sweet drizzle

Monkeys are opportunitists

Cicadas are only around
for a few days each year

so they get their fix of sugar while they can

To begin with there's no competition

but it didn't f long for the news to spread

Fortunately for the queen the cicadas
disappear as quickly as they came

For the past 2 months she has been
making sugar to grow seeds and wasps

Inside the figs the protective fluid
has drained away

The exposed galls are no bigger than pinheads

The female wasps inside cannot hatch
yet, they must wait for a mate

Male fig wasps have powerful jaws
and a single intension

On hatching they cut through
to the c*ptive females

not to let them out
but to let themselves in

A male has no wings,
and only tiny antennae and eyes

but in one area, he's very well-endowed

His cleft chin helps guide him in

He impregnates a female before she hatches

With an organ that is so long
and flexible that some males can
mate without leaving their galls

Inside the trunk, there has been
a dramatic change in behavior

as if adolescence had set in overnight

At dawn, the eldest chick started
breaking down the door

It's time for it to leave

In the confined space the chick hasn't
even been able to stretch its wings

so if it's to fly, it will lead instinct
to kick in before it hits the ground

It is an adolescent triumph of
instinct over experience

but it will be a few days yet
before the last chick attempts it

The queen can produce up to 100,000 figs

Inside each, the female fig wasps
have enlarged the holes the males make

and are now starting to emerge

They look very different to their mates

as they have large eyes antennae and wings
all will be essential for their mission

The parasites hatch too for they will rely on
the fig wasps to help them escape from the fig

The nematode worms are trying
to snag a female wasp

They'll burrow into her body
and slowly eat her alive

but they can't k*ll her too quickly as she
is the only way they reach another fig

The male wasps' next job is to cut flowers

The white anthers contain pollen and
must be chopped down for the females

Their mission is to carry the queen's
pollen to other trees

This is why she raised them

Pollination of a queen
is exclusively by appointment

The fig wasp female scrapes out pollen
and carefully packs it into special pockets
on her breast

It is extraordinary behavior

Meanwhile, the males have started to tunnel

It will take them some hours but before they die
they must release the females from the fig

These bees are scouts sent ahead of
a swarm to search for a nest site

but it is already occupied

The baby hornbill is in danger
if a single scout gets back

then the swarm will descend on the tree

It can't let any get away

In thousands of figs all over the tree
the tiny tunnelers are about to break out

In the space of one hour in the late afternoon
millions of fig wasps will emerge

This is the final act of the males' brief lives

For them a glimpse of evening sunshine
won't signal freedom but death

After 2 months developing inside the fig

their lives have been whittled down
to an intense few hours

Now they give their lives
to set the females free

The winged courier will never feed

They can't survive more than
a few hours in the sun

and the worms inside are already
weakening them

Theirs will be a race against time

They don't hang about for good reason

The ants don't distinguish
between parasite and pollinator

but it's the price the queen pays for security

The ants kept many parasites from laying,
so ultimately more fig wasps survived

The activity attracts other players

In its bid to reach the wasps a tiny day
gecko doesn't notice a giant stick insect

it plays an important supporting role

Fig wasps can't sting
and they're so nourishing

that in order to catch them the gecko
risks going out on a limb

Sometimes that is not enough

As a last resort, to distract a predator
a gecko can jettison its tail

It's a remarkable ploy

and if the gecko stays out of trouble
then its tail will grow back

All over the tree, the queen's tiny couriers
are being intercepted

A spider cannot eat them all at once so it
wraps them in silk trapped as a living larder

For each wasp that's captured
hundreds will fly free

It will be the flight of their lives

This evening the tiny wasps will set out

in search of a fig tree
and another secret garden

Some will find trees nearby

but others will be picked up by the wind
and can travel over 100km

In the aftermath of the break out
the queen is littered with casualties

Many didn't make it or gave
their lives so that others did

One scout got away

and although the parents tried

they couldn't entice the chick from the nest

it simply wasn't ready

The queen's leaves have done their job

For the last 2 months they've been making sugar

but the wasps have flown and her seeds
are ready to be dispersed

When the wasps left the figs ripened rapidly

to become soft and orange and full of sugar

It's as if each is shouting: eat me!

Over 100 different kinds of birds eat figs

all will fly off with a cargo of seeds

Some eat little else

A green pigeon is a fig specialist that
flies miles from its nest in order to feed

The birds have waited for the banquet

and they wouldn't be frightened off

Back at its nest the green pigeon feeds
its chicks on a milk of liquid figs

In this way, the bounty of the tree
is spread far and wide

Some can smell the food from miles away

Others live close by and while
the queen is fruited visit every day

Though there's so much on offer
that the monkeys can be choosy

They discard figs that are full of parasites

With tiger beetles below, the wasps
will be lucky to get airborne

Some figs remain full of parasites

Inside them all are dying

for parasites need pollinator
males to release them

If the parasites have been too successful,
they can hatch but never leave

In this way, the parasite numbers
are kept in check

Across Africa, more animals eat figs
than any other fruit

Fig tress are so important because they
fruit outside the normal fruiting season

If they produced figs only once a year,
the short-lived fig wasps would die out

To maintain the population of pollinators
each tree needs to fruit at random
several times a year

and this benefits every one

In the heat, fig juice ferments into alcohol

and the smell attracts a thirsty clientele

The butterflies are normally shy and elusive

but drinking alcohol through a straw
has a predictable effect

The inebriated insects are lucky

as they don't taste very good and
most can still manage to fly

The queen's generosity extends beyond the tree

for those she provides for, in turn,
support others

Wherever fish gather
a crocodile is never far behind

The croc sets its trap in fast water
where the fish can't see its jaws

It won't see the fish but it will
react at the slightest stretch

As figs are the bait the croc
makes a lot of false strikes

But as in any fishing, patience is essential

Figs are sometimes eaten by people, but
occasionally the tree has something sweeter to offer

Traditionally fig wood is used to conjure fire
for it's soft and smolder as well

The wood in which the bees found sanctuary
is now being used to against them

Dry elephant dung is the tinder

To gather honey the Maasai exploit the bees'
instinctively response to smoke

It's evolved to protect the colony
in the event of forest fire

When the bees smell smoke
instead of defending the nest

they gorge on honey and then flee

In a fire it will be more important that they escaped
so they could re-establish the colony elsewhere

Normally even a single sting
triggers an attack

but with the smoke there is no reaction

The fig's flowers had nothing to do
with this honey

The queen's exclusive relationship
with her wasps

means that her flowers never saw the sun

and never had a visit from a bee

Living by water helps spread the seeds
as figs float downstream
and sprout along the strand-line

A tiny echo of the avenue they came from

It can be a one-way ticket
unless the seeds can get help

Migrating catfish carry some backup stream

A lucky few will be planted and fertilized

Strangely, no siblings grow
beneath the queen

Despite the amount of fruit that falls

Nothing geminates here

not because of shade

but because tiny seed-bugs
steal all the seeds

They are specialists that eat only fig seeds

To perpetuate the royal line

the queen needs help
to get her seeds further afield

It doesn't arrive until after dark

Fruit bats are the most important
seed dispersers

They're less agile than birds

so the queen makes access easier

by dropping her leaves

and hanging her figs clear of the branches

Each bat needs to eat half its weight
in fig pulp each night

They eat little else

and a diet of fig juice can result in
an urge that requires immediate action

Importantly for seed dispersal
a bat rarely eats in the fig tree

but carries the fig a short distance away

It doesn't eat everything

but sucks out the juice

and discards the seeds

So beneath its perch
sprout tiny fig gardens

During the night the female fig wasps
have been traveling across Africa

A few have found receptive figs by homing
in on the scent from the secret garden

To enter, the female must squeeze
through the gate

A wedge-shaped head will help pry it open

but it's so tidy that her wings and antennae
will be ripped from her

and in the final push,
she literally busts a gut

She must lay her eggs before the nematodes
she's carrying burst out and k*ll her

Her final challenge is to negotiate
a spiral valve that leads to the flowers

It might take an hour and will
need all her strength

She will be alone in the garden

for the gate is closing

others arrived too late

Inside she is in trouble

the nematodes are breaking out

She cannot last much longer

but must still lay her eggs
and complete her mission

The tiny wasp's final act is
to repay her debt to the queen

to unpack the precious pollen
and fertilize the flowers

It is her gift

and the culmination of millions of years
of co-evolution between wasp and tree

In perpetuating the relationship
she makes the ultimate sacrifice

The queen's figs have provided
for animals from ants to elephants

In traveling, they will disperse her seeds

No seeds will germinate

and somewhere in Africa

where a bat perched

or an elephant came to drink

there will grow a fig tree

In a few years it will sprout its first fig

and the scent from that secret garden
will touch a tiny wasp

which will turn upwind in search of the source

Once again, the two will come together
and continue the extraordinary relationship

that has provided for so many
over millions of years