The fig wasp is crucial to the queen’s survival; without it, the sycomore would not be able to pollinate and reproduce. The process begins when female wasps are attracted to the scent of the microscopic flowers blooming within the fruit of the African queen. Loaded down with fig tree pollen and fig wasp eggs, these tiny wasps enter the fig via a sliver of an opening. Once inside, they pollinate the flowers and lay their eggs before dying. Some of the flowers will become seeds and others will become nurseries for fig wasps. The tree protects each wasp egg by creating a capsule (or gall) around it. The gall nourishes and protects the egg as it matures. Upon hatching, the male wasp uses its powerful jaws to cut through the female wasp’s gall in order to mate with her. Eventually the male wasps create a tunnel so that female wasps, covered in fig pollen, can leave the tree and fly off to start the remarkable story all over again.