Predators of fig wasps

Predators inflict high mortality on the 4 species of wasps associated with the fig Ficus pertusa in Monteverde, Costa Rica. One of these wasps is the obligated pollinator of the fig. The natural histories of several predators are described: an ant that feeds on wasps arriving to oviposit, moth and weevil larvae that destroy wasps as they develop within the fruits, a staphylinid beetle that feeds on mature wasps before they leave the fruits, and a group of birds that gleans wasps as they leave. The synchrony of arrival and departure of pollinators from the fig trees probably make them the species least vulnerable to predation. -from Author