Biology:Strangler fig
Strangler fig is the common name for a number of tropical and subtropical plant species in the genus Ficus, including those that are commonly known as banyans.
Species
Some of the more well-known species are:
- Ficus altissima – southern China and tropical Asia
- Ficus aurea – Florida, the Caribbean and Central America
- Ficus benghalensis – Indian subcontinent
- Ficus benjamina – tropical and subtropical Asia to northern Australia
- Ficus burtt-davyi – southeastern Africa
- Ficus citrifolia – Florida and tropical America
- Ficus craterostoma – tropical and southern Africa
- Ficus henneana – northern and eastern Australia
- Ficus macrophylla – eastern Australia and Lord Howe Island
- Ficus microcarpa - southeast Asia to Australia
- Ficus obliqua – Maluku Islands, Papuasia, northern Australia and southwestern Pacific
- Ficus tinctoria – Indian subcontinent and southern China to northern Australia and southwestern Pacific
- Ficus virens – tropical and subtropical Asia to northern Australia and western Pacific
- Ficus watkinsiana – eastern Australia
These all share a common "strangling" growth habit that is found in many tropical forest species.[1] This growth habit is an adaptation for growing in dark forests where the competition for light is intense. These plants are hemiepiphytes, spending the first part of their life without rooting into the ground. Their seeds, often bird-dispersed, germinate in crevices atop other trees. These seedlings grow their roots downward and envelop the host tree while also growing upward to reach into the sunlight zone above the canopy.[2][3]
An original support tree can sometimes die, so that the strangler fig becomes a "columnar tree" with a hollow central core.[4] However, it is also believed that the strangler fig can help its support tree survive storms.[5]
Uses
After many decades spent living outdoors in the rainforests of northern Queensland, Australia, hermetic bushman Michael 'Tarzan' Fomenko (c.1930–2018) settled upon sleeping amidst giant strangler fig roots.[6][7] On occasions when black snakes, scrub turkeys and goannas were a threat or a nuisance, he would sleep up in the tree.[8]: 02:35
Gallery
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A fig seedling with thread-like roots on an unknown host -
The trunk of a bald cypress, encircled by fig roots -
A strangler fig. The supporting tree, now dead, can also be seen -
Mature fig standing above the surrounding forest -
A cross section of a bald cypress at the Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, showing the fig roots inside it -
View looking through the hollow core of a fig after the host has died and rotted away
References
- ↑ Zhekun, Zhou & Michael G. Gilbert (2003) "Flora of China" (Moraceae) 5: 21–73. hua.huh.harvard.edu
- ↑ Serventy, V. (1984). Australian Native Plants. Victoria: Reed Books.
- ↑ "Light in the rainforest" 1992 Tropical topics. Vol 1 No. 5, epa.qld.gov.au
- ↑ Margaret Lowman; H. Bruce Rinker (2004). Forest Canopies. Academic Press. pp. 180–. ISBN 978-0-12-457553-0. https://books.google.com/books?id=F471I0uJv-8C&pg=PA180.
- ↑ Richard, Leora.; Halkin, Sylvia (June 2017). "Strangler figs may support their host trees during severe storms". Symbiosis 72 (2): 153–157. doi:10.1007/s13199-017-0484-5. Bibcode: 2017Symbi..72..153R.
- ↑ Robson, Frank (2011-04-03). "The Real-Life Tarzan of Australia's Deep North". The Sydney Morning Herald. https://www.smh.com.au/national/the-real-life-tarzan-of-australias-deep-north-20110402-1csjp.html.
- ↑ Vyver, James (2016-09-20). "On the trail of Michael 'Tarzan' Fomenko". ABC News. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-09-20/on-the-trail-of-michael-tarzan-fomenko/7858784.
- ↑ Melville, Kirsty; Vyver, James; McKellar, Phil; Taranto, Claudia; Fomenko, Inessa; Saffen, Karen; Wighton, Chris; Hunter, Ernest; Elliott, Sam; Dunne, Barbara; Patterson, Josh; (2018-01-02). Earshot: Finding Australia's Tarzan (Audio). Ultimo, Sydney: ABC Radio National. Retrieved 2026-03-07.
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External links
- The Tropical Rain Forest, including photos of strangler figs
- The Queen of Trees: Fig Trees – From the Sacred to the Strangler
- Being strangled may save this tree’s life
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Short description: Index of plants with the same common name
This page is an index of articles on plant species (or higher taxonomic groups) with the same common name (vernacular name). If an internal link led you here, you may wish to edit the linking article so that it links directly to the intended article. |
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