25 Strangler Fig Facts: A Tropical And Subtropical Plant Species

Ficus aurea, commonly known as the strangler fig, is one of the most fascinating tree species found in the tropical hardwood hammock of the North American Everglades.

Strangler fig is known as a golden fig, it is native to the West Indies and southern Florida. The strangler fig fruit produces a continuous crop of seeds, which is critical to the ecosystem and a major food source for animals.

Strangler figs are also called banyan trees. The Hindus consider them sacred because Buddha is said to have meditated beneath the tree.

Strangler Tree Growth

When the young strangler figs have established themselves, they send aerial roots on the forest floor, where they immediately sink into the soil and anchor themselves.

The roots may dangle from the canopy or creep down the trunk of the host tree.

The little fig plant derives its nutrition from the host tree's leaf litter, rainfall, and sunlight streaming through the canopy.

Several roots graft together to enclose their host's tree trunk in a strangling latticework, eventually forming a nearly complete sheath around the trunk.

When the fig comes into contact with the ground, it goes into a growth spurt, sucking moisture and nutrients from the host tree.

The roots of the strangler fig wrap the roots of the tree, cutting off the host tree's source of food and water and eventually killing it.

If it doesn't, the host tree, which is considerably older than the strangler, dies and rots away, leaving behind a magnificent fig tree with an apparent trunk that is a massive cylinder of roots.

Meanwhile, the strangler fig is busily growing new leaves and branches that will soon cover the host tree's foliage, consuming sunlight and water.

The strangler fig trees are huge and strong enough to stand on their own by the time the tree dies, frequently enveloping the lifeless, often hollow corpse of the host tree.

Because loggers avoid their knotty and twisted wood, figs are frequently the only tree species left.

Stranglers spread widely in this way, forming enormous patches of fig forest made up of a single plant with many interwoven trunks.

Strangler Fig's Propagation Method

The fig tree is a forest plant known for its outstanding spreading abilities.

The ficus tree's fruits are clustered on green stems that arise naturally from the trunk.

Each fig has a small crack through which the female gall wasp can penetrate and deposit her eggs.

She lays her eggs within the fig seed's stigma. The fig wall's gap closes when she dies.

The young male chops open the eggs and mate with them. The males then die by chewing a hole in the fig fruit's wall.

The winged females are pollen-tagged on their way out.

Female wasps can make one flight with their delicate wings.

In that single ride, the female must not only identify the correct fig variety, but also one that is at the proper stage of growth, insuring another population of wasps and hence another cycle of ficus.

Strangler Fig Vs. Other Figs

Some figs generate root systems that grow into thin buttresses that can stretch up to 30 feet in length. Other figs have aerial roots that grow from their branches and root themselves when they reach the ground, forming a new trunk on the same tree.

Strangler figs have umbrella-shaped canopies and light-colored bark. The leaves are simple, oval, and usually between 1.5-3 in (4-8 cm) long.

The strangler fig's waxy leaves protect it from the drying winds and sunlight it receives up in the canopy.

When an original support tree dies, the strangler fig transforms into a 'columnar tree' with a hollow central core.

Its hollow trunk is home to thousands of insects, rodents, bats, reptiles, amphibians, and birds.

Strangler trees can colonize the difficult urban building-wall habitat.

Many forms of life are drawn to the fig tree because of its abundance of fig fruit. These fruits are densely packed with seeds, many of which do not decompose after consumption and end up in the feces of animals far from the mother tree.

A variety of fruit-eating bats and birds disperse the sticky seeds.

Conclusion

Strangler figs and other strangler species can be found all over the world in tropical woods. Hundreds of animals feed on the sweet fruit of the fig tree. The plants are completely photosynthetic and do not require nutrition from their host trees.

FAQs

What is special about strangler fig?

It's worth noting that this killer epiphyte serves as a vital niche and food source for many tropical forest creatures. The fig tree is regarded as a keystone species in many forests because it is the tree producing fruit for much of the year.

How long does a strangler fig take to kill a host tree?

Given enough time, the host tree will almost certainly die, but how long that time will be is completely arbitrary. Small, weak, or sick trees may die within a season, whereas very old and large trees may take decades or longer to die.

What is the lifespan of the strangler fig tree?

Strangler figs species are known to live for hundreds of years, and some as old as 1,300 years.

What is the relationship between the host tree and the strangler fig is known as?

The relationship between the strangler fig and the host is somewhat mutualistic.

What does it mean when a tree and a strangler fig have a symbiotic relationship?

Strangler figs often smother and outcompete their hosts, but they are more likely to withstand tropical cyclones, proposing a symbiotic relationship. The strangler fig seed is sticky and sticks to a host tree, where they germinate and thrive in tropical humidity.

How do strangler figs benefit from their host?

The strangler fig is thought to help and support the host tree survive storms.