Strangler fig

A strangler fig is one of a number of tropical and subtropical plant species. There are some banyans and unrelated vines, and many other species:

Ficus altissima
 Ficus aurea, also known as the Florida strangler fig
 Ficus benghalensis
 Ficus burtt-davyi
 Ficus citrifolia
 Ficus craterostoma
 Ficus tinctoria
 Ficus macrophylla
 Ficus obliqua
 Ficus virens
Ficus watkinsiana
Ficus henneana

All these vines have a strangling habit which is very common in tropical forests.Zhekun, Zhou & Michael G. Gilbert (2003) "Flora of China" (Moraceae) 5: 21–73. hua.huh.harvard.edu  This is an adaptation for growing in dark forests where the competition for light is intense. Strangler figs suck up the nutrients from its victims, causing them to die eventually. 

One usually thinks that seeds start on or in the ground and grow upwards. Figs do it the other way round. Birds drop their seeds into the tops of trees, and the parasitic fig plant grows downwards, eventually round the whole tree. If not already at the top, they also grow upward to reach into the sunlight zone above the canopy.Serventy V. 1984. Australian native plants. Victoria: Reed Books.Light in the rainforest. 1992. Tropical topics, vol 1, #5. epa.qld.gov.au 

 References 

Category:Trees
Category:Moraceae