Strangler Fig
(Varies by Species)

Found across tropical and subtropical forests worldwide, the Strangler Fig begins its life not in the soil but high in the forest canopy — its seeds, often deposited by birds or bats, grow in the crevices of another tree’s bark, where the young fig spends its early life.

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From there, it sends its roots downward, wrapping around the host tree. Once those roots reach the soil, growth accelerates — the fig blocks the host’s sunlight while its roots compete for water and nutrients, a process that often ends in the tree’s death.  What remains is a hollow, ghostly cavity at the center of the fig — the only evidence the host ever existed!