The Strangler

A Strangler Fig stands like a living skeleton of the tree that once occupied this space.

This fig drops seeds down which are caught in the branch forks of other trees, feed off the accumulated humus and water there, germinate, then send down long roots like vines that eventually reach the earth. The Stangler gets its name because from this point it grows up, around the tree that once suckled it, then strangles it. When the dead tree rots away, this living exoskeleton remains, maintaining the form of what was there before it.

I acknowledge that this photo was taken on the traditional lands of the Gubbi Gubbi people, and pay my respects to Elders both past, present and future, and their traditions of respect and sustainability for these lands.