This the strangler fig, a commen name for a number of tropical and subtropical plant species. This one in particular is a Ficus aurea. Now i'm pretty sure this plant is something out of one of my sci-fi novels as it sucks the host trees nutrients. This plant starts as a seed on top of a tree and grows its roots down descending along the tree eventually reaching the ground and soil. This tree is ruthless, it digs its roots with the host trees roots and competes for water and nutrients, it squeezes the trunk of the host tree and cuts of its flow of nutrients, and it makes a large canopy of leaves to block sunlight going to the host tree. Eventually the host tree will die an aganozing death watching this predator grow on it for dozens of years.
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