strangler fig Moraceae Ficus aurea Nutt.   symbol: FIAU
	Leaf: Alternate, simple, entire margins, evergreen, thick, oblong to elliptical, 3 to 5 inches long, shiny dark green above, paler below. Flower: Small, produced inside of a small round, greenish receptacle, 1/3 inch in diameter that occur in leaf axils near branch tips. Fruit: Round, 5/8 inch in diameter, no stalk, sticky, turning red when ripe, produced nearly year round. Twig: Stout, green turning orangish brown, often with hanging aerial roots, contains a white latex sap, leaf scar shield-shaped. Bark: Thin and smooth, can become finely scaly, ashy to dark gray. Form: When young it is found growing on other trees with multiple trunks flowing or twisting down the trunk of "host" tree. Later when "host" tree is strangled they stand alone and may be up to 60 feet tall.
	USDA Plants Database Ficus aurea is native to North America. Range may be expanded by planting. See states reporting strangler fig (opens a new window).