Mystery trees on Stradbroke Island, QLD

Rowanberry

Hi everyone, this is my first post to the forum, so please be kind



I'm attaching photos of two different trees, taken at two different locations on Stradbroke Island, QLD. I believe they are both the same type of tree, although I may be wrong.

A local person told me they might be strangler figs, but the photos of strangler figs that I found on the web look only vaguely similar to these, so I'm not convinced. I'm sorry that I don't have any close-up pictures of leaves, bark, fruit, etc ... and I'm currently about 7000 miles away so I can't take any more photos, unfortunately

Any ideas?

Attached Thumbnails

   

Eric Frei

It would be either Ficus benjamina or Ficus hillii, hard to tell without close ups of leaves etc, but I would lean to benjamina.

Many ficus ssp are called "strangler figs" as the can germinate from seed in the canopy of host trees, slowly drop roots to the ground and strangle the host.

In the post below there's two ficus ssp having a go at a dead host.

Ficus rubiginosa / Port Jackson fig

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Rowanberry

Thank you very much for the information, Eric!

Do you think that these two trees might also be the same type? These photos are also from Stradbroke ... I saw a few of them around, they all had bizarre-looking root systems while the tops looked almost like a little 'grass hut'.

Attached Thumbnails

   

Eric Frei

Pandanas sp

There's 600 types and I'm not real sure on which specific one it is, but it's a pandanas.

Pandanus tectorius is common in Queensland and northern NSW

Pandanus forsteri is endemic to Lord Howe Island

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Rowanberry

Pandanas, that's a new one for me I just read up a bit online and found this:

The fruit can be eaten raw or cooked and is a major source of food in Micronesia, especially in the atolls. The fibrous nature of the fruit also serves as a natural dental floss

Interesting! I wonder how the fruit tastes?

Anyway, Eric, thank you again for helping this California girl to learn more about Aussie trees!