Image: MoretonBayNaturalisedNZ

Description: An increasingly common sight in northern New Zealand. A young plant of the Australian banyan-type fig Ficus macrophylla, Moreton Bay Fig, has started life as an epiphyte on a Kōwhai tree (Sophora sp.), in Cornwall Park, Auckland, New Zealand. The seed from which this plant grew must have been deposited here by a bird that ate the fruit from one of the very large Moreton Bay Figs that grow nearby in this park. Ficus macrophylla is commonly cultivated in northern New Zealand. It has now acquired its pollinating wasp (Pleistodontes froggatti), apparently by long-distance dispersal. The size and vigour of this fig and its lack of natural enemies (notably an immunity to possum browsing) indicate that it may be able to invade forest and other native plant communities. The Moreton Bay Fig has been found growing on both native and introduced trees in Auckland.
Title: MoretonBayNaturalisedNZ
Credit: Own work
Author: Kahuroa
Usage Terms: Public domain
License: Public domain
Attribution Required?: No