English Common Name

Chinese Banyan

Scientific name

Ficus microcarpa

Taxonomy

Order: Rosales, Family: Moraceae

Size

Up to 20 m in height

Species Distribution

In Japan, some areas of Nansei Islands; Yakushima Island, Tanegashima Island and southward. Outside of Japan, Taiwan to India, and the most southern area reaches Australia.

Okinawan Common Name

Kaji-ma-kee, Gatz-mu-ray, etc.

This species is invasive. Aerial roots hang down from branches or alongside the trunk of the tree, and will overtake surrounding territory by acting as a parasite upon surrounding vegetation. As the tree gets bigger, thicker aerial roots reaching to the ground provide pillar support to branches that reach out from the trunk. These thick pillar roots sometimes penetrate concrete or asphalt as they grow. Due to the mystic appearance of the banyan tree, Okinawan folklore has it that a fairy called Kijimunah makes its home in the tree.

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Updated September 2018

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