Editing Ficus macrophylla (section)

{{short description|Species of banyan tree}}
{{Featured article}}
{{Italic title}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2021}}
{{Use Australian English|date=January 2012}}
{{Speciesbox
 | name              = Moreton Bay fig
 | image             = Moretonbayfigfrom1850.JPG
 | image_caption     = A specimen at [[The Domain, Sydney]], planted in 1850
 | image2            = Starr 000501-1307 Ficus macrophylla.jpg
 | image2_caption    = Fruit and leaves, photographed on [[Maui]], [[Hawaii]]
 | status            = LC
 | status_system     = IUCN3.1
 | status_ref        = <ref name="IUCN">{{cite iucn |author=Oldfield, S. |year=2023 |title=''Ficus macrophylla'' |volume=2023 |page=e.T223532374A223592116 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2023-1.RLTS.T223532374A223592116.en |access-date=14 May 2025}}</ref>
 | genus             = Ficus
 | parent            = Ficus subg. Urostigma
 | species           = macrophylla
 | authority         = [[René Louiche Desfontaines|Desf.]] ex [[Christian Hendrik Persoon|Pers.]]<ref name="POWO">{{cite web |url=https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:60458501-2 |title=''Ficus macrophylla'' Pers. |website=[[Plants of the World Online]] |publisher=Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew |year=2025 |access-date=14 May 2025}}</ref>
 | range_map         = Ficusmacrophyllargemap.png
 | range_map_caption = Natural range in Eastern Australia (in green)
 | synonyms          = 
*''Ficus huegelii'' <small>[[Carl Sigismund Kunth|Kunth]] & [[Carl David Bouché|C.D.Bouche]]</small>
*''Ficus magnolioides'' <small>[[Antonino Borzì]]</small><ref name=fici96/>
}}

'''''Ficus macrophylla''''', commonly known as the '''Moreton Bay fig''' or '''Australian banyan''', is a large evergreen [[banyan]] tree of the mulberry and fig family [[Moraceae]]. It is native to eastern Australia, from the [[Wide Bay–Burnett]] region of Queensland in the north to the [[Illawarra]] region of New South Wales. The [[Infraspecific name|infraspecies]] ''Ficus macrophylla'' f. ''columnaris'' is endemic to [[Lord Howe Island]]. Its common name refers to [[Moreton Bay]] in Queensland. It is best known for its imposing [[buttress roots]].

''Ficus macrophylla'' is called a [[strangler fig]] because seed germination usually takes place in the canopy of a [[host (biology)|host]] tree, where the seedling lives as an [[epiphyte]] until its roots establish contact with the ground, when it enlarges and strangles its host, eventually becoming a freestanding tree by itself. Individuals may reach {{convert|60|m|ft|abbr=on}} in height, with crown spreads as great as {{convert|250|ft|m|abbr=off}} being reported. The greatest exact height to be reported is {{convert|232|ft|m|abbr=off|sp=us}}.<ref>{{ cite book | last= Condit | first= Ira | date= | title= Ficus - The Exotic Species | location= Davis, California | publisher= University of California Press |pages= 124–125}}</ref> It has an obligate [[Mutualism (biology)|mutualism]] with [[fig wasp]]s; figs are pollinated only by fig wasps, and fig wasps can reproduce only in fig flowers. The wasp partner of the Moreton Bay Fig is ''Pleistodontes froggattii''. Many species of birds, including pigeons, parrots, and various passerines, eat the fruit.

''Ficus macrophylla'' is widely used as a feature tree in public parks and gardens in warmer climates such as California, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Malta, northern New Zealand (Auckland), and Australia. Old specimens can reach tremendous size, and their aggressive root system renders them unsuitable for all but the largest private gardens.