Banyan Tree on Banana River, Florida. The tree is a Florida strangler fig (
Ficus aurea).
This is the famous Wat Mahathat Temple, with banyan roots wrapped around a buddha head.
A banyan (or 'banian') is a kind of fig. It usually starts life by growing on another plant as an epiphyte. Its seeds germinate in the cracks and crevices on a host tree, or on other structures like buildings and bridges.