Curtain Fig Tree, Natural wonder in Yungaburra, Australia

The Curtain Fig Tree is a massive fig tree in Yungaburra with long aerial roots that drop down from its trunk, creating a distinctive curtain-like formation. The tree has thick woody stems and spreads horizontally, making it a dominant structure within the surrounding forest landscape.

The tree received official heritage status when it was registered on the Queensland Heritage Register in 2009. It has served as a landmark for tourism in the Cairns highlands region since the 1920s, drawing visitors interested in natural formations.

The name "mabi" comes from a local Aboriginal word for Lumholtz's tree-kangaroo, the largest mammal of this rainforest type. Ecologists classified mabi rainforest in the 1960s, and the term "rainforest" itself was coined in 1898 but only applied to the Cairns region from the 1970s. In the 1930s the North Queensland Naturalists' Club lobbied to replace the derogatory "scrub" with "jungle".

The tree stands in Curtain Fig National Park, about one kilometre south-west of Yungaburra on the Atherton Tableland, reached via Curtain Fig Tree Road. The aerial root curtain drops 15 metres to the forest floor, so the base of the roots is best seen from a distance rather than up close.

The tree formed through an unusual biological process where vertical roots strangled a host tree, causing it to collapse at an angle against another tree. This rare growth pattern explains the distinctive curtain-like appearance that visitors observe today.