Vine
Vines are really interesting things. This is probably a grape
vine of some sort, it'll be much easier to identify it in a few
months when the foliage is out. Vines such as this, that have
no tendrils, wrap around a tree via the process of thigmotropism.
When the surface of the vine touches the tree, the cells in contact
with the surface stop growing. Water is diverted to the cells
on the outside of the vine which then elongate. As the outside
lengthens, and the inside does not, the vine wraps around the
tree. This happens with considerable force, if you look at the
top of the photo you can see scars where vines have actually
left indentations in the tree.
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