Climber Crystalkrugg

The climber crystalkrugg split from its ancestor and followed the belay crystalroot into Darwin Alpine. Its coloration mimics both that of its food source and the surrounding soil; the darkness of its head and feet also help it to retain heat.

It has had to make several adaptations to survive the difficult climate. It takes its scientific name from the pickax-like claws on its legs which help it scamper around on hills and cliffs. While its mandibles are just as strong as its ancestor's, they have shrunk in size to help with balancing; it has compensated for this by using a sharp spike on the front of its head to help dig into belay crystalgrove roots, as well as clear away the harmful spikes.

They can be found congregating around patches of crystalroots in numbers excess of 40, leisurely nibbling away at the roots. They try to go for the vines since they contain more nutrients; however, these rhizovores aren't smart enough to understand that this circumstance isn't the case when the sprout matures, though some nutrients do remain in the vine when it is shut off. In this way they are simultaneously parasitic and symbiotic to the belay crystalroot, since the sprouts can't grow without their parent's nutrients, and adults risk getting uprooted if a connect member below them falls off.

Individuals live for 3 years, breeding annually when the temperature rises. Since the ground is too cold to protect the young, they will lay 40-60 fertilized eggs underneath the exposed spike roots of belay crystalroots, which give equal (if not more) protection. Young take 2 weeks to hatch and mature after 1 month, staying on and around their "home" crystalroot until they are ready to mate.