Plowskunik

While the Flippskimas had done alright on the beaches of Drake, some groups would begin to move inland, where they would come across a wider range of flora to feed upon. This led to them eventually splitting off into the Plowskunik, which has also developed additional adaptations to handle the cold in most of the areas it lives in.

The plowskunik still has large projections on its chin that are made up of giant scales, but these scales are broader and not as long, since they now assist more with digging than flinging competition away. That being said, the plowskunik can still use its chin to fling away competition such as Kruggs from desired sources of food. Its long first pair of legs can still be used to push the skunik up into a vertical posture as it flings away the rival forager with the hind pairs of legs still positioned near the back to help support it when in this vertical pose.

Unlike its ancestor, however, the plowskunik spends a lot more of its time digging, whether that is to make a burrow or to uproot food. Their six legs still have the cellulose rings that provide structure and support, while not greatly sacrificing mobility. While this allows the plowskunik and its ancestor to pull off the ability to rapidly shift into a vertical posture to fling away competitors, the plowskunik also uses the limbs to dig. While the plowskunik mainly uses its chin to dislodge dirt, the front pair of legs partially assist in this as well with the gripping pads at the bottom having developed claw-like projections to help loosen dirt and kick it back. The hind pairs of legs help push dirt behind it, allowing them to kick dirt out of the burrow when digging. The improved circulatory system of their ancestor means the plowskunik can do periods of active digging before resting for a bit before starting to dig again.

While the cellulose scales of their ancestors only helped with giving them support and not drying out as well as performing photosynthesis, the plowskunik has started to use them for defense. The top three rows of cellulose scales have developed a sharp projection on each individual scale, which pricks predators that try to grab them and thus acts as a minor deterrent. The plowskunik has also developed coloration that helps them blend in with the soil of their environment, with most populations being brown, though those native to the Mae Volcanic biome are black to blend in with the volcanic soil prevalent within the area. This did result in the species losing the ability to photosynthesize with their scales, so only their scaleless faces are capable of getting energy from light.

Plowskuniks still have anti-freeze compounds in their tissues from their ancestors, which usually works well enough for the species in the warmer parts of their range along with resting in their burrows during the night in winter, the plowskunik is also capable of taking things up a notch when necessary. It first starts with the plowskunik detecting daylight changes, where it begins to spend more time in its burrow and is generally less active in general. When this is backed up by food being less common than usual and colder temperatures, the plowskunik will go into its burrow and seal itself off, where it will then go into a state of torpor and rely upon its anti-freeze compounds to survive while conserving energy until it gets warmer again. While all members of the species can do this if there is an unusually cold winter in their habitat, those that live in particularly cold environments like the Drake Alpine or Drake Polar Scrub rely on this ability to survive the winter months. To avoid becoming dehydrated when in torpor, since the plowskunik only breathes through their mouths like their ancestors, the organism slows down their breathing to conserve as much water as possible.

Once it becomes spring in the area, plowskuniks will begin to be more active and start searching for ponds. Here, they will release eggs or sperm from their mouth into the bodies of water which can then be fertilized and become the next generation. Much like their ancestors, plowskuniks have their reproductive organs in their mouths, similarly to ambulatory Plents. Unlike those kinds of plents but like their ancestors and relatives though, the plowskunik still has a through gut where waste is excreted at their back ends. Since it's not that well developed compared to something like a carpozoan and food is not digested as well, the plowskunik often seeks out high energy bits from flora like fruits or berries. Some of the most common low-growing flora with fruits in their range are species like the Toxplage, which are highly toxic to most creatures that eat their fruits or other tissues. The transitional forms between the plowskunik and Flippskima, however, developed an immunity to these flora over time as individuals who could survive the toxins would be able to feed on a relatively uncontested source of food. This accumulated into the plowskunik being able to freely feed on the toxic flora species, inadvertently spreading their food sources wherever they go through their poorly-digested excrement.

Due to consuming a wide range of low hanging berries or fruit as well as fallen fruit, the plowskunik is an important seed disperser since a lot of seeds and spores can make it past their digestive systems intact. This has allowed them to spread several different species of both flora and fauna to new biomes, even changing up entire floral communities in certain areas.

Species Spread

 * Alpine Hedgelog is spread into Mae Volcanic.


 * Toxplage is spread into Mae Volcanic.


 * Glountain is spread into Mae Volcanic.


 * Purple Poison Shrub is spread into Mae Volcanic.


 * Thorny Hedgelog is spread into Mae Volcanic.


 * Crystalfir is spread into Drake Boreal and Mae Volcanic.


 * Emeraldfir is spread into Drake Boreal.


 * Xidhorchia is spread into Drake Rocky and Mae Volcanic.


 * Windbulb is spread into the Mae Volcanic, Drake Rocky, Drake High Grassland, and Drake Alpine biomes via indirectly ingesting spores.


 * Snow Puff is spread into the Mae Volcanic, Drake High Grassland, and Drake Alpine biomes via indirectly ingesting spores.


 * Toxplage Ketter is spread into Mae Volcanic due to the spread of the Toxplage, which it pollinates.


 * Mini-Flower Ketter is spread into Drake Rocky and Mae Volcanic due to the spread of the Xidhorchia, which it pollinates.


 * Hopping Ketter is spread into Mae Volcanic due to the spread of the Thorny Hedgelog, which it pollinates. It also begins to feed upon the nectar of the closely related Alpine Hedgelog that was also spread into the area, which in turn means they pollinate the flora as well.