Rust Groveglobes

The rust groveglobes has replaced its ancestor. They are now too heavy to float and live entirely on the ground. The rust groveglobes are still slightly hollow but, this is mainly to conserve weight. They now use Iron as a very important source of nutrients. Even though they take large amounts of iron in the ground, they don't pose a threat to iron sources. The rust groveglobes are able to produce some iron by photosynthesis. That means that when they die more iron is added than what was taken. The rust groveglobes are actually a colony of organisms that function as a single being. They start out as a single bud that grows into a large globed structure. They extract nutrients using root-like wire like tendrils. Once it has grown enough, its branch-like structures on top produce clones of itself that take root around it. Once the clones have grown enough, they uses their root/tendrils to re-connect with the main organism. Over time, a single organism can have hundreds of thousands of buds and main bodies. Each bud is capable of photosynthesis so they can capture sunlight over a large area. The buds share nutrients obtained through photosynthesis and ground extraction to other parts of the colony. Each bud can mature into a main body, further producing clones. If all the buds reach full maturity, they can appear as a forest-like structure. However this rarely happens because the buds are a prime target to herbivores and "iron-eaters" The rust groveglobes' main bodies constantly produce spores. These reach the main bodies of other colonies, and the DNA is mixed to prevent genetic breakdown through constant clones.