Quaxaca

The quaxaca can live even in soils poor in bio-available nitrogen and phosphorus. This hardiness makes it very common in its habitats. This advantage is all in its roots. The roots grow in a dense, clustered form that clings to soil and increases surface area. With this increased surface area, the quaxaca is very effective at turning the nearby phosphorus into a bio-available form by means of enzyme secretions from the root. This is in addition to hosting nitrocycle microbes in the roots, which will give the quaxaca nitrogen compounds the quaxaca can use for growth.



The borders of the quaxaca's range are in red.

The quaxaca are tasty and fairly nutritious, which makes them an excellent food for herbivores. Its only defenses are its high reproductive rate and the thin, tiny, spine-like thorns hidden among its fuzzy leaves. (Most thorns aren't long enough to poke out of the mass of fuzz, so it has more thorns than it seems.) Since the quaxaca is so common and among the few flora in its habitats, the herbivores aren't picky. However, the thorns don't discourage herbivores so much as slowly wear down their teeth, causing them to starve once their teeth are too worn down to eat anything. The thorns are also much harder to digest than the leaves, but since the herbivores cannot remove or avoid all the thorns, they must expend greater digestive effort than suggested by the leaves alone. The stalks, however, are only a little tougher than broccoli stems, and have no defenses.

It survives in low-water environments by absorbing the morning dew that collects on its fuzzy leaves. However, this adaptation isn't sufficient for living in deserts, and droughts cause its population to greatly decrease in the Dixon Tropical Scrub and Dixon Savanna habitats.