Phoenix Tapper

The phoenix tapper replaced its ancestor in Justin. It has become amphibious, being found most commonly in the tide zone of the island, though its population has been slowly creeping inland. While the phoenix tubes were struggling to colonize the land, the crestagreeus had already well established itself. To capitalize on this, the phoenix tapper has developed a system of "tapping roots" which grow out of the central tube; when a tapping root encounters the roots of another flora, it wraps itself around it and begins siphoning off nutrients. While it still gets most of its food from photosynthesis, this parasitism gives it extra nutrients to store for the cold seasons. Being a black flora, it is susceptible to the Twinkgreeus. It hasn't fully acclimated itself to the dry environment of the cold coast, and so must store extra water in its tube. Its spore-producing heads are retracted into their tubes for most of the year, to prevent them from freezing off. Its heads dissolve unfertilized spores in its tube water, which helps lower the freezing temperature of its water. During the brief periods of summer, it will pump 25% of its tube water out to help spread its spores, and its heads will extend and release clouds of spores.