Ornate Gumjorn

The Ornate Gumjorn split from its ancestor and moved inland. It has gained many chitinous spikes extending from its shell, which not only protect it from potential predators but are also used for dispersal. When a creature bumps or falls into it, the spikes of the stembuds on top will become lodged in its skin and break off of their parent, and even if the victim removes them on the spot the effort required to do so will result in the bud being flung far away. As the spikes reduce the need for extensive shell covering, the shell has become more of a frame covering the organism, giving it bigger “windows” and granting even more open space for photosynthesis.

Like its ancestor, the Ornate Gumjorn’s bulbous stem is filled with water. Mature individuals are also filled with natural gum which oozes out to seal wounds and prevent infection or water loss. The gum can also smother small fauna which try to nibble their way into the plant. It has lost its air pockets, as it doesn’t use water for dispersal anymore. In order to take root more quickly, the bottom ends of the stembuds are heavier, causing them to passively right themselves as they roll. To avoid wasting resources with the much larger size of their “windows”, and since they no longer need to suspend their metabolism for months at a time, they no longer form “lenses” to cover their photosynthetic parts early in life.