Obsiditall

The Obsiditall split from its ancestor. To make itself more difficult to prey on or knock down, it has become significantly taller. To help support its height, it also has more leaves. In order to avoid overheating in the warmer parts of its range, it has gained a set of white, highly-vascularized leaves which excess heat radiates from. These are near its top as to prevent them from being eaten and to place them in the coolest air it can access. It uses nastic movement to raise and lower these leaves as needed, such as to move them out of the way or shade overheating leaves. The main black leaves, too, can move, helping to prevent any given leaf from overheating while still tracking the sun. Living in environments wet enough where dehydration isn’t an issue, it can even secrete fluid--in this case, water mixed with some amount of waste--to evaporate and take excess heat with it; in essence, this tree can sweat. The leaves are similar to palm leaves in shape, as this makes it where (in young trees) only part may be bitten off instead of a whole leaf; though they are more numerous and redundant than its ancestor’s, its leaves are so large that doing otherwise would be very expensive. The change in shape also improves the Obsiditall's ability to survive powerful gusts of wind. The Obsiditall has more leaves than its ancestor. This helps support its immense size. It now has multiple reproductive stalks, which are hidden deep in its leaves for protection. As before, they keep growing more and more spore chambers, which eventually drop and release their spores into the wind on the way down. The chambers do not get trapped in the leaves because of their round shape, which rolls and slides with ease. In addition to wind, fauna and rainwater will also spread the spores. Indeed, water is a necessary component for unrelated spores to meet and form a zygote. Due to its airborne spores, the Obsiditall is present in both Hydro and Barlowe, the spores easily being carried between the two islands by wind.