Stalk Rastum

The stalk rastrum split from its ancestor, taking on a dramatically new morphology coinciding with its evolution of a stalk-like root system. Like its distant ancestors the suction crastrum and kin, these floral organisms are capable of taking in and expelling water in order to 'move' somewhat, in this case utilizing it to open and close the 'petals' of its central 'flower', from which its spores are produced. The spines that ring it will protect this with the aid of a potent neurotoxin which ravages the nervous systems of most smaller organisms while causing extreme hallucinogenic reactions in larger ones. Further aided by the fact that stalkrastrum tend to grow in clusters, increasing the chance that an herbivore will be stung, few creatures will attempt to eat these flora, save for specialized members of the scuttlers and such.