Skroggle Bush
| Skroggle Bush | ||
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| (Dimorphofolius popularis) | ||
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| Information | ||
| Creator | Solpimr Other | |
| Week/Generation | 27/167 | |
| Habitat | Fermi Bush, Fermi Temperate Volcanic, Fermi Prairie, Fermi Subpolar Volcanic, Fermi Temperate Woodlands, Fermi Plains, Fermi Steppe | |
| Size | 1.5 meters wide | |
| Primary Mobility | Sessile | |
| Support | Cell Wall (Cellulose) | |
| Diet | Photosynthesis | |
| Respiration | Passive (Lenticels) | |
| Thermoregulation | Ectotherm | |
| Reproduction | Sexual Spores, Nuts containing many small, hardy seeds | |
| Taxonomy | ||
| Domain Kingdom Phylum Class Order Family Genus Species | Eukaryota Melanophyta Melanoanthae Aurantilabiopsida Glaucospinales Oaseophylagaceae Dimorphofolius Dimorphofolius popularis | |
| Ancestor: | Descendants: |
|---|---|
The skroggle bush has split from its ancestor and become smaller. Skroggle bushes are short and branch frequently. Each branch ends in either a cluster of leaves derived from the spore chamber or a pseudo-flower. Like other descendants of the bonespire the ancestral true leaves have developed into thin needles which line the branches. While most of these needles are too small to see from a distance those near the end of the branch are larger and have regained their leaf like function, becoming more like conifer needles than cactus needles. As the branch grows older conifer type needles are lost and new cactus type needles take their place.
Skroggle bushes shed their large terminal leaves and pseudo-flowers each winter. When the replacements come in in the spring most will be terminal leaves, with only a fraction developing into pseudo-flowers. Needle leaves are retained throughout the winter, while skroggle bushes enter a period of low growth and metabolic activity each winter they do not go fully dormant in the temperate portions of their range.
Like their ancestor skroggle bushes are pollinated by the inland nectarworm, which has spread to Fermi temperate woodland thanks to the presence of the skroggle bush. Unlike their ancestor the skroggle bush's flowers do not close to trap the nectarworms. Instead, the skroggle bush produces nectar deep within the flower, encouraging the nectarworms to crawl further in to reach it and coat themselves in gamete spores along the way. Like their ancestor the skroggle bushes flowers open only at night, both because that is when their pollinators are active and because it helps reduce water loss.
Like most branching bonespire descendants skroggle bushes produce large nuts which contain multiple "seeds". After fertilization the zygote is fed by the mother and develops into a small embryo with an oily "yolk" and a protective outer shell of thick-walled cells. These seeds are then encompassed by the female sporophore which likewise develops a hard protective coat and oil rich flesh. Skroggle bush nuts have a texture taste similar to peanut butter flavored gelatin filled with uncooked rice. The seeds are able to survive passing through the guts of most herbivores and can lay dormant for years until conditions are right for them to germinate.
Skroggle bushes are common in mixed scrub habitats and in the temperate woodland. They often form substantial thickets in those biomes which provide food and shelter to small fauna. They are less common in the plains and steppe with single shrubs or small clusters being the norm.