Rattling Balloon Sticks
| Rattling Balloon Sticks | ||
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| (Shuka spp.) | ||
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| Information | ||
| Creator | Colddigger Other | |
| Week/Generation | 27/168 | |
| Habitat | Lamarck | |
| Size | 1-3 m tall | |
| Primary Mobility | Sessile | |
| Support | Cell Wall (Cellulose), Flotation Bubbles (Hydrogen) | |
| Diet | Photosynthesis | |
| Respiration | Passive stomata | |
| Thermoregulation | Ectotherm | |
| Reproduction | Sexual, Hydrogen Filled Seed Bubbles | |
| Taxonomy | ||
| Domain Kingdom Subkingdom Division Class Order Family Genus Species | Eukaryota Phoenoplastida Phoenophyta (info) Physallophyta (info) Physallothallopsida Maineibullales Maineibullaceae Shuka Shuka spp. | |
| Ancestor: | Descendants: |
|---|---|
The Rattling Balloon Sticks split from their ancestor the Baebula and radiated into a number of species. Rather than maintaining exposed above ground bodies during winter this group has annual growth patterns. They survive as fat root clumps under the surface and rapidly send up new shoots in spring, initial growth and support from more typical cellulose, then as balloons mature their buoyancy hoisting branches upward even more rapidly. Rather than a central trunk with branches each bubble seed is tethered to an individual thin stalk. Each stalk hosts a pair of pigment dense leaves.
They've developed sexual reproduction similar to their relative the Madamedusa Vine, though with simpler structure. Young balloons shed dried dormant powdery haploid spores into the air, the layers of powder double as protection for the young body part developing. As they mature and inflate further the powder layers give way to a sticky mucus layer which captures the loose gametes upon contact to gradual sink to the balloon surface to fuse with local haploid layers and create new diploid cells.
These fertilized balloons do not release and float away like many members of their bubbleweed lineage, rather they remain on the Flora acting as support until midsummer, at which point the Flora will cease growth. Energy, material, cytoplasm from the stalks will be shuttled down to the roots for storage and the body parts above ground (with exception of the balloons) will desiccate and become quite snappable.
Being the only items left to snack on for exploring minikruggs and other herbivorous fauna leaves the bubble seeds to be enticing target. However this is itself a part of their life cycle. As little creatures scramble up the brittle stalks and try to bite into the round purple morsels they trigger controlled rupturing of the balloon surface, releasing the airbag from the stalk to whizz away spiraling to a safe new location. Often this disturbance causes a chain reaction where many bubble seeds begin flying off from the dead stalks, dispersing themselves and startling the would-be predator.
The escaped seeds will spend the remainder of the summer and early fall establishing a root system that will survive the winter and repeat the process next year. An individual may survive five to seventy years depending on species.