Nature: Rainforest (Canopy)

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The Rainforest (Canopy)

❧ FAUNA

Birds ❧ Insects ❧ Mammals ❧ Primates ❧ Reptiles

❧ FLORA & FUNGI

Flowers ❧ Moss ❧ Trees ❧ Vines

EXAMPLE

❧ Wildlife Name/Identification Number

CREDIT RARITY ❦ = 90% chance of sighting ❦❦ = 70% chance of sighting ❦❦❦ = 50% chance of sighting ❦❦❦❦ = 30% chance of sighting ❦❦❦❦❦ = 5% chance of sighting DESCRIPTION BEHAVIOR USES

BIRDS

❧ Ballista Blues

CREDIT ❦❦❦❦ A flightless bird that resembles a large running bird (ostrich), with black and green and blue feathers. Grows to be about 7' tall, with 6 inch long claws on their feet. Their eggs are a pale green in color and the size of a football; generally one nest will contain 5-8 eggs. Highly aggressive and territorial, with a kick strong enough to send an enemy flying into a tree. Typically fights by first kicking up rocks and other small hard objects, then kicking them at their enemies to keep them at a distance. Generally a family unit of 3-5 will build its nest somewhere secure and will always leave at least half the group to defend the nest while the rest forages (frugivorous diet). The skin on their legs is thick and hard to cut through; they're also fairly intelligent and will focus on defending/moving the nest when faced with stronger predators. The meat of the bird is tough and not very tasty, but edible. The eggs, however, are very rich and delicious, but incredibly hard to crack open.

INSECTS

❧ (Insect #01)

CREDIT ❦❦❦ Green and silver dragonflies that grow to have a body about 2 feet long and a wingspan of over four feet. Their legs are covered in small, inch-long, razor-sharp growths. An aggressive predator; it will not stop attacking until it obtains a meal. It typically hunts by swooping out of the air and using its legs to form a basket, curling around whatever its hunting and carrying it off to be eaten. It will use the growths on its legs as saws to cut through larger animals and carry away chunks of meat. The legs can be used as saws. Their wings are like moldable plastic in consistency, so they can be used for various purposes.

MAMMALS

❧ Moss Lion

CREDIT ❦❦ Jungle cat; lean and the size of a lion. Moss Lions found in the canopies have fur covered in a shaggy, green or light brown moss with branch-like growths from their spine around the back of the head and neck, allowing it to blend with the area. Aggressive carnivore; tends to lay in wait for prey to walk into its room, then wait until its close enough to pounce. Don't tend to live in packs but will fight alongside their mate if they have one. Compared to their ground-dwelling counterparts, canopy moss lions are slimmer and lighter, often taking to a more active stalking of their prey thanks to the use of their natural camouflage. Fur makes for a handy disguise and is very warm. The meat is edible, but tastes a lot like vegetables for some reason.

PRIMATES

❧ Batmonkeys

CREDIT ❦❦ Small winged monkeys, no taller than a foot, with a two-foot wingspan similar to the wings of bats. They also have a long tail, double the length of their bodies, that ends in a three-taloned claw and are a dirty brown in color. Noisy and explorative, they're quick in movement and tend to stay in far out branches along the canopy. However, they're very easily lured over with food, particularly fruits, but will scratch using their tail-claw when they're feeling threatened. Edible and are comparable to eating some very fine veal. The wings in particularly are especially tasty when fried crispy.

❧ Pterakongs

CREDIT ❦❦ Large winged monkeys, around 5 to 6 feet tall when standing, with a wingspan double their height similar to the wings of bats. They also have a long tail, double the length of their bodies, that ends in a three-taloned claw and are a dirty brown in color. Noisy and aggressive, they're particularly fast and agile, making use of the tangle of wines and branches to move quickly. Their wings are more often used to glide and dart between further branches, increasing their range of mobility. Their preferred method of hunt for animals is to either smash their prey with a heavy object or to drop them from a high distance. Edible, but their meat is tough and not very tasty. Their wings are delicious when prepared fried and crispy.

REPTILES

❧ Emerald/Green Lizagon

CREDIT ❦❦ Emerald green dragon-like creatures with narrow bodies, wings, and sharp, hooked talons that will let them run on any viney surface (walls, ceilings whatever). Teeth are only about an inch long, but sharp, and bite is poisonous, inducing fever and dizziness quickly. Range in size from great dane to stallion. Nest in small groups in sunny areas, but will explore for food. Eat just about anything EXCEPT most basic plant life (no vines or berryless shrubs). Are capable of working together or solo. Highly intelligent. Probably one of the more common and dangerous creatures. Their night vision isn't great and they like to stick to lit areas. Will line their nests with fairy light flowers. They have light, brittle bones. Their scales can act as a weaker but more flexible armor. The meat is lean and gamey but edible. Have poison sacs which should be avoided on dissection or it will contaminate the meat. The poison can be used to coat blades and deal with other creatures (the dragons, however, are immune).

❧ Ruby/Red Lizagon

CREDIT ❦ Ruby red dragon-like creatures with with narrow bodies, wings, and sharp, hooked talons that will let them run on any surface. Teeth are about five inches long and sharp, and their bite is poisonous, inducing fever and dizziness quickly. Has a noticeably long tail that's spiked at the end with green spikes and a much wider wing span than their smaller relative. Range in size from rhino to adult orca. Nest in small groups along the canopy and will generally climb down into the lower areas for food. Eat just about anything EXCEPT most basic plant life (no vines or berryless shrubs). Are capable of working together or solo. Highly intelligent and will recognize a leader in the group and follow the directions given to them by the leader. Their scales can act as a weaker but more flexible armor. The meat is lean and gamey but edible. Have poison sacs which should be avoided on dissection or it will contaminate the meat. The poison can be used to coat blades and deal with other creatures (the dragons, however, are immune).

❧ Vineaconda

CREDIT ❦ Anaconda-like snake. Grows to be up to around 60 feet long and generally come in shades of brown or green to blend with their environment. Tends to arrange itself among branches in the tree to look identical to a branch. When something steps on it, it'll immediately curl a portion of its body around the creature and squeeze. Its skin is tough, nearly impossible to pierce through. The inner side of the snake's skin is naturally kind of sticky, but not strongly sticky. The outer side of the snake skin is impervious to liquids and heat. From this, the snake skin can be used for bandages (with a cloth) or other similar items.

❧ (Reptile #01)

CREDIT ❦❦❦ Bright red, slightly slimy snakes that grow to be around 3 to 5 feet long. They naturally secrete a highly acidic slime all over their bodies that is capable of slowly burning through anything they come in contact with. Their eggs resemble bright red, melon-sized pods. Often locatable by the acid-burned trails they leave against branches and trees. The snakes are passive for the most part, but will retaliate when provoked. They hunt by flicking the acid gathered at the tips of their tails at their prey, weakening it until they can move in for the kill. They lay their eggs against the branches and trunks of trees; these eggs are very sensitive and will burst open upon contact, releasing the snake inside. The acid could prove useful, if you can find a way to collect and store it.

❧ (Reptile #02)

CREDIT ❦❦❦❦ Average-sized vipers that are generally dark green or black in color. They all have diamond-shaped lumps patterned on their bodies in different colors, starting from their foreheads and running down the length of their bodies. Generally loiters on low branches, waiting for prey to come at eye level. Capable of spitting a corrosive poison up to six feet, which it uses to blind its prey then slips out of the tree to consume it. The lumps, when cut out from underneath their skin, are in fact naturally forming jewels that resemble popular gemstones (ruby, sapphire, amethyst, etc).

FLOWERS

❧ Fairy Lights

CREDIT ❦ Brittle, bark-like white vines that grow large (plate sized) white and yellow flowers that emit a mimicry of sunlight. These flowers grow in long chains, like christmas lights, and if you cut them off closer to the their hub (which will be eventually found on the roof) the ones further away will gradually dim and die. They tend to grow along the ceiling or walls, and provide sunlight to the other plants within the darkness of the building that needs it. They are still poisonous if ingested but otherwise harmless. Lights! If you put a cutting of these flowers in water it will provide gradually dimming light for roughly three days. They don't need to be purified for this. A single flower gives off roughly as much light as a modern indoor light bulb.

❧ (Flower #01)

CREDIT ❦❦❦ A tall green plant that resembles a tree, with a thick brown trunk, but instead of normal branches all of its 'branches' hang down and have a red and orange spotted 'pitcher' at the end. The rim of the pitcher is edged with jagged looking rows of teeth-like thorns, and the thick gel inside the pitcher is mostly clear with a tint of pink. The gel emits a sweet fragrance that attracts its prey- once anything enters the 'pitcher' part of the plant, it snaps shut the lid. The snapping force is strong enough to cut clean through bone. The pitcher of the plant is hard as stone and the lid will remain shut while the gel slowly dissolves whatever prey the pitcher has caught, digesting it. The gel inside the pitcher is drinkable, if you really want to, but you're guaranteed to knock out after one sip. Otherwise, the gel is useful as a slow-burning substance that can be spread across surfaces like gunpowder trails or used as flare lights. The flame from gel is a bright pink.

❧ (Flower #02)

CREDIT ❦❦❦❦ During the day, this plant is just a clump of dark green, fern like-leaves with long, thin stems that end in a green, unopened bloom. At night, the bloom opens up to reveal a large, deep black flower that has a large number of tendrils growing from its bloom. The plant is absolutely harmless and unnoticeable during the day but at night, particularly when the mist rolls in, the flower blooms actively move around, feeling into the mist with their tendrils. They're attracted to heat and once they catch hold of something live, they'll drag it up to the main bloom, which is lined with sharp teeth. The bloom will attach to its prey and begin drinking its blood- once its had its fill it will let go, leaving teeth marks shaped in a circle on its prey. The tendrils from the plant, once dried out, are strong enough to be used as string or twine, especially when braided together.

❧ (Flower #03)

clippedwings ❦❦❦ A flowering plant with short green leaves and a long, thick brown stalk that grows up to 20 feet tall. At the end of the stalk grows a large, deep yellow bloom that resembles a tulip the size of a large beach ball. When the flower wilts, it turns into a large, round yellow and black pod. This plant only grows on the underside of branches, with the blooms and pods hanging down toward the ground. The blooms are harmless but the pods will explode violently if disturbed, releasing yellow pollen into the air. The pollen induces immediate allergic reactions (sneezing, runny nose, watery eyes, etc) that last for a full day. The bloom of the plant is edible and a natural remedy for the symptoms caused by the pollen of the plant. It's also quite hardy in general to eat. The stalk is quite flexible and difficult to break, so it can be used for various purposes.

❧ (Flower #04)

CREDIT ❦❦❦ The base plant resembles a large bright red dandelion; it's seed head version is also bright red. When the plant has taken over a corpse, its most identifying features are a bright red rose-life bloom somewhere on the corpse. Cutting open the corpse will reveal brown roots in a large density. Carnivorous plant that only grows on corpses (typically only ones with bones). Takes about two hours for a seed that's landed on an open wound to grow roots that stretch over the entire span of the corpse, under the skin, and begins to move it. Hunts down live prey to eat; the plant feeds on blood instead of water so it'll continually hunt for prey when its host's stomach is low on food to prevent it from consuming the corpse instead. Once the corpse is no longer able to move due to wear or its out of blood, the plant begins to bloom in its dandelion version instead. Takes about three days for a plant to completely drain its corpse without food. Once purified and dried out, the roots taste like beef jerky. Can be kept and stored for an extended amount of time this way.

MOSS

❧ Common Moss

CREDIT ❦ Moss grows in a wide range of size, shape, color, and consistency over just about anything that holds still long enough for it to. It grows EVERYWHERE. Unlike its indoor relative, most moss found outdoors have relatively no uses. Some rare ones have some medicinal value, but it's difficult to distinguish them from others.

TREES

❧ Rainforest Trees

CREDIT ❦ Dark brown trees that range from 200 to 500 feet in height over the surface water covering the forest floor and can grow up to 50 feet around. Their lower branches tend to grow in every direction, creating a network of intertwining branches that spread out all across the rainforest. The higher branches are covered in hand-sized green leaves and spread out to form a very solid canopy. Serves as a growing surface for just about every other plant life in the forest, as well as a hunting ground for all wild life as well. The easiest way to travel around the rainforest, particularly down to the lower levels of the rainforest.

VINES

❧ Common Vines

CREDIT ❦ Ridiculously sturdy vines that twine all across the branches of the trees. Can grow to be over two feet thick. Grows at a rate of an inch per minute (40 ft/8 hours). Another quick way to travel around the rainforest. Also serves as quick-burning fuel, like their indoor relatives.