Palmsnaps

Palmsnaps (Confractodendron) are a genus of hybrid trees native to the Northlox and Inner regions of Loxodia. They are relatively small as far as palm-grasses go, with their largest representatives no taller than five or six meters. Despite this, they thrive across vast areas and continue to expand their range with each passing generation. Like the first Apterran trees, their trunks are scarred by the marks left behind by old leaves, creating natural weak points where their secondary growth is disrupted. Other hybrid trees (which are now an entire family - the Polygenaceae) try to continue growing in the face of this limitation, often surviving up to a hundred years before finally breaking under their own weight. Palmsnaps, on the other hand, embrace this quirk of their biology. They owe their success to their ability to break easily at their nodes, allowing rapid vegetative reproduction.

Among the most common species is the Floodsnap (C. diluvius), found along the many river valleys of Loxodia's northern coast. It grows on riverbanks, floodplains, and other low-lying areas near sources of water. It branches quickly and densely, forming a bush up to three meters in height and width. Though Northlox is less prone to seasonal flooding than more tropical climates, rare periods of intense rain are enough for the floodsnap to take advantage of. Battered by the rushing water, its limbs break away, float for hours or days on end, then take root wherever they happen to land. The original plant, now stripped of its foliage, flowers and dies, ensuring that some reshuffling of genes does occur amidst the flurry of clonal growth.

Aside from a few species growing in the temperate zone, most palmsnap species are desert-dwellers. Just to the west of the central Loxodian mountains, the Parasol Palmsnap (C. pluvumbrensis) is tallest plant that can survive the year-round heat. Its main stem grows a few meters high and produces whorls of long, strap-like leaves. These are quickly scorched by ultraviolet damage, but they provide shade for the branches that shoot off the lower nodes. As time goes on, these limbs fall to the ground, sprouting directly below their mother tree. If the sacrificial main stem dies, its offspring initiate a burst of growth, with the largest taking on the role of shade-provider for the rest of the grove. It won't last long; in just six months or so, it will be so sun-damaged that it too will perish, and the cycle will repeat. 

The Snapstick (C. aphyllum) lives further to the west, where conditions are drier but not quite as hot. To conserve water, it produces only small, thorn-like leaves that fall off as soon as the summer rains end. Its blades essentially serve only as a means of creating breaking points, of which snapsticks have many. Over the month-long rainy season, several rounds of segment growth may take place. The stems are green and photosynthetic, allowing the plant to generate energy without the need for permanent leaves. This also greatly reduces water loss, ensuring survival through long periods of drought. This makes snapsticks one of the desert's only reliable sources of water, a fact well known among local animals, which often consume it to stave off dehydration. Not to be outdone, this species has evolved to take advantage of the destruction. Its branches shatter when disturbed, and each small stem - no longer than a human finger - falls to the sand below. Unlike the parasol and floodsnap, though, it doesn't start growing at this stage. Instead, it remains dormant, allowing the wind and sand to carry it to a new location over several months. When the rain returns, it finally sprouts, going from less than five centimeters to over a meter tall in just a few weeks. 

Similar to the snapstick but with longer-lasting blades, the Jumping Palmsnap (C. spinosa) lives in the semiarid scrubland between the eastern and western deserts. With slightly more water to go around, it can afford to keep its leaves all year. However, since it is far less sought-after than its cousin, it must employ other techniques to make animals disperse its offspring. Its recurved thorns easily get tangled in fur or feathers, making the plant stick to any passing creature. The unwitting bird or rat then carries the detached segments to new places, where they eventually fall off and begin growing once conditions are favorable.