Commune Tangleplort
The Commune Tangleplort (Porgatulus simul), a descendant of P. anemosporus, is very similar to its ancestor except it only grows in groups. They evolved when instead of the 20 or so seeds within the seed pods competing for resources, began working together for survival, mainly due to their genetic similarity. There are several adaptations to this lifestyle. The stems entangle to act as supports allowing them to reach up to 8 feet tall. They can share resources via their roots by releasing them into specialized glands. These glands partially connect them to other roots, so that if one individual is struggling they can distribute resources between every individual or concentrate unsavory chemicals with a bitter taste to ward off predators. These glands are also used for communication between individuals, which is how the colony knows to carry out such actions. When an individual is left on its own it cannot function properly, so if it does not collapse due to a lack of stability it will starve to death because they are adapted to rely on each other. If an individual is stranded, it will devote all its energy stores into creating seeds to increase the odds of passing on its genetics.
Seeds are light weight with filaments so the wind can carry them, to avoid competition with other colonies. These colonies reach maturity in around 9 months, each individual grows about 8-15 leaves, with up to about 20 individuals in each colony. Due to the fragile nature of these colonies, young colonies cannot survive the floods on the small islands of Zone O, so they are rarer there. Many muscals avoid it due to its bitter taste. However, the seeds and sprouts have much less of the bitter compounds, making them prime targets for predators. These compounds can cause fever-like symptoms when consumed in excess because the chemical is made to stimulate the predators metabolism. These symptoms typically take place around 15-30 minutes after the polyph is consumed in excess.