Barrian Bog Fern

The Barrian Bog Fern is a relatively recent discovery, exclusively found in the Barrian Fens; an area of marshy wetlands separating the countries of Skorgia and Fjenlan. Prior to the Sundering of Kyvandia, this was fertile lowlands, but it became inundated and transformed by the shifting and shattering of the continent. As this area has been disputed territory between the two nations, the possibilities for exploration have been limited by more than just the inhospitable swamplands.

Given the waterlogged nature of the territory, several new species of plants have evolved, finding different ways to ensure their survival. In particular, the Barrian Bog Fern has adapted to find nutrition from the abundant insect life by turning carnivorous.

On the surface, the fern looks fairly typical, though it tends to grow larger, and its fronds tend to reach further. Although its fronds are green, with silvery tint, the shaded underside, and some thicker central stems are red - the deeper the shade of red, the more recently (or more thoroughly) the plant has fed.

The red underside is also where the Bog Fern secretes a sticky sap, which attracts insects with its sweetly rotting smell. Insects are drawn in to the shady underside of these plants, and find themselves caught. The sap is also mildly acidic, and can begin the process of softening hard insect shells.

As with other ferns, it curls in on itself in the cold, although it curls under, rather than over. This means that any insects caught are firmly wrapped up within the coils at night. Through this process, insects are securely coated, and moved down the underside of the fern. At the base of each frond is a small  cup-like growth, which catches the smothered insects and digests them fully.

As the expeditions to date have traversed the edges of the swampland, there is some speculation as to whether larger varieties may exist deeper into the Barrian Fens, possibly capable of capturing and digesting small birds or mammals, but it has not been possible to confirm this as more than rumour with any definite evidence, at this time.