Kava Blight

Choked of water

We lost yet more of the kava forest this year. The disease was carried by a new group of kava gliding rats which followed invading troops from the East Bay Gate Coalition into the Salt Plains. Organized killings of these rats have begun.

— Governor of Port Nora

The Kava Blight is caused by a bacterium that normally decomposes fallen kava trees, relegated to the water of the swamp. However, a new cohort of kava rats, following supply trains, came to the Salt Plains infected with this bacterium. When they ate the leaves of this plant, the bacterium entered the xylem and phloem of this plant, causing death due to the choking-off of resources.

Basic Information

Anatomy

The bacteria feasts on the stem of the plant, when it enters from the inside. It damages the softer phloem, instead of simply the hardier stalk, causing nutrient flow to cease.

— Report by 27

The bacterium would test Gram-negative in human labs. It has the same peptidogylcan shell as normal bacteria, reinforced with chitin on the interior. It has a coccal shape, and grows in grape-like clusters, much like modern Staphylococcus. It produces sticky fibers and forms into a colony, clogging the tiny phloem of the plant while growing.

Scientific Name

Eurus pestis

Origin/Ancestry

Zentland Kava Forest, Clara

Conservation Status

Least Concern