Name: Electrocybin AKA: Glowmoss Description: Electrocybin is a fungus which takes on a vibrant blue glow when it is able to feed – making it much easier to spot on live power lines than disabled ones. The ‘dormant’ color is the same blue, but without the bioluminescence. It forms mycelium layers, with glowing mushrooms extending out during feeding to release spores. A metallic tree unlucky enough to be victim to electrocybin. Behavior: Electrocybin is a fungus which is attracted to ionized sources and, in nature, acts as a parasite on animals with electric organs. In the cities where it spreads, it is a significant pest which drains the power grid and must be regularly cleared out. Tamability: It is a fungus. It can be grown intentionally, if one were desired to do so, with a metal rod, a battery, and spores. In some cases, this is done for the pleasing bioluminescent glow – it is not uncommon to see its use in some floran rituals and parties, particularly outside of urban areas of Olympus. Where is it found?: Electrocybin is native to Olympus, but has been spread unintentionally by careless pilots – it can be found anywhere warm and unlucky enough to have a trader visit it with spores in the hold. Rarity: Common on worlds that have it, and incredibly difficult – often impossible - to completely eradicate. Diet/Method of gaining nutrients and energy: Electrocybin’s most unique and troublesome trait is its ability to generate energy from electric currents. In nature, this primarily sees it acting as a parasite on unlucky niche creatures, but with the arrival of cities, it has exploded as a potent pest against civil engineers. Products?: Has a nice glow when it’s ‘feeding’ on live currents. Spores can produce very mild hallucinogenic effects, though this is ill-advised, as it can cause lung infections – this can be mitigated by freezing electrocybin before use (with the ‘use’ generally being cooking the post-frozen fungus or using it as a seasoning), though this also reduces the hallucinatory qualities. Reproduction: Electrocybin reproduces asexually with spores and does not need a mate. When it is parasitizing animals with electric organs, stalks and heads rapidly form - after sufficient energy is extracted, the heads 'burst' into puffs of spores, swiftly spreading far and wide. Size: In most cases, electrocybin forms a film of no more than a few millimeters, but can spread across tremendous surface areas – such as the entire length of power-lines. Weight: Very little – even dense colonies are often only 1-1.3 g/cm3 Lifespan: Weeks to months – though entire colonies can subsist indefinitely without predation or other limiting factors. Abilities: Electrocybin feeds on electricity and can cause lung infections when inhaled, though it also grants minor hallucinations. Electrocybin spores end up attached to food sources due to their dipole structure, permitting attraction to relevant sources. Electrocybin can survive extreme temperatures – a necessity for many of its food sources. In rare cases that electrocybin enters the blood, it can cause a plethora of health issues – the most severe being neural spore growth. This is generally lethal if advanced medical aid is not available. Flaws: The ‘hunting’ mechanism can be exploited to intentionally harvest or detect fungus. Animals with electrocybin on them tend to be easy to pick out from the fungal growths (and glow, when the electric organ is in use). While electrocybin can survive in ranges from ambient temperatures to extreme heat, it cannot survive the cold – so the exterior of spacecraft tend to be safe (though not the engines). Cryo tools tend to be used to remove electrocybin, as the cold swiftly kills the fungus, permitting easy removal with scrapping tools. Other: It’s squishy to the touch when not feeding, and gives off a current-relevant shock when feeding and touched. While eating it is not advisable, it carries a nutty, metallic taste. If it is frozen before being cooked, the ‘lung infection’ risk can be neutralized, allowing safe use as a drug – albeit with reduced effect – as well as safe cooking. It is predated by a number of species on Olympus who have evolved to hunt animals with electric organs, as well as by ‘cleaner’ species which have mutualistic relationships with the electric victims of glowmoss.
Other: It’s squishy to the touch when not feeding, and gives off a current-relevant shock when feeding and touched. While eating it is not advisable, it carries a nutty, metallic taste. If it is frozen before being cooked, the ‘lung infection’ risk can be neutralized, allowing safe use as a drug – albeit with reduced effect – as well as safe cooking.
