Rock Cactus

The preferred method of attack for a rock cactus is to wait until its prey is within a few feet then quickly extend several spines. If the spines fail to connect, it retracts the spines and fires them again. If a cactus does impale a victim, it retracts the spine, which pulls the plan to its victim. It then begins to drain moisture until it is removed. A cactus that is feeding does not attack again until it is dislodged. A rock cactus is interested only in food. If it finds it has attached itself to soething more than four times its size, it normally lets go and drops to the ground. I continues to fight only in self defence.

Rock cacti are found near game trails in small clumps of as many as 10 plants. They are nonambulatory and so have no territory. They have been successfully transplanted to the gardens in Tyr, where they keep the rodent population in check. Rock cacti exude a perfume that is undetectable by demihumans but attracts small rodents and mammals. Like most plants, rock cacti rely on indects to assist them to reproduce.

The rock cactus is at the top of the Plant Life food chain and toward the middle of the animal food chain. It can be peeled and eaten. Each plant produces 1 pound of edible material. The flesh of a rock cactus tastes vaguely like apples and is of similar consistency. As many as 4 pints of fluid can be obtained from a large plant. The plant uses its defense mechanism to stop any casual at tempts to eat it. The plants can be farmed and harvested by holding a bag full of straw in front of them and teasing the plants to attack. The spines are severed before the plants can retract them, making the plants defenseless and easily peeled. Live rock cacti, for planting in gardens, bring 5 cp each. In most markets. A pound of rock cactus flesh is worth l-2 cp, depending on the marketplace it is found in.