Plants

Altoid's swamps are home to a huge variety of plantlife. The most widespread is the long grass that grows in the mud, usually with its roots in shallow water. This grass reaches a foot or so above the surface. Growing in clumps, its roots collect the mud to form comparatively solid islands in the marsh. In fact, the firmness of the land is due almost entirely to the plants' trapping the mud which would otherwise be washed away in the slow flow of the swamp. The trees and larger shrubs provide protection and nesting sites for rodents, frogs and birds. Perhaps most importantly, the various plants of the swamp use the considerable energy of the sun's light and heat and convert it to feed themselves through photosynthesis. They in turn are the staple food of grazing deer and rodents, as well as fish, who eat algae. All the plants seem to be able to adapt to predation levels, reproducing more in areas heavily populated with deer, while doing less in areas with no predators, thus keeping themselves from overpopulating and draining the mud of nutrients.

 

Without plants, every species in the ecosystem would quickly become extinct. As mentioned, their roots hold the shifting mud together and give the land animals a firm surface to stand on. Also, the rodents and deer, who are themselves food for so many other species, would starve wihout the plants, their one source of food. Most importantly, the Altoidian plants convert exhaled carbon dioxide into breathable oxygen, and provide the organisms around them with the atmosphere they need to survive. Plants fill undeniably one of the most crucial niches in the ecosystem.