Submission (#7355) Approved

There exists a certain creature that has made its home in the secretive forests of Silveil. These finicky little fellows take residence inside the center of tree rot, feasting on the dying bark and slick sap. As they consume the final moments of the tree's life, they disperse the unusable portions as fertilizer for the surrounding flora. What might take a colony of bugs to complete, the Bark Shrew can defeat a meal in but a couple of days, before becoming completely full. 

As they feast, they emit a glow much like the mushrooms and flower buds of its fellow Silveil life, making it a target during this time of weakness. To get around this, it has developed spines that harden as the animal fills itself with sap and pieces of the tree. They glow a deep turquoise, which slowly turns violet as they finish their meal. 

Afterwards, the animal will rub itself against various types of mushrooms in order to dispel the spines. This helps spread shroom spores, and gives a burst of nutrient - filled spines to the forest floor below. These spines are used by different parts of the ecosystem and are broken down over a period of ten days. As it finishes its journey to find food and replenish its energy, the Shrew returns to its den underground, to hibernate until it hungers once more. 

These bark loving animals are naturally migratory within the realms of Silveil, but only settle down during mating season, in which they will pair off and have a single offspring per pair. This offspring is born glowing, and is more than likely a delicacy for many a wild predator, but the parents will fiercely protect their young, even to the death. Elnin conservationists have recently started undergoing the process of rehoming certain pairs to sanctuaries, so that this slowly dying species may soon thrive again.