.,=^†£@¶##                                          ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#                                          #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##                                          ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#                                          #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##                                          ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#               ===========                #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##              ††           ††             ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#            ^   blue fire   ^             #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##             ††           ††              ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#               ===========                #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##                                          ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#  the .blue fire. is a carnivorous plant  #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##  living mostly at the western alvar (but ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#   it has spread to a few other places,   #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##          mostly rocky coasts).           ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#                                          #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##     the plant is a dense network of      ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#  green-brown tentacle-like roots, which  #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##   is often called "rat's tail" before    ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#    blooming. in late june, it quickly    #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##      sprouts feelers, ten to thirty      ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#   centimeters high, filled with purple   #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##    hairs - this is the blue fire. this   ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#     stage lasts for one or two weeks,    #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##     depending on food access, water,     ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#                 climate.                 #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##                                          ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#  often it's not clear how far the plant  #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##    has spread unless its in the fire     ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#  stage. suddenly, as if overnight, whole #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##  fields can be turned ablaze (with the   ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶# same individual plant, as well)! in the  #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶## blooming peak, it's not unusual for the  ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶# whole alvar to be connected north-south. #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##                                          ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#               ^††=====††^                #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##                                          ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#   fifty weeks of the year, while in rat  #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##  stage, the blue fire feeds on the stone ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#   itself via a slow chemical attrition.  #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##  this is enough to keep the roots alive, ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#    but all growth and procreation must   #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##   happen during the two weeks in june.   ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#                                          #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##     now the plant feeds on birds; the    ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#  semistiff upright feelers looks like an #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##    extension of the sea, and birds are   ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶# tricked into landing or diving into it.  #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##     they are quickly paralyzed by the    ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#     poison on the purple hairs, and      #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##     devoured over a period of hours.     ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#                                          #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##    procreation can happen sexually via   ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#  spores (cryptogamia) or asexually when  #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##      the roots are cut, dividing an      ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#           individual into two.           #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##                                          ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#                                          #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##                                          ##¶@£†^=,.
..,=^†£@¶#                                          #¶@£†^=,..
.,=^†£@¶##                                          ##¶@£†^=,.