#...#..... .......#..
.#...#.... #.......#.
..#...#... ##.......#
#..#...#.. .##.......
.#..#...#. .###......
..#..#...# (equisetum) .#.##.....
...#..#... ...###....
....#..#.. ...#.##...
.....#..#. #....###..
......#..# .,~/~,. the plant .,~/~,. .#...#.##.
.......#.. ..#....###
#.......#. the equisetum is a plant much older #..#...#.#
##.......# than ferns, which are in turn much ##..#....#
.##....... older than most trees. it's light green .##..#...#
.###...... to yellow in color and is slightly .###..#...
.#.##..... transparent. .#.##..#..
...###.... ...###..#.
...#.##... the plant has a spine. each vertebra is ...#.##..#
#....###.. stacked upon the next, with spokelike #....###..
.#...#.##. ribs radiating outward. even so, it's .#...#.##.
..#....### very light, being hollow. it's roughly ..#....###
#..#...#.# the height of a foxes tail, and shares ...#...#.#
##..#....# a similar plumage. ....#....#
.##..#...# .....#...#
.###..#... it likes partial shade and very damp #.....#...
.#.##..#.. areas .#.....#..
...###..#. ..#.....#.
...#.##..# ...#.....#
#....###.. #...#.....
.#...#.##. .,~/~,. in magic .,~/~,. ##...#....
..#....### .##...#...
...#...#.# when a colony numbers high enough, it .###...#..
....#....# slices the air in the forest into .#.##...#.
.....#...# separate planes, a few centimeters in ...###...#
#.....#... height. time can get diffracted in ...#.##...
.#.....#.. these, hitting each in turn in a .....###..
..#.....#. slightly different angle, and .....#.##.
...#.....# eventually spread thin. .......###
#...#..... #......#.#
##...#.... .#.......#
.##...#... ..#......#
.###...#.. #..#......
.#.##...#. ##..#.....