Corocylene

Corocylene is a rare species of incredibly sensitive bioluminescent fungus native to the Locorin Swamp of planet Krell that grows in mats of thin strands that wrap around features of its habitat and help it to propagate in increasingly large patches for as long as the environmental and nutritional requirements of the colony are met.

Hollow filaments in the core of each strand allows the fungus to self-regulate enough to survive above or below water, but variable temperatures, chemical exposure and physical stress prevents corocylene from spreading very far or recovering from damage very quickly. If a piece of the colony suffers enough damage or is exposed to too much stress, the affected strands die, contracting tightly as all of the nutrients are dispersed at once to aid in later re-propagation.

Though rare in modern times due to the extreme difficulty in propagation, some Elgans are keeping the endangered practice of coroweaving alive, producing a small amount of coroweave cloth by fastidiously managing its growing conditions, and weaving the still-living threads into fabric.

Non-industrial farms do produce enough food-grade corocylene that it can be found (with some difficulty) for sale in Biloxan markets as corochi. Once considered a regional delicacy, the lingering sour-cabbage taste of the fungus has not found great popularity on modern Krell as the cultural palette turns towards increasingly manufactured sweets - the vast majority of corocylene consumers tend to be older Elgans, who enjoy aging or pickling the strands to increase the pungent flavour as the luminescence breaks down in order to help other more piquant fruits to shine by comparison.