LeafWings

LeafWings are one of the three tribes (alongside SilkWings and HiveWings) that inhabited the continent of Pantala before they supposedly became extinct during the Tree Wars against the HiveWings. They are the only surviving tribe mentioned in the Legend of the Hive. They have green and brown scales, with some accent colors such as gold, pink, or red, and wings shaped like leaves. LeafWings can absorb sunlight, and most were accomplished gardeners. Some were rumored to even have a strange control over plants, and these rumors appear to be true, as shown by Sundew, Mandrake and Hawthorn's leafspeak abilities. Belladonna and Hemlock (Sundew's parents) also have this ability along with several other unnamed dragons. 

In The Lost Continent, LeafWings are thought to be extinct, with propaganda posters painting them as 'the enemy'. They are so antagonized that all trees have been removed from the areas of Pantala that the HiveWings control, as the LeafWings lived in forests. Wasp has gone so far as to enforce a law that states no art may have trees on them. (Despite this, Lady Scarab has pictures of trees in her house, maybe because of her anger at Queen Wasp).

In The Hive Queen, Sundew reveals that the LeafWings had been planning to restart the Tree Wars and the rest of the LeafWings live in the Poison Jungle. They started that by burning one of the Pantalan Hives - Bloodworm Hive.

After the events of the Tree Wars, the tribe split into two, half staying loyal to Queen Sequoia and wanting to lay low and isolate themselves until Wasp's death, the other half uniting under Sundew's grandmother and swearing revenge against the HiveWings for destroying their trees. Each splinter faction claims to be the "real LeafWings", calling the others a separate tribe. The violent LeafWings were dubbed "PoisonWings" by the isolationists for being needlessly violent and naming their own after dangerous plants, while the activists called the isolationists "SapWings" for being soft and spineless. The two factions bear animosity against each other for their methods and ideas, but Sequoia and Commander Belladonna do occasionally hold meetings in secret.

Description

LeafWings have green and/or brown and sometimes summer gold scales all over their bodies, along with leaf-like patterns. They appear to have webbed spines, along their neck and back, similar to a SeaWing's. The webbing along their back splits into individual pieces near the base of the tail, which are shaped like leaves. Their snout is slightly curved, similar to a SkyWing's, with a raised ridge on the tip of their snout.

They also have a flat tail, ending in a leaf shape. Their wings are also leaf-like, and slightly transparent, with leaf veins in the webbing and their wings in the form of branches, complementing their name. The edges of their wings are rounded, giving it a very leaf-like look. Their horns appear to be skinny and flat-ended, almost like leaves. Cobra Lily was described to have 'streaks of pinkish-red along her horns'. The scales atop their eyes go over the top of their horns, giving it a partially plated look. 

Their scales are uneven, vaguely resembling chloroplasts and plant cells. They have a plated underbelly and a slender body shape. Their legs seem to be slightly short and thin. Their eyes can be orange-gold, green, or brown. Sometimes they will have pouches containing deadly plants and insects.

Abilities

LeafWings can absorb sunlight in a process called photosynthesis, just like plants. They are said to have been accomplished gardeners, and it is rumored some had unusual control over plants. They have exceptional knowledge over plants, seeming that they used certain plants and arthropods as weapons against other dragons, such as bullet ants or poisonous centipedes. It has been shown that some can understand the language of plants, and convince them to grow at an accelerated rate. This trait, leafspeak, is genetic, as shown by Sundew being the careful product of dragons with leafspeak selectively breeding. Sundew also stated that she can make most plants grow faster, "at the 'speed of an erupting volcano', but can't make them appear out of thin air"(citation needed). Some LeafWings can swim, such as the LeafWing named Willow.

Names

LeafWings are named after different types of trees that are found in forests and woods. PoisonWing names are based on poisonous plants, though some are named after carnivorous plants, or plants poisonous to smaller animals. However, SapWing names are based on trees, as mentioned by Willow. It also seems that before the tribes split, tree names were dominant.

Known LeafWings
PoisonWings Belladonna Bryony Byblis Cobra Lily Hemlock Mandrake Nettle Odollam Pokeweed Sundew Sundew's grandmother (deceased) Wolfsbane SapWings Queen Hazel Queen Sequoia Willow Willow's father Hawthorn (exiled, deceased) Other Maple (historical, deceased)

Trivia

• LeafWings are the only Pantalan tribe to have one pair of wings.
• LeafWings were initially thought to be the first extinct tribe in the series, (as they were mentioned before the BeetleWings) although it was later revealed they are not extinct and were hiding in the Poison Jungle.
• Tui confirmed that when Clearsight first got to Pantala, LeafWings were the dominant tribe on the continent.
• A few years before The Lost Continent was announced, rumors went around that there was a "GrassWings" tribe on the second continent. This rumor might have been partially true with the introduction of LeafWings.
  • Tui confirmed that she had created the LeafWings by expanding on the idea of GrassWings.
• Sundew was shown to eat meat in The Hive Queen, which leads to the current conclusion that LeafWings are most likely omnivorous since Sundew appeared to also eat berries.
• In The Poison Jungle, it is revealed that panthers are included in LeafWing diets, as well as mangoes and capybara, making them omnivores.
• In The Poison Jungle, it is revealed that the LeafWings have tribe feasts.
• In The Poison Jungle, it is revealed LeafWings know what scavengers are, as Sundew referred to them as such instead of reading monkeys. Though there is the possibility of this just being a mistake on Tui's part. 
• LeafWings are similar to RainWings, as being able to absorb energy from the sun.
• It's possible that LeafWings can have autumn colors (such as gold, red, orange, etc), as Sundew does have some gold scales.
• Bryony is the first LeafWing PoV, Sundew being the first to receive a book and second overall.
• As they and BeetleWings originally arrived from the Distant Kingdoms, all dragons are ancestrally from Pyrrhia.
• LeafWings also have some connection with the fire, as in The Poison Jungle on page 26, Nettle is stated that they could have been home cooking the panther already if Wolfsbane had let her kill it instead of Mandrake.
• It is possible that Clearsight mated with some LeafWings as well as BeetleWings, since the LeafWings have a few scales with the diamond teardrop scale pattern, according to Joy Ang’s lineart.

Gallery

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