WEBVTT - The Monstrefact: Salt Dragons

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Stuff to Blow Your Mind, a production of

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<v Speaker 1>My Heart Radio. Hi, my name is Robert Lamb and

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<v Speaker 1>this is the Monster Fact, a short form series from

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<v Speaker 1>Stuff to Blow Your Mind focusing on on mythical creatures,

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<v Speaker 1>ideas and monsters in time. From green dragons to golden dragons,

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<v Speaker 1>from solar dragons to lunar dragons. The world of Dungeons

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<v Speaker 1>and Dragons has well a lot of dragons. One variety

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<v Speaker 1>that hasn't officially seen the light of day since second

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<v Speaker 1>edition is the salt dragon of the Forgotten Realms setting.

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<v Speaker 1>These pale, yellow and white dragons were said to inhabit

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<v Speaker 1>salt encrusted lands, and their breath weapon was fittingly salt

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<v Speaker 1>themed as well. They expelled a cone of salt crystals

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<v Speaker 1>that could blind and wound enemies both above and beneath

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<v Speaker 1>the water. While there are no true salt dragons in

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<v Speaker 1>the natural world, we do have the Galapagos marine iguana,

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<v Speaker 1>an endemic algae eating iguana species that adapted to thrive

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<v Speaker 1>on the isolated islands of the Galapacos. These are marvelous

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<v Speaker 1>creatures to watch, sometimes comical and amusing, as they bask

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<v Speaker 1>on shore side rocks and landings, but utterly graceful in

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<v Speaker 1>the water. While the shore, they frequently appear to sneeze.

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<v Speaker 1>This is actually a means of clearing excess salt from

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<v Speaker 1>their bodies via special glands at the nostrils. The resulting

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<v Speaker 1>salt crystals sometimes encrust the thorny heads of the lounging creatures,

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<v Speaker 1>giving them an even saltier appearance. Those horny protrusions on

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<v Speaker 1>the head, by the way, helps scrape algae away from

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<v Speaker 1>the rocks during feeding. So for the marine iguana, salt

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<v Speaker 1>sneezes are a means of removing excess levels of salt

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<v Speaker 1>from the body, not a means of defense. Though even

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<v Speaker 1>Charles Darwin in his book The Voyage of the Beagle

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<v Speaker 1>described the act as follows quote. They do not seem

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<v Speaker 1>to have any notion of biting, but when much frightened,

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<v Speaker 1>they score to drop a fluid from each nostril. First

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<v Speaker 1>impressions surely, as the basking iguanas seemed to regularly admit

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<v Speaker 1>salt regardless of perceived fright Still, this curious feature allows

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<v Speaker 1>us an avenue by which to imagine the physiology of

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<v Speaker 1>a fantastic salt dragon. Instead of expelling all of its

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<v Speaker 1>excess salt. Perhaps the giant fantastic creature is able to

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<v Speaker 1>safely store the crystals or concentrated sailing solution inside its

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<v Speaker 1>body for later use as a defensive or offensive breath weapon.

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<v Speaker 1>Tune in for additional episodes of The Monster Fact each week.

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<v Speaker 1>As always, you can email us at contact at stuff

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<v Speaker 1>to bill your Mind dot com. Stuff to Blow Your

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