Triffids

Triffids are a plant species that feature in The Day of the Triffids.

History

The Triffids

On the Isle of Wight, the community there thrived, primarily by refining triffid oil into fuel. One morning, a solar blackout occurs and triffids once again besiege the island.

Overview

The plant can be divided into three components: base, trunk, and head which contained a venomous sting. Adult triffids are typically 7 feet (2.1 m) in height. European triffids never exceed 8 feet (2.4 m); however, in tropical climates, they can reach 10 feet (3.0 m).

The base of a triffid is a large muscle-like root mass, comprising three blunt appendages. When dormant, these appendages draw nutrients, as on a normal plant. When active, triffids use these appendages to propel themselves.

Above the base are upturned leafless sticks which the triffid drums against its stem. The exact purpose of this is not explained; it is originally assumed that they are part of the reproductive system, but Bill Masen's colleague Walter Lucknor believes they are used for communication. Removal of the sticks causes the triffid to physically deteriorate.

It was stated that the first triffids appeared in equatorial regions. Though they develop faster in tropical zones, triffids soon established themselves worldwide, outside the polar and desert regions. When it was discovered that triffids are venomous, they were almost exterminated, until they were identified as the source of valuable oil. Farms were then built to cultivate them.

Upon the discovery that docking their stingers renders them harmless, docked triffids became fashionable in public and private gardens. These triffids are safe provided they are pruned annually, as they take two years to fully regrow their stingers. Farmed triffids are not docked because undocked triffids produce higher quality oil.

Notes

• The Triffids were created by John Wyndham where they featured in the setting of The Day of the Triffids universe.

In other media

Television

• In The Day of the Triffids, the Triffids appeared in the setting of the 1981 live-action television series. This incarnation were the creation of real-life Soviet biologist Trofim Lysenko. The seeds were spread across the globe when a plane smuggling them out of Russia was shot down during the Cold War. Triffid farm where the mobile and carnivorous plants are cultivated for their oil with their deadly stings retained, which improves the oil quality. In late 20th century Britain, a spectacular meteor shower unexpectedly renders most of humanity blind, leading to the collapse of society overnight.
• In The Day of the Triffids, the Triffids appeared in the setting of the 2009 live-action television series. In an alternate version of contemporary Britain, triffids are large carnivorous plants capable of vicious and intelligent behaviour, equipped with venomous stingers that they use to stun their prey before feeding on them. In the 1970s, explains how the oils the triffids produce came to be used as a new alternative fuel, putting an end to climate change. Triffids are kept in warehouses all over the world. Some people protest against the treatment of the plants. The world then suffered from a massive solar eruption which occurred that night, the bright light of which is seen all over the world. The rays prove to be more dangerous than first thought, as they suddenly intensify to a horrific brilliance and more than 95% of the world's population were blinded. It was during this time that the Triffids escaped and began preying on humans.

Films

• In The Day of the Triffids, the Triffids appeared in the setting of the 1963 live-action film. In contrast to the novel, this incarnation depicted the Triffids as being extraterrestrial lifeforms transported to Earth by comets. They were given the binomial name Triffidus celestus where they arrived in a meteor shower blinds most people in the world and at the same time spreads triffid plant spores. They were designed with flaying tentacles below their stems, which they use as slashing weapons and to drag their dead prey. Also, their stinger is shown as a gas-propelled projectile, rather than a coiled tendril. Finally, the film triffids are vulnerable to sea water.

Appearances

• The Day of the Triffids:

External Links

• Wikipedia Entry

This article is a stub. You can help Multiversal Omnipedia by expanding it.