Is it possible for nature to create bubble wrap?

Bubble wrap is a synthetic packing material featuring small bubbles that are designed to provide cushion to the protected object and pop in place of damaging the object under excessive stress. They also make a lovely crackling sound when popped.

But this is a creation of man, and finding a layer of Bubbletastic® Extreme Guard© Bubble Paper™ across the floor or walls of a deep cavern would be... odd.

My thinking is that an organism could use this natural feature to improve its ability to defend its lair or to hunt other creatures for food.

Is it possible for nature to create renewable, poppable bubbles (i.e., bubble wrap)?

(Requested clarification) Note: I am specifically looking for a mechanism by which an environment can possess this feature independent of any animal that may or may not be living there.

Vignette

Darian crept through the tunnel. The marks along the walls were high enough to suggest they were made by his quarry. The footprints in the silt were recent, and many. Drag marks as well. Hopefully it would be asleep after its meal and he could finish it off without it ever knowing he was there.

A rush of air from ahead smelled of death and blood and... Yes! That smell! That unmistakable smell. He hurried ahead, almost forgetting to walk softly to prevent echoes alerting his quarry.

A cavern opened at the end of the tunnel. In the dim light of his lantern he could barely see the other side. And, off to the right, the light revealed the mottled brown scales of the wyvern. Cracked bones were scattered about its reclined form. The rhythmic rise and fall of its sides indicated it was, indeed, asleep after its meal.

Darian set his lantern down and drew his wyrmbane dagger before slowly, quietly, making his way toward the wyvern. When he was halfway there, however, the cavern floor unexpectedly gave way beneath his foot with a loud POP.

The wyvern's breathing quickened and it raised its head to look at the terror-stricken Darian. Before he could rush back down the tunnel, the wyvern had claimed another snack and added a fine blade to its growing treasury.

posted almost 5 years ago

Frostfyre‭

21 reputation 37 1 2 0