I got the mist idea from my name.

Since the Zeewoks are the artistic tribe, they need to get their paint from somewhere! I have created a creature called a Sarraneek. This creature is like a very skinny bird. Its feathers are naturally white but when they are exposed to sunlight, their feathers change colors. When they are exposed to the rain (they like getting wet, by the way) their colors dissolve into the air, looking like a colorful mist. These mists turn into liquid after 48 hours, so what the Zeewoks do is take these mists in a tool that they have, which is very similar to a vacuum but smaller, and they wait for it to liquify and they use it as paint.

These are really creative!

Maybe the fact that they don't have any predators could because of the mist that comes off of them repels animals from them. Kind of like a skunk or those poison frogs.
(I'm a big fan of having things for reasons other than convenience. It helps to make it a little more real.)

Very cool idea! I have a couple questions...

1) If Saraneeks have no predators, what limits their population? Is it competition over food, or perhaps competition over space in the caves?

2) What is the natural function of the color/mist? Do they secrete it to protect themselves from strong sunlight, since their feathers have no pigmentation? Does it play a role in attracting mates? Do both male and female Saraneeks produce colors? The same colors?

3) I'm a little unclear on how the colors dissolve into mist in the middle of a rain. Normally, rain actually clears mist and dust out of the air, as particles are caught in the falling drops. Perhaps the rain simply wets the colors, which then spread as mist after the rain ends? An alternative (simpler in my opinion, but perhaps less glorious than the mist) might be that the color runs off with the rain. In this case, Zeewoks could put Saraneek food on a stick in the middle of a basin, and spread these basins out whenever it rains. A Saraneek would enjoy a meal while the rain washes the dyes into the basin.

I am so envious!!! This is so creative, Misty!!! Wow, you outdid yourself on these ones. I am very impressed. I've never seen this done in a book before.