Riven was once nearly covered in dense forest, which has been referred to as a jungle. I tend to avoid using that word for it because it most often is used for a forested area with tangled undergrowth that is very difficult to move through. Riven's forests were relatively clear under the canopy level.

As with any wild area, there was a wide variety of plants to be found there. Some of them were easiest seen in the places where the major trees and plants had been cut away by Gehn's workers.

In this picture, there are three plants in the foreground that would be very hard to see otherwise. To the left is a shrub with succulent green leaves. in the center bottom is a weedy plant with small brownish leaves. To the right, under the axe, is a plant that appears to be a type of aloe. I'm including a picture of a spotted aloe for comparison.

In this picture, there are ferns, grasses, and tall plants that seem to have a thick stem that also serves as a leaf, also similar to a cactus.

This picture allows a closer look at the ferns. They have been identified by Moose on the Loose as wood ferns.

Here is a picture of an Earth wood fern for comparison.

The remaining forest had some very unusual plants. In this picture, there are luminous blue funguses that bear some resemblance to brains.

This picture near the edge of the forest shows more of the undergrowth, featuring bushes, ferns, and more of the fungus.

This picture shows how short the trees were, even when fully grown. The trunks started out fairly wide at the base, but tapered rapidly to less than half the width at the crown.

On the left is a flowering bush that I was unable to see growing anywhere else in any of the photos I had access to. I do not know what was causing the bright golden glow in this picture. One source identifies it as lava generated by the stresses of the Age breaking up.

Out in the clearcut area, there were some smaller trees that weren't worth the effort of cutting down yet. It's hard to tell without a closer look at the leaves, but the species might have had an Earth counterpart.

The beach:

The beaches of Riven were home to a variety of palm tree that shared the characteristic conical trunk of the forest trees, although they were much shorter and the cone shape was even more exaggerated.

The Sea:

There are no photographs of the ocean life surrounding Riven, but pictures of the village lagoon may be a sample of what the oceans might have held. There was a submarine railway in the village lagoon, and there are visual records of it. The pictures were taken from inside the submarine car that ran on the tracks.

The first picture shows two bright red-orange corals that may be related to the gorgonians of Earth. I've added a picture of a red sea fan for comparison. The second picture shows what may be either a type of plant or perhaps more coral. The third and fourth pictures show what are possilbly seaweeds and / or sea grasses.

Myst, the Myst logo, and all games and books in the Myst series are registered trademarks and copyrights of Cyan Worlds, Inc. Myst Online: Uru Live is the sole property of Cyan Worlds Inc. The concepts, settings, characters, art, and situations of the Myst series of games and books are copyright Cyan Worlds, Inc. with all rights reserved.

I make no claims to any such rights or to the intellectual properties of Cyan Worlds; nor do I intend to profit financially from their work. This web site is a fan work, and is meant solely for the amusement of myself and other fans of the Myst series of games and books.