Aww... It’s a cute baby dragon... except for the tangle of dangerous-looking vines surrounding it...

Now there are even more vines. Perhaps something is happening?

Young dragons are relatively defenseless. They are born with relatively soft scales, which are shed and replaced with harder ones as the hatchling matures. Once a hatchling’s wings grow in, it typically marks the beginning of maturation. At this point they are often capable of hunting on their own and are usually left alone by their mother.

When travelers get lost in the desert and finally they see some plants, it is not always a fata morgana or an actual oasis. It could be this little dragon, hiding in the sand, usually close by an underground water supply that only she can find. The dragon needs water like every other living being, but she needs little else, being fed through her vines. However, she does like a change of food from time to time. So a thirsty traveler might get lucky and manage to trade some food or a dying camel for the location of the underground water supply.