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[Byakugan01]

How about animals that inhabit murky pools, and "burrow" into the ground when the pools dry up (think large lungfish, as well as some amphibians, especially those that live in deserts). They would then remerge when the pools fill back up. It would not be too difficult: spike traps already work in pretty much the same way, only their trigger is a lever/plate.

Along the same lines, deserts should briefly become lush and verdant for a short time after a rainstorm, heat permitting-many species of plants living in deserts spend most of their existence as seeds, then sprout, bloom, produce seeds, and then die when they have enough water available-and then the process repeats itself.

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As you can see, the process can create quite a dramatic effect on the landscape.

[Luke_Prowler]

****, my eyes!

[Heron TSG]

Is that real!?

[TheDJ17]

Might I suggest Bloody Trees: http://www.bay12games.com/forum/index.php?topic=37724.msg616678#msg616678

[Byakugan01]

Is that real!?

Yes, actually, it is real. Like I said, the difference can be quite dramatic. If you look closely, you can still see patches of sand in spots, so they're growing right out of the sand following a rain. The website i found the image on mentioned this happened in a desert valley in California, and I've noticed it listed multiple times in the image search. There are other images as well:

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-From This site, since it's available as a print.

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This Image is actually from Death Valley

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This one isn't from the U.S., but the Karoo region in South Africa.

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These blooms are very transient, but if you can count on rain sometime during the year or within a few years, you can get these blooms. After they die, the landscape returns to its normal appearance. And if they're around, you may also find desert dwelling amphibians out and about, feeding and reproducing in the fast drying pools that can form. If the pool can last long enough, little new toads and frogs will crawl out of the pool and burrow themselves, to wait for the next rain.

[Granite26]

Wow... just...  wow

[Mephansteras]

I've been out to the deserts during bloom. It's really amazing!

[Byakugan01]

Yeah, it's why I suggested it-especially when combined with the dune suggestion (perhaps anchoring the dune in place while they grow, as a result of the root system which would temporarily for?), you could get some breathtaking landscapes. Imagine walking through a desert in adventure mode shortly after a rain, and then all of a sudden seeing the landscape around you burst into bloom-heck, even in fortress mode it would be pretty dramatic. Especially if the cacti time their blooms to occur simultaneously.

[Mel_Vixen]

Well i can see many players implementing massive irrigation systems (some deserts have aquifers) for 'Flower-shop' - fortresses.

Anyway this would be a nice thing. 

[Heron TSG]

adding it.

[TrombonistAndrew]

One note on the "long grass" mentioned in the title post:

Long grass describes pretty much all naturally growing grass in the world. Short grass is only found on lawns.

Speaking of grass, healthy forests actually don't have that much grass. The undergrowth is typically bushes and trees, or very limited grass and dirt and ferns and fungi and the like. The density of trees should be roughly inversely proportional to the density of grass in a given area, assuming that the area is fertile. That way, you get really dense, old growth forests with very little grass, sparser forests where trees are more widely spaced with moderate amounts of grass, all the way to grasslands with the occasional tree trying to poke through the great grassness.

[Heron TSG]

Actually, short grass is found almost anywhere with grazing animals.

I see your point, however. I'll fix it after my meeting tomorrow.

[Craftling]

What about the moving rocks of the Gobi desert in Mongolia? In adventurer mode just walking through a desert, and you find some rocks racing you...

[Heron TSG]

explain.

[Duke 2.0]

 There is a desert where head-sized boulders are found to move long distances mysteriously. Nobody has seen them move, and the only evidence of the moving is a trail behind them that would have eroded away thanks to high winds if not being constantly created.

 Not fast enough to chase people, but something spooky nevertheless.