Fluorine biospheres have a anomalously high concentration of fluorine in the form of F2, NF3 or hydrofluoric acid. This may be the result of unusual natural evolutionary processes where autotrophic life produces large quantities of highly reactive fluorine compounds as a metabolic byproduct. Without active biological or geological sources, reactive oceans and atmospheres --whether they contain unusual quantities of free hydrogen, fluorine, oxygen, or chlorine --will "rapidly" react with other geological compounds, driving the meterologically active planetary systems to a more chemically neutral state. Due to the highly reactive nature of free fluorine and hydrofluoric acid, and the relative scarcity of the fluorine atom, it is widely believed that most fluorine biosphere's are largely the result of intelligent design. Some fluorine biospheres may be a fortuitious result of weapons used in the Organic-Machine wars (some probability distorters used by Machines are said to produce mass elemental transmutation, but no plans for these devices are found in the Galactic Library in a form understandable to any Terrestrial life form). Other fluorine ecosystems may have been designed eons ago by the wise members of the Retired order.
At any given time there are a few fluorine breathing life-forms participating in "O-2" civilization. Main Sequence fluorine species do engage in Terraforming. However, terraforming a fluorine based biosphere is significantly more expensive than a comparable oxygen-nitrogen project. Due to the extreme scarcity of fluorine biospheres, their ecological health is monitored very carefully by the Galactic Institute for Migration. (by Robert Shaw. See also, Chlorine biosphere, chlorine breather).
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