Apparently Salty didn't know that purple flora technically give live birth before today. Should I phrase the reproduction accordingly?

Coming soon: They're in the dirt now. "Shrew" and "mole" forms.

They don't really have a correct number of teeth. It's more like a full mouth dental battery crossed with a snail radula.

yeah some kind of terminology difference to reduce confusion would probably be a good idea

Spardis have teeth on their tongue, actually exactly like vultures.

Insect wings came from ancestrally frilly structures and didn't take on a slotted shape when they started flying, and there's no evidence of pterosaurs or bats in similar ecological roles ever evolving slotted wings. From what I have been told when I have tried making slotted wing fauna in the past, this is because membranes, being made of wet living tissue, are too heavy for this sort of structure to develop and really work.

I guess there can be two different kinds of fangbunny with tracheae, but is there any chance you might consider a minor redesign to be a descendant of the tracheal fangbunny instead? the tracheal fangbunny was actually designed before the mass extinction as an immediate replacement in the low chance it survived.

It'll need to be resubmitted in the new member thread if so. @Rudi10001 ?

Catpalms (Arthrofelipalmus spp.)
Creator: Disgustedorite
Ancestor: Catbug’s Tail
Habitat: Hydro, Krakow Island
Size: 1.6-12.8 meters tall
Support: Cell Wall (Cellulose), Woody Stem
Diet: Photosynthesis (Full Sun)
Respiration: Passive (Stomata)
Thermoregulation: Ectotherm
Reproduction: Sexual (Hermaphroditic, Spores, Viviparous/Enclosed Propagules)

In the absence of competition following the mass extinction of giant crystal flora, the catbug’s tail, the only vascular purple flora in Hydro, produced larger shrub- and tree-like forms, known as catpalms, which diversified all over the continent. Catpalms differ from their ancestor in two main ways, apart from size: they now have a woody stem with bark, and they shed their old leaves, which together cause them to look remarkably similar to palm trees, down to the scarring. Their leaves turn pink when dry, and they leave pink leaf litter.

Catpalms are sun-loving flora capable of growing in sandy soil and thrive in the absence of shade trees. Unlike their ancestor they are seasonal reproducers, though they do not shed and regrow the entire inflorescence because technically speaking everything above ground is derived from the structure; instead, they shed and regrow only the spikey structures that hold the macrogametes. Similar to their ancestor, they produce microgamete spores from their leaves which fertilize macrogametes in the inflorescence. These develop into “seeds,” which are in reality young catpalms wrapped in a thick water-soluble coating. These vary in size depending on the species, being larger when they are mainly to be distributed by water (such as in the rainforest) and smaller when they are mainly distributed by wind (such as in the savanna). This has a double purpose as well; larger juveniles can also better cope with shade and leaf litter in the more wooded biomes.

There are many species of catpalm. They look more or less the same as one another apart from height and leaf size, though beach-dwelling species are able to cope with salt by releasing it in their soon-to-be-shed old leaves along with other waste. Species dwelling in open biomes tend to be fairly wide, and tall forest-dwelling species retain more leaves for longer to cope with darkness. Small species of the shrublands and young-growth forests tend to be leafier as well. They readily hybridize, speciate, and hybrid-speciate, like many terran trees.

The leg structure is surprisingly similar to Alpha saucebacks, though far from identical. I'll probably sketch something up sometime. There's a few much earlier ancestors with skeletals though.

QUOTE (colddigger @ Feb 13 2023, 12:28 AM)

Is this a Willosaur reference

Yes. Convergence on its body form was kinda inevitable

I looked and it isn't on the ecosystem page?

QUOTE (Cube67 @ Feb 12 2023, 09:54 PM)

Was this edited since the crown comment was posted? Many organisms use "crown" in some language as part of their common and scientific names. I don't see that much of an issue with "kruna".

It was originally called Crown Shevs

Tracheal Fangbunny (Neovesicapodus arterium)
Creator: Disgustedorite
Ancestor: Fangbunny
Habitat: Adult: Darwin Monsoon Forest, Darwin Tropical Savanna, Darwin Tropical Rainforest, Darwin Subtropical Woodland, East Darwin Chaparral; Breeding and larvae: Kamm Tropical Watershed, Darwin-Vailnoff Tropical Watershed, Darwin-Rhino Tropical Watershed, Zorcuspine Subtropical Watershed, Darwin-Rhino Subtropical Watershed, Zorcuspine Subtropical River, Kamm Tropical River
Size: 6 cm long
Support: Soft-Bodied (Muscular Hydrostat)
Diet: Adult: Carnivore (Corpse Spardis, Nightworms, Nimblemites, Paneltopedes, Plentmowers, juvenile Azdasnatch, juvenile Azderoo, juvenile Catbug, Corpse Spardi, Crystal Goblin, juvenile Eriken, juvenile Hoppok, Hornsnap, juvenile Hyenaroach, Mycostrum Knightworm, juvenile Pinsyk, juvenile Rummagebug, juvenile Sagmalix, Tinyknight); Larvae: Carnivore (Warmbuns, Grapplebuns)
Respiration: Passive (Tracheae)
Thermoregulation: Ectotherm
Reproduction: Sexual (Male and Female, Spawning, Eggs in Water)

The tracheal fangbunny replaced its ancestor, including in the coastal region where it had only existed as dormant eggs. As a creature which was fairly large for the standards of organisms with passive respiration, its ancestor had nearly gone extinct from the suffocating drop in oxygen levels and was very lucky to have rafted to Darwin and produced this descendant. To increase its surface area, the tracheal fangbunny has, as its name suggests, developed tracheae through an invagination of its ectoderm during embryonic development. The cells lining the tracheae contain keratin, providing support which prevents the tracheae from folding or collapsing. Though not as complex as an insect’s, they extend throughout the mesoderm, while the pumping of its many hearts brings oxygen to deeper organs through its green iron-based blood.

The addition of the tracheal system leaves the Tracheal Fangbunny more vulnerable to water loss. To help prevent desiccation, its gonad openings have shifted position away from its armpits, instead opening into the fold left over from its vestigial belly foot. This has the side effect of its gametes coming out covered in mucus. This had a cascade effect on its reproductive method, as the mucus prevented eggs from being swept downstream because they were stuck to rocks or flora, and therefore females no longer had to broadcast spawn. In response, males will now seek out females based on their pheromones. Mating rivalry does not yet exist, so if a large gathering of males and females arrive in the same spot they will all spawn together.

Much like its ancestor, the tracheal fangbunny is a predator capable of taking down small stinzers such as spardis, as well as other small fauna, even those that are a little larger than itself thanks to its huge fangs. With some of its prey being armored creatures like arthrotheres, it is more muscular than its ancestor to help it grapple with them. It is a common bane of the nests of larger fauna, as it can sneak in to eat babies pretty easily compared to other predators. It detects predators and prey alike partly by scent, using the characteristic flicking of its chemoreceptive tail, and partially by sight using its enclosed cup eyes.

"Crown" has taxonomic implications. I suggest using a different word.

Willopin (Willoasterus ferox)
Creator: Disgustedorite
Ancestor: Eriken
Habitat: East Darwin Chaparral, Darwin Tropical Savanna, Darwin Monsoon Forest, Darwin Tropical Rainforest, Darwin Subtropical Woodland
Size: 1.6 meters long (Excluding Tail)
Support: Endoskeleton (Bone)
Diet: Carnivore (Pinsyk, Eriken, Azdasnatch, Azderoo, Catbug, Hoppok, Hornsnap, Hyenaroach, Pumbug, Rummagebug, Sagmalix, Sentrok, Pelsoli, weak and juvenile Great Hystin)
Respiration: Active (Lungs)
Thermoregulation: Heterotherm
Reproduction: Sexual (Male and Female, Live Birth)

With the end-Binucleozoic extinction event, the domination of arthrotheres in Darwin was greatly disrupted and all large predatory arthrotheres had become extinct. This left a plethora of open niches, and the willopin was quick to rise up as a new major predator. With hemerythrin as its blood pigment, the Willopin was able to thrive with the lower oxygen levels and grew four times its ancestor’s size. Due to its larger size, to reduce risk of injury, the sliding foreleg-pelvis system of its ancestor has been abandoned and its torso is once again almost completely stiff. Similarly, the last two tibials on each limb are shortened, giving it only three major limb segments which can therefore better support its weight. It is heterothermic, increasing its metabolism and producing body heat when active.

The willopin makes use of long grappling facial arms and a long flexible grasping tail to grapple with prey. The face arms allow it to completely bypass spikes, rendering the defenses of its spiny cousins useless against it. It can also just grab small creatures off the ground around it with its tail. It is a solitary hunter, and outside the context of breeding it will threaten and sometimes fight others of its own kind if they invade its territory. It has large flat scales on its face which protect it from the bites of others of its kind.

The Willopin has two main modes of locomotion: an ambling walk and a faster bounding run. When walking, its tail is held out behind it and swings from side to side, keeping its center of gravity over its lateral limbs. It also walks plantigrade on its heels, splaying its toes to help keep its balance. When running, its tail does not have to be held behind it, though it usually will be anyway. It is digitigrade while running. Like with walking, running is mainly focused on its hind legs. At full speed, it does not use its forelimb at all, hopping entirely bipedally.

The willopin, like its ancestor, chooses mates based on the length of its twin face quills and performs parental care. It does not carry its babies on its back, instead keeping them safe in a hidden den made of leaves, to which it brings food. The parents take turns guarding this den until the juveniles metamorphose into miniature adults. After this, the family parts ways and the juveniles start feeding themselves.

Great Hystin (Turpis magnum) (big ugly)
Creator: Disgustedorite
Ancestor: Pinsyk
Habitat: East Darwin Chaparral, Darwin Tropical Savanna, Darwin Monsoon Forest, Darwin Tropical Rainforest, Darwin Subtropical Woodland
Size: 3.2 meters long
Support: Endoskeleton (Bone)
Diet: Herbivore (Darwinblades, Grassterplents, Flopleaves, Polyblade, Tallstrand Crystals, Wortopedes, Mauvacken saplings)
Respiration: Active (Lungs)
Thermoregulation: Mesotherm
Reproduction: Sexual (male and female, live birth)

The great hystin split from its ancestor. The sudden lack of competition following the end-Binucleozoic extinction event, in combination with its hemerythrin blood which could function well despite the lower oxygen levels, allowed it to reach a greater size and claim a large herbivore niche. It rapidly evolved hundgut fermentation to become a grazer, cutting ground flora and shoving it into its mouth with its lateral mandibles to be ground up with its boney teeth. With no arthrothere predators around anymore and with its large size making long quills not especially advantageous, it has reduced and softened all of its spikes, resulting in them falling about its bulky body like hair. Its twin hearts are each two-chambered, allowing them to function together like a four-chambered heart, which helps it sustain its larger size.

The great hystin can exist in the woodlands due to the extinction of most large flora and low nitrogen conditions, which leaves even the newly-evolved trees more widely spaced, though it prefers younger growth where the large flora have not started to take over. It can also delay ecological succession by indiscriminately eating the saplings of trees. It is mostly solitary, however, so it is rare for it to actually extirpate trees from a region.

The Great Hystin has a very deep lower jaw in proportion to its skull. The depth of its jaw serves to house a very strong muscular tongue, as being covered in teeth and having greater mobility than its actual jaws, this is what it primarily uses to chew. It can grind through not just cellulose-based purple and star flora, but also shelled crystal and worm flora.

The length, quality, and sheen of a great hystin’s hair is used in mate selection. It gives birth to just 1 or 2 babies at a time. Baby hystins are fairly well-developed and can run from predators at birth, and they take 2 years to reach full size.

@Changeling I completely forgot, sorry--Alpha veterans (2017 and earlier) like yourself get automatic Beta membership! You should repost this submission as a thread.

fixed

Pelsoli (Pilocortanus prosperum)
Creator: Disgustedorite
Ancestor: Pinsyk
Habitat: Darwin Tropical Rainforest, Darwin Monsoon Forest, Darwin Tropical Savanna, Darwin Subtropical Woodland, East Darwin Chaparral, Mid Darwin Temperate Woodland, North Chillypaz Montane Forest, Chillypaz Rocky Shrub, Darwin Temperate Savanna, South Chillypaz Montane Forest, Chillypaz Alpine, East Darwin Temperate Woodland, Darwin Taiga, West Darwin Temperate Woodland, West Darwin Chaparral, West Darwin Subtropical Beach, Mid Darwin Temperate Beach, West Darwin Temperate Beach, Darwin Polar Beach, East Darwin Temperate Beach, East Darwin Subtropical Beach, Darwin Tropical Beach, Kamm Tropical Riparian, Zorcuspine Subtropical Riparian, Zorcuspine Temperate Riparian, Zorcuspine Polar Riparian, Ethos Temperate Riparian, Cheatsy Polar Riparian, Kamm Swamp, Ethos Marsh, Zorcuspine Bayou, Cheatsy Bog
Size: 40 cm long
Support: Endoskeleton (Bone)
Diet: Omnivore (Darwinian Crestgills, Nightworms, Nimblemites, Paneltopedes, Plentmowers, Prongleg Scaleworms, Shed Knightworms, Spardiflies, Wortopedes, juvenile Jumpmite, juvenile Tambug, juvenile Rummagebug, Emerald Crystals, Ghost Mycostrums, Myserchen, Tallstrand Crystals, Flopleaves, Grassterplents, Overnight Mycostrum, Rubyshroom, Rolyknights, Darwinblades, Beachtrop, Blood Mosshroom, juvenile Catbug, Chandelieruby, Cobblesaucer, Common Namnder, Corpse Spardi, juvenile Crystal Goblin, Cushion Bush, Dish Mosshroom, Domed Photosagnia, Dwarf Mycostrum, Fangbunny, Forest Purplestem, Frostrop, Golden Crestgill, Heartleaf, juvenile Hoppok, Hornsnap, juvenile Hyenaroach, Long-Footed Spardi, Mauvecostrum, Mosstring, juvenile Mudkitten, Mycostrum Knightworm, Petalbract, juevnile Pincepok, Polyblade, juvenile Pumbug, Purplebract, Purplecone, Quataetar, Rhinoroot, Riparian Purpleblade, Rivet, Robust Purpleblade, Ruboreal, juvenile Sagmalix, juvenile Sentrok, Snowmelt Wormoss, juvenile Spearing Spardi, Tidal Leafstar, Tinyknight, Triplet Purplestem, Violet Knightworm, juvenile Zykemet, Armed Knight), Scavenger
Respiration: Active (Lungs)
Thermoregulation: Endotherm (Heliofibers)
Reproduction: Sexual (Male and Female, Live Birth)

In the aftermath of the end-binucleozoic extinction event, the pelsoli split from its ancestor, shrinking in size and increasing its metabolic rate to survive in the lower-oxygen conditions. It has altered the structure of its hemerythrin to be capable of cooperative bonding, like hemoglobin. Its quills have unraveled into radially symmetric downy fibers, called heliofibers, which cover its entire body and keep it warm at its smaller size. With less competition in its way, it rapidly spread across the entire continent of Darwin.

The pelsoli's ability to survive in a wide range of habitats is thanks to the rapid evolutionary versatility of its fibrous integument, which can change length in a short timescale to help it adapt to colder or warmer conditions. It is also not particularly prone to water loss, so it has no issue surviving in dry biomes. It is capable of hibernation, especially in the colder subpolar regions.

Similar to its ancestor, the pelsoli is a generalist which will tear into meat, leaves, and crystals indiscriminately using its arm-like tusks and bone teeth, and it uses its tail hand to grasp and drag food. It is also a better digger, able to swing its foreleg back and forth rapidly for excavation. It isn't much faster at digging than its ancestor, but lacking spikes, its burrows also don't need to be as wide for it to fit inside. Its burrows are relatively shallow, but they provide shelter to its young, which no longer have the benefit of spikes for protection and also lack heliofibers.

The pelsoli no longer mates belly to belly. It breeds more quickly than its ancestor, as many times as 6 times a year, and gives birth to 3-6 naked pink tuskless babies at a time. Both parents care for their young. Juveniles take a month to reach sexual maturity and become independent, but don't actually reach full size until about 4 months.

Use full edit to change the title!

This generation contains at least 160 species. (Overflow limit: 200)

This topic will be archived following species transfer to the wiki. This thread is only for approved species, do not post unapproved species here.

Note that the compendium exists mainly for archival purposes. If you simply wish to browse species, you should use the wiki instead, as it is more organized and up-to-date. https://sagan4beta.miraheze.org/wiki/Generation_21

We just had a mass extinction event! For this generation only, all fauna may grow up to 4x and all flora may grow up to 8x. Adaptations for low oxygen conditions are recommended. Note that crystal flora can no longer exceed 1 meter without justification. Please try to fill in neglected / empty or mostly empty biomes this generation (marked in red), as well.

First, let's get the inevitable questions prompted by the title out of the way:

• Discord is unreliable because images are not archived, even in the event of accidental deletion, and sometimes they just break for no reason.
• We actually can't use Imgur because Sagan Bot qualifies as a content delivery service, therefore it is actually against Imgur's TOS to use it for species images. (Please note that Imgur is actually a social media site, not an image host!)
• Both of these websites compress your images, ruining the quality of your artwork and potentially causing important details to be lost or unreadable.

There are many free websites that are actually designed for hosting images. We recommend File Garden, which is free, never deletes old images, and is also designed for both forum use and the type of content delivery that Sagan Bot performs.

QUOTE (Coolsteph @ Feb 10 2023, 08:25 PM)

QUOTE (Slipte @ Feb 3 2023, 03:52 AM) Andere Möglichkeit Idee die Kreature ( funktioniert nur wenn die sicht beschränkt ist) in ihrem natürlichen habitat zeichen zum beispiel in der tief see so weit entfernt damit man nur bestimmte sachen wie bioluminescen und co zeichnen muss Slipte, could you explain what just happened here?

According to google translate:

QUOTE

Another option is to mark the creatures (only works when visibility is limited) in their natural habitat for example in the deep sea so far away that you only have to draw certain things like bioluminescen and co

There is no case where this is actually allowed though--the rules say that you have to be able to see all parts of the organism, so only showing the bioluminescence would not be allowed.

Sagan 4 Beta's wiki has moved to a new url: https://sagan4beta.miraheze.org/wiki/Main_Page

This is so that the canonical url can serve as a hub for all Sagan 4 projects. I will be adding soft redirects to Beta to the respective pages on the new hub wiki soon so that old links won't break.

Didn't a microbe basically render cellulosebanes inert?