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Nixie (Arborpeditous gustusaer)
{Wooden-footed air-taster (Latin)}
Creator: Jarlaxle
Ancestor: Bulky Hammerhead
Habitat: Ramul Subtropical Beach, Ramul Subtropical Beach Archipelago, Ramul Subtropical Coast, Ramul Subtropical Mangal, Russ Subtropical Coast, Sparks Tropical Beach, Sparks Tropical Coast, Steiner Subtropical Beach Archipelago, Steiner Subtropical Mangal, Steiner Tropical Beach Archipelago, Steiner Tropical Mangal
{2 Ranges (Tropical, Subtropical) 3 Flavors (Coast, Beach & Mangals)}
Diet: Larva (Filter-feeders), Adults (Scavenger & Carnivore (Barnapede, Belumbias, Burraroms, Charybdaran, Cleaner Borvermid, Cloudswarmers, Common Gilltails, Communal Janit, Dragon Marephasmoids, Elahpekomlap Bubblehorn, False Cleaner Borvermid, Flat Swarmer, Floating Pumpgill, Frabukis, Grabbyswarmers, Gushitos, Gut Anemoweeds, Hitchhiker Scuttler, Infilt Pewpa, Kakonat, Krillpedes, Kyutescoot, Larvaback, Left-Right Scalucker, Lesser Bloisters, Miniswarmers, Miniwhorls, Minizap, Mistswarmers, Nerius, Padlers, Scalescooter, Scuttlers, Shelpads, Shockscooter, Squidwhals, Sruglettes, Sucker Swarmer, Treeneer, Uksapo, Vermair, Vermees))
Size: 30 cm {island gigantism}
Respiration: Active (Unidirectional respiratory system)
Thermoregulation: Ectotherm
Support: Endoskeleton (Wood)
Reproduction: Sexual (Sexual, Two Genders, external fertilization, soft-shelled eggs)

Splitting from Their ancestors and adapting to an amphibious lifestyle on the emerging Steiner & Ramul Archipelagos, the Nixies live a crepuscular life and only venture out to land during the twilight hours, as those that venture out in the heat of the day dry up and die, and those that venture out at night are all but blind in the darkness, making them easy prey for predators. On land, they'll scavenge carcasses washed ashore, catch crawling vermin, catch any small prey that won't expect the long oral arm coming out of the water, and swimming counterparts that won't expect it coming in. They are easily pulled by the sight of small movements and are likely to take a bite of anything that rattles around them. Externally the Nixie look like a bulkier version of a bulky hammerhead, but internally they were undergoing many changes to meet the challenges of the new lifestyle.



Senses
While the Nixies middle eye's primary retina (1A) continues to correct for underwater distortions even when on land, the rolled-up photoreceptor-covered skin behind the middle eye's cornea has evolved into a secondary land-adapted retina (1B) and compensates for the correction, allowing the Nixies to make sense of the world around them on land and avoid potentially deadly miscalculations of size and distance.
Spiraling around the nexus of the hammerhead senses - the 3 eyes and the olfactory sack - is the primary ganglia (2A), which is more likely to be the first to detect potential prey and tends to be more aggressive, prioritizing fight. In the middle tail between the two photoreceptors covered tail projections, they have a secondary ganglia (2B), which is more likely to be the first to detect potential predators and tends to be more defensive, prioritizing flight. Individual Nixies vary in the balance of the two and might shift depending on circumstances, balancing the risks of starvation and predation.

Respiration
The Nixies breath in by stretching out flexible air gulpers (3A), inflating an olfactory sack (3B) behind the hammerhead. If it smells safe, they'll open the safety barrier (3C) between the olfactory sack and the respiratory canal (3D) which regulates the transition from air to water and prevents black flora toxins from entering the bloodstream. The respiratory canal extends into 5 dorsal gill slits (3F), each folded backward to protect a thick layer of concentrated blood vessels from desiccation. Oxygen-rich blood flows from each slit gill to a dedicated gill heart (4A) at its base, pumping the blood forward into the primary heart (4B) around the base of the hammerhead, pumping blood through the rest of the body,

Support
Supporting their body while out of the water is a ventral spine (5A). Grown from the outside-in, from the wooden exoskeleton covering the legs and hips (5B) to the internalized wooden bones between them, it is made of one single piece of wood, mimicking the flexibility of segmentation through soft flexible tissue within tough ball joints (5C), not too dissimilar from the flexible wood stretching within the long oral arm to the flash covered beak.

Digetive system
The Nixie's gut has developed a pronounced stomach (6A) just behind the hammerhead that is supplied with digestive enzymes from two pancreatic livers (6B), functioning as general digestive aids. The food from the stomach passed over a gut partition (6C) turning the previously blind gut into a loop that extends back into the oral arm.

Reproduction
Female Nixies produce eggs in oral gonads (7A) and place them with the oral arm in wooden egg cases (7B) growing under the tail to protect the eggs from desiccation. The egg cases extend from stalks covered with slight yellow stripes, inviting males to use their oral gonads to fertilize the eggs. Females release their larva underwater, where the larva will feed on plankton and small swarmers until they are about 2 months old. They will spend another 4 months on the coastal seafloor, growing and hardening their wooden skeleton until they are ready to venture out of the water. After a year they'll be sexually mature, and spend the next 5 to 8 years spreading their young across the archipelago.

This post has been edited by Jarlaxle: Nov 15 2022, 08:26 PM

Ophan Skeggox (Rotaferrum securis)
{Iron-Wheeled Axe}
Creator: Jarlaxle
Ancestor: Ophan Scimitar
Habitat: Raptor Chaparral, Raptor Veldt, Raptor Volcanic, Raptor Highvelt, Raptor Badlands (Uncommon), Raptor Plains, Wallace Desert (Uncommon), West Wallace Veldt, Verserus Highvelt, Verserus Rocky (Uncommon), Wallace Chaparral, Wallace Bush, Wallace Volcanic, Central Wallace Veldt, Wallace Plains, South Darwin Highvelt, Darwin Temperate Desert (Uncommon), South Darwin Rocky (Uncommon), South Darwin Chaparral, South Darwin Plains
{3Ranges (Subtropical, Temperate, Mountane) 3 Flavors (Mixed Scrub, Herbaceous, Arid)}
Diet: Scavenger, Kleptoparasites & Oppertunisitic Carnivore (Argeiphlock, Barkback, Binsnoo, Cragagon, Dardiwundi, Desert Tilecorn, Desert Ukjaw, Disasterxata, Dualtrunk, Dundigger, Dungshell Fraboo, Eggslurping Sorite, Grassland Lizatokage, Gryphler, Guangu, Gulperskunik, Handlicker Dundi, Hedgimal, High Grassland Ukback, Interbiat, Kehaida, Nectarsnapper, Mouse Gryphler, Neoshrew, Opportunity Shrew, Ouranocorn, Phouka, Pickaxe Tamow, Pink Scrambler, Plehexapod, Rainforest Buttpiper, Ramchin, Rosybeak Phyler, Sabulyn, Scrub Barkback, Shroom Herder, Sitting Dundi, Snoofloo, Snoronk, Stink Shrew, Stride Sauceback, Striped Phlock, Stygmogg, Tasermane, Thornmole, Tigmadar, Treedundi, Undergroundi, Velocitoon, Xatagolin, Xatakpa, Xatazelle)
Size: 2.5M Long
Respiration: Active (Microlungs)
Thermoregulation: Endotherm (Feathers)
Support: Endoskeleton (Chitin)
Reproduction: Sexual (Male and Female, Hard-Shelled Eggs)

Replacing its ancestor in its range, the Ophan Skeggox has further specialized to make the most out of the Kleptoparasitic and scavenging lifestyle it has inherited from its Ophan Scimitar ancestor. A large thick necked brute, it will lazily approach a dead carrion and claim it for itself, initimidating other scavengers as well as the predators that made the kill. It's backplates have increased in size and now grown into each other, bringing together their mass and thick neck muscles and culminating in a large front horn, giving it the bearded battleaxe shape that is the skeggox's namesake, using the horn claim the territory around the carcass, fight rivals, and aids in cracking bone and armor pieces while it eats.

Like its ancestor, it uses the rocking motion while feeding and visible spots on its tail to create the illusion of an Argusraptor's face running towards the observer, with different breeds of Skeggox mimicking the colors of the local Argusraptor's breeds, often amplified with dark lines that broadcast the illusion from larger viewing distances, taking a form that coincidentally tends to mimic Terran Haida line art.

With a preference for open plains and a lifestyle demanding vast territories and young that require a lot of mutual investment, once they find a good mate there is no reassurance of reliably finding another one, so they settle into lifelong bonded Ophan pairs called Bikes. They judge each other by a vivid and animated mating display in which an outercoat of feathers switches places with an undercoat of feathers of a contrasting color using the small hydrostatic muscles at the base of the feather, resulting in an animated display of moving stripes across their plumage in all but the thin bristle feathers covering their lower half. They will take turns protecting the nest, brooding the eggs, feeding their young regurgitated food, and eventually start bringing the older juveniles with them to learn how to find and secure food. The juvenile's backplates do not yet grow into each other, providing a spikey defensive measure, and their tail feathers delay the growth of barbs, allowing them to function as quills and making the juveniles a difficult meal to eat without injury.

This post has been edited by Jarlaxle: Sep 28 2022, 01:37 PM

Bobbysoxer (Lapitergum tabernusoris)
{Stone-back mouth-boots (Latin)}
Creator: Jarlaxle
Ancestor: Rockshorian
Habitat: Dass Temperate Beach, Ninth Subtropical Beach, Blood Subtropical Mangal, Blood Bayou, Blood Subtropical Riparian, Jlindy Tropical Beach, Jlindy Tropical Mangal, Bardic Swamp, Bardic Tropical Riparian, Koopa Subtropical Mangal, Koopa Subtropical Beach, Pipcard Bayou, Pipcard Subtropical Riparian, Wright Bayou, Wright Subtropical Riparian, Javen Tropical Beach, Javen Tropical Mangal, Terra Swamp, Terra Tropical Riparian, North Terra Tropical Riparian, Ichthy Swamp, Ichthy Tropical Riparian, Jeluki Subtropical Mangal, Jeluki Bayou, Jeluki Subtropical Riparian, Clarke Subtropical Beach, King's Temperate Beach, Always Temperate Mangal, Always Marsh, Always Temperate Riparian, Dorite Subtropical Beach, Glicker Subtropical Mangal, Glicker Bayou, Glicker Subtropical Riparian, Ofan Tropical Beach, Ofan Tropical Mangal, Gec Tropical Riparian, Gec Swamp, Chum Subtropical Beach, Chum Subtropical Mangal, Biocat Bayou, Biocat Subtropical Riparian, Huggs Subtropical Riparian, Iituem Temperate Beach
{3 Flavors (Beach, Wetlands, Mangal), 3 Types (Tropical, Subtropical, Temperate)}
Size: 170cm Long Females, 200cm Long Males
Support: Endoskeleton (Chitin)
Diet: Larva: Carnivore (Bloister, Bog Echofin, Bulky Hammerhead, Cala Keryh, Canoe Krugg, Charybdaran, Clarke Cleaner Echofin, Common Gilltails, Common Oceanscooter, Dabbling Cotingo, Diamond Pumpgill, Dunki, Eggorger Swarmer, False-Spinemander Fraboo, Field Swarmer, Finback, Flat Swarmer, Floating Pumpgill, Floating Pumpgill, Floor Onamor, Follower Gilltail, Galleon Lyngbakr, Gallratworm, Gillarill, Gömböc Roj, Greater Wolley, Greencrest, Groping Slither-Slider, Gulperpump, Gut Anemoweeds, Honey Toadtuga (Juveniles), Ichthy Gilltail, Ichthypede, Imprisoned Wolley, Incomplete Talúnuisce, Kiturorm, Larvaback, Left-Right Scalucker, Lesser Bloisters, Marine Fraboo, Muckwater Fraboo, Munchicanth (Juveniles), Onamor, Ray Flat Swarmer, River Scrambler, Rojerius, Salt Bog Bowlwhorl, Sandtrapin, Scootatrunk, Scuttleball Gillfin, Seafin (Juveniles), Shardscale, Shockshell Gilltail, South Polar Shardgill, Southern Gillfin, Southern Strainerbeak (Juveniles), Speckled Pumpgill, Squidwhals, Swarmerscooter, Tonboswarmer (Larva), Twinkiiro Gilltail, Ukback, Urmelia, Valley Constrictor (Juveniles), Wooleater Echofin); Female: Filter-Feeder (Aphluks, Barnapede, Blind Moonlit Nerius, Byoukiri, Cadantiteras, Camouflage Foi, Chainswarmers, Chaoses, Chemeba, Clickworm, Cloudswarmers, Colonialballs, Colonuses, Crawling Meiouk, Crocunetwork, Crocusisms, Cryoflows, Cryoutines, Dragon Marephasmoids, Electini, Engulfamoebas, Flashcells, Flovars, Frabukis, Grabbyswarmers, Infinities, Krillpedes, Kuyasha, Kyanoses, Luminus, Meiouks, Microplaques, Microprobi, Microswarmers, Minibean, Miniswarmers, Miniwhorls, Moonlit Dancer, Morsuses, Nerius, Noplanktoid, Orangemosses, Padlers, Painted Leafhorn, Prongangels, Redmosses, Sailcells, Salmunduses, Seacleaners, Shelpads, Slender Miniswarmer, Snatcherswarmer, Snotflora, Spirals, Sucker Swarmer, Swarmerkings, Swarmerweed, Testudiatoms, Whip Swarmers); Male: Carnivore (Baraxshot (Eggs), Bora Scuttler, Borinvermee, Brutishelm Uksip, Burrback Krugg, Catch-Me Krugg, Cleaner Borvermid, Common Fraboo, Communal Janit, Desert Ukjaw (Eggs), Exoskelesor, False Cleaner Borvermid, Harnejak (Eggs), Higgle (Juveniles), Hitchhiker Scuttler, Hockel (Eggs), Horned Landlubber (Eggs), Infilt Pewpa, Kakonat (Juveniles), Landlubber Onamor, Mooncrest Hammerhead, Nectascooter, Netoris Ukjaw (Eggs), Rugged Scuttler, Scuttlers, Serpmander, Serpungo, Snoronk (Eggs), Spineless Toadtuga (Eggs), Spinemander (Juveniles), Squeaky Gremlin (Eggs), Stowaway Harmbless, Thorny Toadtuga (Eggs), Tilepillar (Eggs), Toadtuga (Juveniles), Tonsa Krugg, Trunk Frabuki (Eggs), Vermees, Weird-Boned Twintail, Xatakpa (Eggs), Xatashot (Eggs))
Respiration: Active (Microlungs)
Thermoregulation: Endotherm (Feathers)
Reproduction: Sexual (Male and Female, Hard-Shelled Eggs)

"Is that rock wearing shoes?"
"It appears so Sir, I believe those are Terran shoes & 1950s frilled bobby socks Sir"
- Sagan 4 Geological Survey Team, First Impressions

Sitting still in the shallow waters, appearing to any onlooker from the coast as one rock among many, the female Bobbysoxer lies in wait. Below the water her legs look like they are "kneeling backward" on her heavily padded heels, appearing to be wearing a pair of "shoes" where her toes should be, framed by the frilled feather-whiskers similar to the ones on her face. spurred into action as the slightest motion in the water is felt by her sensitive feather-whiskers, she raises a foot and launches it towards the passing morsel, the top of her shoe separating from its sole like an opening maw, revealing a pair of toes stretching down underneath it, the shoe and the toes close shut on the target like mandibles, ensnaring and squeezing the life out of the target. Her "shoe", an exoskeletal sauce-like structure extending from the top of her metapodial bone and covering the toes of each of her feet, evolved from neotenic retention of the opposable pseudo-thumb on rockshorian larva. While it does not move on its own, muscles at its base can expand and contract to control its flexibility, allowing the shoe to flex on top of the toes while walking or standing & stiffen when used as a claw. By leaning on her padded heels, cracked from a lifetime of weathering abuse and rough terrain as they are, she frees up her shoe-covered toes to act as claws at a moment's notice.
While her shoe-claws greatly expand her potential feeding envelope, she'll rarely use it for herself. Like the Rockshorian ancestors that her kind has replaced in their range, she carries her nest in her rock-shaped sauce-shell, its feather-covered outer walls filled with carefully placed eggs, sleeping larva hanging with their claws, while other larva feed or try to catch their own prey along the pier like rim. Carefully placing the morsel in the corner of the pier, squeezing it, and mashing it with her toes for good measure, she taps the rim with her toes to signal the placement of food to the excited young.
For herself, she prefers much more modest prey. As with all females of her kind, when she neared reproductive age her tusks withered at their roots and eventually broke off, leaving open cavities into her mouth where they once stood. Reaching into the water with her large lips, she moves her tongue to create suction, pumping water into her mouth through and redirecting it out of her tusk-holes, the teeth of her oral ring crossing over one another to create a net while rings of muscles at their base now squeezing out the water. By specializing in filtered, adult females do not compete for the same food with their own young, expanding their combined niche for prey of both the macro and the micro and leaving more food for both in the process.

A couple of her dozen outcrop sisters raise their long necks over their sauce-shell to listen and sniff out potential dangers while the outcrop's adolescent Bobbysoxers jump from shell to shell. Old enough to hunt on their own but still lacking a fully developed shell for protection or camouflage, they seek out the more active prey that might not be so easily enticed by the adult's shadows. At the first sound of danger, they'll scuttle between their mothers, many submerging under the water while breathing through their spiracle tubes or pulling the tubes down in an enclosed fist to hold their breath.

Listening from the shore, a large bull is on patrol. Covering a harem of 3-5 outcrops and bypassing disputed coastal territories, he is constantly traveling further inland than his female counterparts. Ex communicated from his childhood outcrop in puberty, as with all males of his kind once they become too aggressive to live cooperatively, he has spent his life adapting to roam the rocky shore and ground rather than past the water line.
Having to camouflage himself from all directions, his down feathers have taken an earthly tone. If he senses incoming danger or is just in need of rest, he will lower himself to the ground, using his shoe-claws as a shovel to entrench his thick legs in place. Hiding his spiracle tubes between his rocky sauce-shell and tail club, he'll fold his tail into the space at the back of his shell. Pulling in his head, he'll raise his rock-textured tusks to complete the illusion, enclosing the front of his shell, and providing protection and camouflage from all directions.
Unlike his female counterparts, his shell has no room for nesting, but for the space for his neck and tail, the rim of his shell folds tightly around his body along his sides, and it's quite a bit thicker. He is built to survive a lifetime of clashes with other males, whipping their tail clubs, ramming their tusks, kicking and grabbing each other underneath their sauce-shell with their shoe-claws.
His diet has also adapted to his land-bound life, he will use his feather whiskers to listen to underground motions, seeking out burrowing critters & eggs with his tusks and shoe-claws and sucking them in with his narrow lips and sticky saliva. By curving his separate niche, he does not compete for food with the females or juveniles of his territory.

By covering 3 different ecological niches between juveniles, adult females, and adult males, their kind was able to become as prolific as the rocks they mimic, populating the continental shoreline.

This post has been edited by Jarlaxle: Dec 2 2022, 05:40 AM

Tolatongue (Armalinguis tryponofidi)
{armored-tongued (Latin) serpent-burrow (Latinized Greek)}
Creator: Jarlaxle
Ancestor: Blowtongue
Habitat: Drake Bush, Drake Frostwood, Drake Lowboreal, Drake Mamut, Drake Polar Scrub, Drake Prairie, Drake Steppe, Drake Temperate Woodland
{3 Flavors (Woodlands, Mixed Scrub, Herbaceous). 3 Types (Temperate, Subpolar, Polar)}
Size: 120 cm (Males), 140 cm (Females)
Support: Endoskeleton (Jointed Wood)
Diet: Carnivore (Azure Phlyer (Juveniles), Cloudswarmers, Cobalt Lillyworm, Communal Janit, Creab Shell, Creab Walker, Croriss, Crysfortress Shell, Crysfortress Walker, Dartirs, Desert Gossalizard, Dwarf Pinyuk (Juveniles), Festive Uktank (Juveniles), Frabukis, Golden Phlyer (Juveniles), Greater Lahn, Gushitos, Hopping Ketter, Ikasaru (Juveniles), Indigo Wutuu, Indigo Wutuu (Juveniles), Infilt Pewpa, Inzcrek, Lahnworm, Lizalagarto (Juveniles), Loafpick (Juveniles), Marmokerd (Juveniles), Mikuks, Mini-Flower Ketter, Minikruggs, Nectar Crystalworm, Plains Uktank (Juveniles), Plowskunik (Juveniles), Sapworms, Scalescooter, Scarlet Phlyer, Scarlethorn (Juveniles), Scuttlers, Silkruggs, Sprawlaclaw (Juveniles), Sruglettes, Steppe Lizalope (Juveniles), Switchfang (Juveniles), Teacup Saucebacks, Tree Pinyuk (Juveniles), Uklunk (Juveniles), Ukrith (Juveniles), Vermees, Wub, Xenobees, Xenowasps)
Respiration: Active (Lungs)
Thermoregulation: Endotherm (Cotton)
Reproduction: Sexual, Live Birth, Two Genders

Under the cover of winter snow, an intruder breaks into the Switchfangs burrow. Undulating side to side, shifting the dirt with a fusiform tip, the intruder follows the strong scents and the slightest of shifting motions. A youngling squeaks in alarm, but it is far too late as it is pulled out of its burrow, hard wooden spikes digging into its flash.
Within a thriving nest of communal Janits, a group of workers barely have time to react as they are picked in groups and one by one, devoured by a toothy oral cone, they are swallowed into a pit of hard wooden spikes, they are helpless as the thick muscular walls of the gizzard close in on them, crushing them together into a fine pulp.
Up in the forest canopy, an Ikasaru picks up the vibrations of rustling between the branches. Following the source, the Ikasaru's eyestalks rest on the sight of a serpentine form, a long wormy figure with stretchy green skin between 4 rows of chambered wooden cuticles, expanding into a thick bulbous head at its tip, ending with a toothy oral cone. It has not yet noticed the Ikasaru, there's a blindness to its motion as it seeks the source of the scent, tasting the air within cracks along the cuticles. Its motion seems graceful, 4 long sets of muscles stretch between hardened blood-filled chambers for support, appearing almost like a graceful neck. But that illusion quickly breaks, as It is that very same blindness that makes it blind to the Ikasaru's camouflage, and as it zeros in on its prey, its motions become sharp and jerky, shifting from using blood-filled chambers as support for pull muscles to flooding different chambers to form the pushing force behind of the motion, it appears to advance towards its target in epileptic spasms. It just about misses, and the Ikasaru manages to crawl away, only to find itself captured by the oral ring of another. The two take joy in sharing the meal, they feast and play with it, one swallows it from its tail while the other bites off the limbs and eyes.

Emerging from the mouth of a large woolly biped, this is no worm or serpent, but the tongue of the Tolatongue. Splitting from its Blowtongue ancestor and expanding inland, the Tolatongue catches its prey with a cone of toothy cuticles around the opening of its ancestral tongue trap. Keeping the trap as a permanently internalized gizzard at the end of its tongue, it can devour multiple morsels before having to release its content, allowing it to feast within nests and burrows of hibernating animals, making the best of Drake's harsh winters.
Using the muscles remaining from the ancestral internalized fingers to pull the rest of the cuticles inwards and not stand in the way of digging through dirt and snow, it was able to form segmented blood pressure chambers. These provide anchor points for the pulling muscles when full and a pushing force in the process of flooding the chamber, creating a very efficient internal support system for digging and sifting through dirt and snow.
Crawling head first into the mouth under a flashy cheek flap hanging over the side of the mouth while its base is slurped in from the front, the morsel-filled tongue will crawl inwards through the cheek flap and reach into the back of the primary stomach, shifting through guano and pushing it out of the other cheek flap. It will squeeze out the freshly meshed food from the gizzard, and place it directly onto the blind gut's wall, helping them overcome the inefficiencies of a blind gut. The tongue quickly curls up like a snake within the throat pouch and positions its tip as a mouth within a mouth, exposing its olfactory receptors to the open air and preparing to launch at a moment's notice.

Satisfied with the day's hunt, the Tolatongue will make its way to join with the rest of its banquet. Following the trails of familiar scents, while urine sweat from its throat pouch marks a new trail for the future, the Tolatongue tracks the area from which it came. Getting closer, it starts hearing familiar howling at a distance and responds with its own. Approaching with a swagger and swaying its buttstril side to side, its howling will sound like it is coming from multiple sources, confusing potential predators nearby. Using the shape of its face, quite literally all ears, leading into its ancestral dual tympanic membrane system, each specialized in its range, the Tolatongue can listen carefully to the soft crawling of potential prey and easily differentiate it from the distant howling of its banquet. Coordinating along the howl chain, they will gradually band together in mutual protection as they approach an approximate center between the sources of positive howling and further away from disappointed and fearful ones, often coming together in a new resting location somewhere in the middle, shifting the banquet's gathering towards higher resource concentrations and away from danger.

Back at the banquet, The Tolatongues joyfully rub their tongues on each other's throat pouches, an act of mutual recognition involving the tongue's olfactory receptors and the signature smell of the urine sweat pores. The banquet is no random collective, but rather an intricate network of relationships, bonds, personal reputations, subtle competitions, and occasional conflicts. They will groom and clean each other's tongues and wool using their prehensile tusks, and share food remaining in their tongue gizzard, an act critical for the banquet's survival during the cold seasons.

As springtime approaches and the thick covers of wool began to shed, the act of food sharing takes on a different meaning. Females are larger and will be more exclusionary towards younger females reaching maturity, leaving the banquet with a ratio of 3 to 5 males for every female. To secure reproductive success, the male Tolatongue will grab the tastiest mixture of morsels it can find, cover it with gametes, and fill the rest of the gizzard with a special type of milk, offering the mixture to a female as a nuptial gift.
The milk, initially evolving as a secretion of sugary oils to entice females and augment the male's nuptial gifts, was quickly adapted to feeding the young. Filled with anthocyanin and acids that help the newborns regulate their digestion, giving it a color and flavor not too dissimilar to raspberry syrup.
It is produced by two glands that expand from the back of the neck, connecting to a lamp of fat storage at the rear. The space between, or "cleavage", exclusive to males, formed an ideal nest for newborns and has since evolved further into that role, with male head crests expanding backward to cover the nest.

Females will spend most of the warm seasons pregnant, giving birth to 3 or 4 litters a summer, while each male will carry its litter on its back for a little over a year. While the male-to-female ratio might seem unusual, it has allowed the banquet to maximize its reproductive opportunities without sacrificing the investment into each young, forming an efficient K-selected reproductive unit.
As the young mature, they will increasingly spend more time outside of their nests, learning from their fathers, exploring their environment, and memorizing the locations their survival might depend upon, for a Tolatongue would never forget the location of a promising Switchfang burrow.

This post has been edited by Jarlaxle: Nov 15 2022, 08:18 PM

Rockruiser (Lapiratis flaccidoris)
{(Floating-stone flaccid-mouth (Latin)}

Creator: Jarlaxle
Ancestor: Rockshorian
Habitat: Elerd Temperate Beach, Elerd Temperate Coast, Elerd Temperate Mangal, Iituem Temperate Bay, Iituem Temperate Beach, Martyk Archipelago Temperate Beaches, Martyk Temperate Beach, Martyk Temperate Mangal, Martyk Temperate Sea, Raq Archipelago Subpolar Beaches, Raq Subpolar Beach, Raq Subpolar Coast
{2 Types (Temperate, Subpolar), 3 Flavors (Beach, Mangal, Sunlight Zone)}
Size: 150cm Long Females, 20cm Long Males
Support: Endoskeleton (Chitin)
Diet: Carnivore (Barnapede, Bleedin Waterworm, Bloister, Bubbleweed Muckraker, Bulky Hammerhead, Chum Gilltail, Chunky Zoister, Clarke Cleaner Echofin, Crawling Meiouk, Dancing Urstar, Diamond Pumpgill, Ebony Pump Gilltail, Eggorger Swarmer, Featherbelly Foi, Field Swarmer, Finback, Flat Swarmer, Floating Pumpgill, Follower Gilltail, Fuzzy Krillpede, Gillarill, Gömböc Roj, Gray Muckraker, Greencrest, Groping Slither-Slider, Gulperpump, Hairy Slitherworm, Hitchhiker Scuttler, Kelpoggle, Lediiro, Left-Right Scalucker, Marine Arthrofin, Marine Bubblepede, Marine Filtersquid, Marine Gilltail, Marine Shocker, Marine Urpoi, Nectascooter, Nerius, Oceanrorm, Octofoi, Probing Gilltail, Ray Flat Swarmer, Roj, Rojerius, Scootatrunk, Scuttleball Gillfin, Seafin, Sealid, Seascooter, Slender Seaswimmer, Snatcherswarmer, South Polar Shardgill, Southern Gillfin, Speckled Pumpgill, Speckled Spinderorm, Spotted Shocker, Sticky Urphish, Sucker Swarmer, Sunlit Plagu, Surge Gilltail, Swarmerscooter, Thornback Waterworm, Trunk Frabuki, Twinkiiro Gilltail, Uksip Lazarus, Amelia, Vicious Gilltail, Wolley)
Respiration: Active (Microlungs)
Thermoregulation: Endotherm (Feathers)
Reproduction: Sexual (Male and Female, Hard-Shelled Eggs)

Holding up a long neck for millions of years can be quite an effort. In the relative safety of the Martyk Archipelago, a branch of Rockshorian descendants have being liberated from that burden. Appearing as a bipedal rock blindly waddling on oversized feet with a proboscis dangling from its front, the awkward-looking Rockruiser seems like an anathema to its namesake. While it is just as capable of raising the proboscis to check a potential concern or interest, it is well protected and easily camouflaged by its rock-like sauce-shell, leaving it little to be concerned about on land.

Cruising through the water on long webbed toes, floating on air trapped between layers of chitin at the bottom of its sauce-shell, the Rockruiser was well adapted to make the most out of the island environment, replacing its ancestor in its range. As they shifted to make use of their ability to find food, they moved from stalking the shore to actively swimming throughout the Archipelago and seeking underwater prey. Rather than keeping still, they needed to move their mouth fast, losing the long tendons in favor of many quick small short burst muscles. The probosci's tip is rounder and more streamlined for moving underwater, its tusks are held sideways like the pincer claws of a Terran Bobbit worm, followed by dense concentrations of feather-whiskers, a ring of nostrils at the outermost ring, and backward protruding ears, not unlike those of Terran eared seals.

The archipelago has changed the landscape of the mating game. Swimming along the archipelago with their nests on their backs and no longer easily contained by shoreline harems, females started to improve their reproductive chances and the genetic diversity of their outcrop by exchanging male larvae as gifts with females of other outcrops. Earlier reproductive capacity became favored over Fighting and dominance, and once rare developmental disorders inhibiting post-larval development in males have become widespread, undermining the harem system completely and resulting in extreme male neoteny. Males are now slightly larger larvae with developed reproductive capacity and are exchanged as gifts between females, indirectly mating by securing grandchildren in the process. The larva-like male will stay in its mothers nest-shell until given to a new female, where it will use its claws to climb down the female's plumage, holding onto rough ridges around her cloaca and pushing its entire body inwards, leaving out only its respiratory spiracles to maintain its breath. Once done, it will either make its way back to its mother's neck or passed between females, depending on the social circumstances and available mating opportunities in the outcrop.

This post has been edited by Jarlaxle: Feb 20 2023, 02:28 PM

Name: Redplate Pasakerd (Pachycalvariabos prostratios)
Creator: OviraptorFan
Ancestor: Lumbering Pasakerd (Sclerophryosaurus geluavagor)
Habitat: Drake Frostwood, Drake Lowboreal
Size: 3.2 meters long
Support: Exoskeleton (Chitin), Endoskeleton (Chitin)
Diet: Herbivore (Crystalfir, Emeraldfir, Pandocrystal, Frigid Vesuvianite, Lurtress, Lurspire, Lurcreeper, Towering Grovecrystal, Baseejie, Syrup Ferine, Sleeve Ferine, Greatcap Baseejie, Vesuvianite Tree, Wafflebark Ferine, Glountain, Xidhorchia, Snow Puff, Toxplage, Windbulb, Frostmelter, Glittersprout, Pioneeroots, Marbleflora, Cryobowls, Glaalgaes, Larands, Sunstalks, Supershrooms, Sapshrooms)
Respiration: ?
Thermoregulation: Endotherm (Setae)
Reproduction: Sexual, Hermaphrodites, Lays Brood of Eggs in pits

A split from the Lumbering Pasakerd, the Redplate Pasakerd has become an absolute giant for its kind, which it then puts to great use. While it can technically still graze on low-growing flora, the Redplate Pasakerd prefers to feed on various species of tree in the area. Instead of evolving to be taller and thus reach the leaves and fruit of the various trees, this species of pasakerd developed adaptations to knock down the trees. A heavily reinforced skull with wide crests helps with pushing the tree down, while the limbs of the Redplate Pasakerd are much more robust to better deal with the stresses revolving around such activities. Once the tree is knocked down, the powerful jaws possessed by all pasakerds come into use as the Redplate Pasakerd will rip apart the branches into chunks small enough to be swallowed whole. Because there is almost no chewing at all, the Redplate Pasakerds have an enlarged digestive tract in a similar fashion to the Russet-Ridged Pasakerd, which can then extract as much nutrients as they can from what they eat. The large guts also partially resulted in the Redplate Pasakerd’s great size, as a larger body was needed to house the enlarged digestive tract. This greater size was also due to the extra bulk being needed to knock down trees, as well as providing more insulation from the cold since larger bodies retain heat better than smaller ones. Even with the large gut and its great size, however, the Redplate Pasakerd would still take a long time to properly digest wood, which often gets ingested as they consume the branches of trees. To get around this, Redplate Pasakerds regularly swallow small stones, which act as gastroliths and grind food into a mushy and more digestible pulp within their stomach.

Unlike their ancestors, the Redplate Pasakerd is completely solitary as an adult, since their diet of trees doesn't allow for multiple individuals feeding together and their great size deters all but the largest carnivores in the area. If a Redplate Pasakerd is being harassed by a Baron Signaltail, one of the few creatures that can actually take them down, its adaptations to pushing down trees work just as well with ramming potential threats. The powerful jaw and large tusks can also leave a nasty bite on anything that they consider a threat or competition. The very feeding habits of the Redplate Pasakerd also partially help deal with competition, as the knocking down and devouring of trees means forests are opened up, which in turn means large browsers like the Sailmail and the Double-Lipped Sauceback find themselves being squeezed out, resulting in these herbivores being much rarer in areas they share with Redplate Pasakerds. To prevent total deforestation and thus a loss of food, Redplate Pasakerds are still nomadic, moving around to patches of old growth where there will certainly be more food to feed on. If they can’t find any trees around, a Redplate Pasakerd can fall back on grazing upon low-growing foliage even though it's not specialized for grazing like its cousins.

Because of their massive bulk, the Redplate Pasakerd can’t dig out burrows anymore so they instead will make a shallow pit in the ground with their powerful forelimbs. From there, they will generally produce around a hundred eggs in a single batch before burying them. After the eggs are buried, the parent will abandon them to their fate. Many eggs are often eaten by small nest raiders, and the young that do hatch and dig their way to the surface are still vulnerable to predators. These youngsters will stick together for mutual protection, relying on numbers to live long enough where they can rely on their bulk to deter threats. Taking about three years to reach full size, the diet of the yearlings is more like their ancestors since they mostly graze on low-growing foliage and only occasionally push down saplings to eat. When they reach their second year of life, the young Redplate Pasakerds will be large enough to go their separate ways and switch to their adult diets. It is also in their second year that these creatures reach sexual maturity. By the third year, only one or two individuals from a single clutch will be still alive, though by that point they can live for a pretty long time, sometimes as long as seventy years.

Alright boys! Here is my last pasakerd and lizalope descendant for this gen! Hope you guys enjoy all of these species and possibly build off of them! As usual, comments and critiques are highly appreciated!

This post has been edited by OviraptorFan: Jan 29 2023, 08:12 AM

Mudfish (Lutumcetus sp. [Mud whale])
Creator: Oofle
Ancestor: Sruglettes
Habitat: global (at least seasonally sufficiently moist habitats with easy access to air)
Size: 5-20 centimeters long
Support: unknown
Diet: Adult: Carnivore (gamergate gundis, keryhs, minikruggs, mikuks, aphluks, dartirs, sapworms, eusuckers (not preferred, high iron content is displeasing), feluks, gushitos (not preferred, high iron content is displeasing), neuks, silkruggs, teacup saucebacks, vermees, xenobees, leepi meepi, belumbias (marine mudfish only), brushrums (marine mudfish only, planktonic juveniles), burraroms (marine mudfish only, planktonic juveniles), mistswarmers (marine mudfish only), common gilltails (marine mudfish only), dragon marephasmoids (marine mudfish only, not preferred due to sting), krillpedes (marine mudfish only), larvabacks (marine mudfish only, rarely), miniwhorls (marine mudfish only), polyfee (marine mudfish only, larvae, perhaps notably often fails in regards to successful predation and instead leads to being parasitized through the mouth lining), shimmering marephasmatises (marine mudfish only, not preferred due to sting), squidwhals (marine mudfish only), swarmerweeds (marine mudfish only), chainswarmers (marine mudfish only), gut anemoweeds (marine mudfish only), mudfish (smaller individuals, not preferred due to spines))
Larvae: Detritivore (organic matter within mud and soil, rotting vegetation), scavenger
Respiration: Active (lung-like gill)
Thermoregulation: heterotherm (muscle vibration)
Reproduction: sexual, spawning in mud or moist rotting vegetation, two genders

As sruglettes diversified, there was an obstacle to their expansion into some habitats, and while others simply waited for standing water or bred elsewhere, a few were more adventurous, and worked with what they had. The mudfish are a descendant of sruglettes with lunged larvae (specifically those of the subgenus protopulmonis) that became increasingly more adapted to laying their eggs in mud (and some similar substrates), as a manner of expanding into environments that did not often have standing water, and eventually back into areas to exploit the niche they’ve carved out for themselves.

Mudfish are a fairly diverse bunch, but in many ways quite similar to their ancestors, being flighted surge gilltails with a distinct and flightless larval stage. It is in this larval stage, however, where they primarily differ, not only do all mudfish have lungs as larvae (as do some sruglettes), but they usually live in mud instead of water. Whether it’s borderline muddy water after a rainforest flood, or whole flats of it out in the salt marsh, you can generally expect there to be some mudfish breeding there, this has necessitated a very special adaptation: actual ground mobility. Mudfish have modified their two ventral fins into strange structures consisting usually of just a row of bifurcated fin rays, as well as extended rays on their wing fins, allowing them to ‘crawl’ with a sort of swimming motion aided by the pectorals; their larvae also primarily use this, though also sometimes burrow into the mud, either to hide from predators or eat more of the mud, many mudfish species have larvae or even adults that can ‘hop’ along the ground with their wings for a burst of speed.

Adult mudfish tend to be more terrestrial than their ancestors, being better adapted to walk on the ground, and often having retracted fin membranes in favor of robust, spiny fin rays. Mudfish are still very capable fliers however, and some species will even use their pectoral spines to hang off of branches or rough surfaces, they are not quite so good at swimming however, and most mudfish can only manage a sort of wiggle through the water, it is not uncommon for mudfish to drown if they find themselves unable to get out of the water, as they also cannot flip over as easily to take a breath. Some mudfish do have better developed fins and can swim far better, but the majority are restricted to habitats with some sort of ‘land’. That is, apart from species that have specialized for a surprising habitat: puffgrass rafts, initially evolving from species that laid their eggs in moist rotting vegetation (and those still exist, to be clear), their larvae (seen in the middle left, just below A166) are fairly salt tolerant and capable of some limited swimming. Like most moist rotting vegetation specialists, albeit most extreme in the raft-dwelling ones, these larvae are elongated to worm their way through their much more tangled habitat, and their beaks are often a good bit stronger to slice through tough fibrous food (albeit, they cannot eat wood, lacking both gut microbes specialized enough for this and any reasonable way to evolve strong enough jaws). Raft-dwelling mudfish are the reason this genus group is global, as when their rafts wash ashore, adults can take fairly easily to laying their eggs in other stranded vegetation, which eventually moves to the mud, and then up the river to follow that mud, leading to freshwater, mud-dwelling species once more.

Mudfish often live a good bit longer than their ancestors, as they spend a lot more time resting rather than constantly exerting themselves with flight, and the average lifespan of the genus, rather than a few months, is roughly a year.

One more notable group are the paedomorphic mudfish (such as the purple one in the upper left corner), though once again they aren’t monophyletic (much to the agony of the subgeneric taxonomists), they do share some unique traits, their fin rays are often much more delicate due to their smaller size not requiring robust spiny ones, these are perhaps the shortest lived mudfish, akin to some diminutive terran reef gobies (though not as extreme). These mudfish tend to be specialized toward perching on vegetation and lunging at prey rather than skittering around chasing it (though this ambush predation lifestyle isn’t unique to them), the individual shown, belonging to the subgenus Diversoculus, also shows how some species have evolved eyes on turrets to allow them to look around better.

Marine species (defined as those that nest on puffgrass rafts (with the exception of the driftwood islands) are interestingly rather good at swimming, in contrast to most species; this was a necessary adaptation because it was not uncommon for them to metamorphose and find themselves somewhere with no land or land-dwelling prey for miles, because most mudfish need to eat they had to solve this issue somehow. Marine mudfish do not tend to go for prey latching onto solid surfaces or at the benthos, but nekton and plankton are both fair game. It would seem surprising then, with how avid at swimming these marine mudfish are, that no freshwater mudfish exist, why is this? Simply put, mudfish can’t put up with competitors in these much more cramped environments, and with plenty of prey to hunt on land, they almost always adapt to hunting there instead.

This post has been edited by Oofle: Oct 5 2022, 03:17 PM

Name: Rosy Cornizope (Erxingqilin hongjiao)
Creator: OviraptorFan
Ancestor: Curazzope (Pseudodorcas pedissus)
Habitat: Fermi Plains, Fermi Steppe, Fermi Subpolar Volcanic, Fermi Prairie, Fermi Bush, Fermi Temperate Volcanic
Size: 2 meters long
Support: Endoskeleton (Bone)
Diet: Herbivore (Fermiblades, Skunk's Pheres, Poorbion, Pitchbloom, Sunstalks, Pioneeroots, Marbleflora, Lesser Steepespire saplings)
Respiration: Active (Lungs)
Thermoregulation: Mesotherm
Reproduction: Sexual, Two Genders, Ovoviviparous

While the first herbivores to settle the inland areas of Fermi were the ancestors of the Fermi Giant Leafkutter, it would not be long before larger creatures would take advantage of the abundant resources. This took the form of some Curazzopes adapting to live in these areas and splitting off into a new taxon of their own right. Known as the Rosy Cornizope, this new species has quickly taken up the mantle of fairly large herbivores within the inland areas of Fermi.

Their ancestor’s adaptations to feed upon Greyblades translated well into the Rosy Cornizopes feeding on the equally spiny Fermiblades alongside other kinds of foliage in the area. Their mouths have a sharpened edge, which makes them well suited for snipping off foliage which then gets ground into a mushy pulp by the back teeth. The mouths are still tough and relatively insensitive to pain, helping them deal with the sharp edges seen in some species of flora they consume. The relationship with microplaques is still present within Rosy Cornizopes, breaking down bits of leaves that get stuck in the thornback’s mouth and covered in saliva. The act of decomposition makes the leaves softer, making them easier to process.

The Rosy Cornizope still has adaptations for a cursorial lifestyle, with large lungs to take in as much air as possible, and long legs with two hoof-like toes that are designed for covering large amounts of ground in a single stride. These adaptations help the Rosy Cornizopes with covering large amounts of ground, as they are always on the move and certain populations are migratory. It also allows them to flee from wildfires, since they occur fairly frequently in the summer months on Fermi.

Although its ancestors already had sexual dimorphism, Rosy Cornizopes take this to a whole different level. Females have underdeveloped crests and shoulder spikes as well as relatively dull coloration, a feature that is also shared with immature males. The only visible defining difference early on between the two sexes is the flap of skin on the male’s underbelly, though this changes as they reach sexual maturity. At that stage in their lives, their crests and shoulder spikes grow in size and bright colors appear on the face and neck. These bright colors indicate a male’s fitness to potential mates, with mature males forming large leks around late spring to early summer and showing off their impressive colors while also using their large throat sacs to create various sounds. Ranging from croaks to peeps to even full bellows, these sounds are not directly heard by female Rosy Cornizopes due to the fact the species lacks ears, but instead they detect the vibrations through the ground. The stronger the vibrations and the more colorful the displays, the more likely a female will mate with the specific male. Both sexes also create various low frequency sounds outside of the breeding season to keep in touch with other members of the herd.

Unlike their ancestors, female Rosy Cornizopes do not lay frog-like eggs into Meltbowls as this limited the development of the young and left them vulnerable to predation from things like Teacup Saucebacks. Instead, Rosy Cornizopes will retain the eggs within their bodies and have the young develop internally. This does mean they can only have two or three young at a time, but the young can be born well developed with no tadpole stage at all. Since these young are still vulnerable to Teacup Saucebacks early on and Rosy Cornizopes do not have as much offspring at one time compared to their ancestors, female Rosy Cornizopes will actively care for their young. Granted, it's only fending off attackers for the first two to three weeks and nothing more, but this change in behavior further increases the chance that the young will live long enough to where they can fend for themselves.


A female Rosy Cornizope.

Alright! Here is the second species of herbivore im doing for the inland areas of Fermi! Wanted to give this lineage of Thornback some love as they had only one living member. As usual, any comments and critiques are highly appreciated!

This post has been edited by OviraptorFan: Sep 25 2022, 10:17 PM

Crunchy Trufflegrass (Delicios ssp)

Creator: colddigger
Ancestor: Crystal Swordgrass
Habitat: Wallace, Koseman
Diet: Photosynthesis, Detritivore
Size: 10-100 cm Tall Crystals, 0.5-30 cm Wide Crumples, Variable Colony Width
Support: Cell Wall and Flexible Shell (Chitin)
Respiration: Passive (Lenticels)
Thermoregulation: Ectotherm
Reproduction: Sexual (Subterranean Spore Filled Fruit Bodies), Asexual (Budding, Fragmentation)

Crunchy Trufflegrass replaced its ancestor. Its ancestor was unable to compete with the development of the Crystal Entourage Swordgrass, the waterborne spores spread far more slowly than the new airborne spores. In order to be able to compete with these new grasses an alternative method of spreading had to arise. The subterranean fruiting bodies of the Crystal Swordgrass stopped relying on the water in the soil for spreading its spores and instead began relying on fauna. This method of spread turned out to be highly successful and resulted in a rapid diversification in species and with them colonial forms. Some colonies grow in long branching or unbranching lengths through the ground, while others form tight and squat clumps with little reach above surface. If these rhizomal colonies get broken apart by damage their redundancy allows easy recovery and survival of the majority of fragments.

Crumple and Reproduction

Fruiting bodies, or "crumples", exist entirely underground and typically just a little bit beneath the surface of the soil. They are available for any passing fauna to dig up and consume and give off a scent when mature. Some are hinted with citrus, others reek of cut grass (3-hexenal), but all have at least an underlying smell of propolis. The internal make-up of a crumple is mainly lightly crunchy, juicy, shell symbiont tissue and rich in simple sugars and starches. The outer layer of shell tissue, made of cells that are typically green in this lineage, lacks green pigmentation due to being underground. Streaking the inside are veins of red tissue, rich in proteins and flavonoids.

The crumple begins the same as the fruiting body of its ancestor, as a strand of red cells from the mycelioid body, tipped with a single green, or shell, cell cap. Distances and depths vary during formation of a fruiting body; often it simply occurs where space is available. The shell cell begins multiplying, sucking up nutrients funneled through the one cell wide strand, and begins engulfing the red cells behind it into its growing mass. During this point the hyphae may continue to push the growing tip further forward, and even branch out. Both shell cells and red cells inside proliferate away from the strand arrangment into a complex amalgamation and form many pockets of spore-filled chambers, resulting in the crumple becoming a compound fruiting body with spores of both symbionts in every bite. These pockets result in the object easily collapsing when bitten.

Once consumed the spores, coated in damage resistant layers, pass through the digestive system of the given herbivore without harm and are redistributed in its waste. Typically the herbivore will have consumed crumples from multiple genomically distinct colonies, and once rained upon the haploid spores will activate in the faunal waste and go through the typical complex process forming a spore modula, which had arisen all the way back in the ancestral Binucleus Crystal Shrub. Many of these spore modula will be washed out of the waste pile, able to grow in the peace of their newly found solitude. However those remaining in the bountiful and nutrient rich spot they landed on will compete for dominion as they enter their juvenile state and begin maturing. Typically one individual will arise and snuff out its cousins and siblings.

When an herbivore seeks out a crumple it will dig without regard for the Trufflegrass its treat came from. Oftentimes the disregard results in the mutilation of the colony as parts are ripped from it and the rhizomal body is broken up. Luckily due to the redundancy of the organism many of these pieces, scattered about and fractured, will be able to survive and grow their way back underground, assuming they do not desiccate in the heat of the day.

Mycelioid body and roots

The mycelioid body from which the crumples arise comprise, in most species, easily three quarters of the total biomass of a colony. This body part is a branching, spreading net of living strands only one cell across and function quite similarly to the hyphae of a Terran fungus. Pressure from liquid taken in by these strands is the dominant method of forcing nutrients and water upward through the bodies of these small crystals. This intake of water and digested compounds from outside occurs not at the growing tips of the hyphae, but rather at the mature portions just behind them. The pressure behind the growing tip provides the power necessary to punch through the many tough surfaces encountered in soil, despite normally lacking a tough capping cell like true roots. The digestive enzymes released into the environment are geared toward breaking down already dead or partially decomposed material near the surfaces of the mycelioid body, further making simple compounds available for uptake as opposed to passively relying on their release like many other flora. Living organisms are not typically targets or adversely affected by these enzymes to any significant degree.

Traveling up the organism from the mycelioid body the highly reduced, stout remains of the root can be found. These growths are nothing more than nubs of red tissue to provide an anchor point for the strands of cells that infiltrate the surrounding soils. The influence of the cell arrangment to allow for the strands developing out from the roots is so great that once mycelioid bodies begin developing from a matured root the root cells adjust to reflect a similar arrangment. This becomes reminiscent of bundles of fibers and allows a more seamless transition from single cell strands to the spongier interior of the core tissues while preventing a sudden drop in transport pressure. The tip of the root nub is capped by a small cluster of unpigmented shell cells inherited from predecessors that relied more heavily on these structures to explore the surrounding soils. These cells now act as a component source for the formation of fruiting bodies.

Core Tissue

The underground mass of red tissue the root nubs extend from acts as rhizomous core from which the other body parts and colonial budding occurs. Though the majority of the cells in this rhizome are of the red soft tissue there are unpigmented shell cells scattered throughout it. These cells allow for the formation of both subterranean roots and superterranean crystals.The origin of these scattered cells are the growth points of the rhizome, which are capped with a hard tip of shell tissue to allow freedom of growth through difficult soil. The tissue arrangement of the red cells is not particularly structured, though in some larger species the bundled fibrous growths originating from the mycelioid body and roots does echo through this area and may even extend toward the photosynthetic crystals. In most species, however, water and nutrients is freely circulated through this horizontal body core as needed. Turgor pressure and flow of water and nutrients inward is maintained by the lower body parts rather than by this core tissue.

Photosynthetic Crystals

The only body part of the organism that is visible to passersby aboveground are its crystals, which are comparatively soft like its ancestral form relative to other crystals. This lack of firm rigidity means that to maintain an erect stance it must rely on turgor pressure rather than solely on structural strength so commonly seen in crystals. This increases their water demand, while also allowing faster growth rates to compete with purple and black flora that may attempt to shade them out. The growth of these crystals is unique from many others in the fact that they now extend in growth from the bottom upward. They still expand in size with age, as is normal when looking at a crystal in sections (thinner sections being younger compared to wider sections), this placement of growth results in their widest section being the tip or tallest point on the crystal. It is common to see these old ends split and damaged from environmental stresses, age-related deterioration, or grazing from herbivores. The growing base of the crystal of a Trufflegrass is found at least a few centimeters under the surface, near the core tissue. This initial growth remains a constant width until being exposed to light, at which point widening occurs and pigmentation appears. This allows for a narrower focus of pushing force to break through the soil surface and any other barriers before performing its role in energy production.

The number of facets found on the crystal has shrunk to only two, two plates of green shell tissue continually pushed up from the ground and twisting to find and follow the sunlight as they widen. The layering found in these plates, from the outside in, is as such; photosynthetic layer, structural layer, metabolic layer. The photosynthetic layer, the outermost layer of the plate, is a dense palisade of heavily pigmented cells acting as the workhorses of the entire organism fixing carbon into simple compounds for every other part to utilize in construction and energy use. Behind them lies the structural layer: this layer in most crystals is strong and dense and provides the weight bearing structural support that holds up the entire organism. In Trufflegrass however this is no longer its role. It still provides a structure for the crystal to maintain shape but no longer is truly weight bearing, and so has become less pronounced in the mass of the plate. Finally the metabolic layer, closest to the center of the crystal, is where the plates interact with the red tissue symbiont directly for nutrient and water exchange. It is here at the junction surface of the two symbionts that gas exchange with the atmosphere for both occurs, with air traveling from this metabolic layer outward toward the structural and photosynthetic layers, dissolving into extracellular fluids and cytoplasm, and similarly inward to the spongy red tissue to dissolve. The seam along the ridge where the two plates press together is the entry point for gases into this section of the crystal, which protects these delicate and vulnerable parts of the crystal and prevents water loss.

Inside the crystal, between these two faces, exists mostly simple spongy red tissue. This red tissue fills with water provided from below to maintain turgor pressure and allows the crystal to remain upright, wilting during drought or heat stress. This tissue often has semi-impermeable layering which allows further control of water levels if pressure from the rest of the body disappears. In some larger species the cells of the spongy tissue is further elaborated on, echoing the bundled fibrous arrangment found in the lower body parts. This allows further prevention, and compartmentalization, of pressure loss when it occurs.

Tidbits

Those species found in more arid areas, such as deserts or scrublands, often spend drier periods dormant underground. They may remain there for years, rapidly putting up soft crystals when water or rain hits them. Some of these may quickly produce many small crumples for the season, or feed the water into a singular large crumple that grows every time it becomes active until eaten.

Having crystals growing from the bottom up allows for this body part to continually grow unfettered by grazing damage, or other environmental dangers aboveground, including quickly moving fires. Keeping the growing points underground also further insulates them from frost damage.

Most crumples measure about 2-5 cm in width, but some species will have very small fruiting bodies of only a few millimeters, often numbering in the hundreds or thousands, while other rare species will have crumples up to 30 cm in width, typically only growing one or two at a time.

This post has been edited by colddigger: Feb 8 2023, 01:41 PM

Name: Wolverback (Vermisorex grandis)
Creator: OviraptorFan
Ancestor: Teacup Saucebacks (Vermisorex spp.)
Habitat: Fermi Plains, Fermi Steppe, Fermi Subpolar Volcanic, Fermi Prairie, Fermi Bush, Fermi Temperate Volcanic
Size: 40 centimeters long
Support: Endoskeleton (Chitin)
Diet: Adult: Carnivore (Fermi Giant Leafkutter, Rosy Cornizope juveniles, Teacup Saucebacks, Sapworms, Xenobees, Xenowasps, Dartirs, Minikruggs, Silkruggs, Cloudswarmers, Mistswarmers, Vermees, Floraverms, Sruglettes, Gushitos), Scavenger; Larvae: Detritivore, Scavenger, Carnivore (Vermees, Teacup Sauceback larvae)
Respiration: Active (Microlungs)
Thermoregulation: Adults: Endotherm (Feathers); Larvae: Ectotherm
Reproduction: Sexual (Male and Female, Eggs and Larvae)

As herbivores began to show up within the inland areas of Fermi, it would only be a matter of time before predators would appear to prey upon them. Instead of a predator settling into the area from a different part of Fermi, it would be a species of Teacup Sauceback ballooning in size to take advantage of the new game. The final result would be the Wolverback, the largest species within the genus Vermisorex yet to have evolved.

In overall lifestyle, they could be described as an oversized version of other members of their genus, as they have barely changed in anatomy. Indeed the beginning of their lives is pretty much identical to that of other members of the genus. The young are still small burrowing ectotherms that start their lives at just a millimeter in length. They will feed primarily upon things like the vermees and the larvae of other Teacup Saucebacks, supplementing their diet with detritus when meat is unavailable. The larvae will readily feed upon carrion as well, eventually growing to about 10 centimeters long. At this particular point, they look like fat hairy sausages due to the precense of gigantic fat stores; which will provide the Wolverback larvae energy during their metamorphosis into an endothermic adult so they do not starve to death. While other members of the genus are fully grown at this point, Wolverbacks continue to grow even after having reached their adult form, tackling larger and larger game as they continue to grow.

Due to their massive size compared to other members of the genus, the metabolism of the Wolverback is much slower and thus they require much less food and live longer. While they can still technically hibernate, Wolverbacks rarely ever do so since their thick feathery coat and greater bulk provides them with enough insulation to remain active at night. Indeed, Wolverbacks have shifted towards being nocturnal in habits, as this gives them a leg-up over prey that rely upon vision to spot threats. Using strong echolocation to “see” their way around, the Wolverback will stealthily approach its target before eventually getting close enough to pounce. Their mandibles have extra large barbs to better deal with dispatching relatively large prey, with the Wolverback often aiming for the head or neck of its victim to kill it quickly. While much of their prey consists of other Teacup Saucebacks, Minikruggs, and other fairly small game; Wolverbacks will readily tackle larger game in their range such as the Fermi Giant Leafkutter and young Rosy Cornizopes that strayed too far from the safety of the herd.

Wolverbacks live much longer than other members of their genus, living for over ten to fifteen years instead of just five. Alongside the fact they are the apex predators of their ecosystem when they evolved, Wolverbacks lay way fewer eggs compared to their ancestors and relatives. Instead of laying a few thousand eggs in one sitting, a Wolverback will lay only about three hundred to four hundred eggs in a single clutch. Additionally, the species lays their eggs in mid winter, so that the resulting larvae will hatch during the start of spring so they can take advantage of warming temperatures and the increasing number of food to rapidly grow.

Alright guys! Here is the first major predator for the inland areas of Fermi! Of course its dominance will certainly not last as the ecosystems become more established, but for now it hold the title of the apex predator within the region. As usual, comments and critiques are highly appreciated!

This post has been edited by OviraptorFan: Nov 17 2022, 03:56 PM

Cuniculyn (Cuniculigryphus vulgaris)

Creator: TheBigDeepC
Ancestor: Pudglyn
Habitat: Fermi Tundra, Fermi Steppe, Fermi Plains, Fermi Bush, Fermi Prairie
Size: 20 cm Long
Support: Endoskeleton (Unjointed Wood)
Diet: Herbivore (Marbleflora, Pioneeroots, Poorbion sprouts, Supershrooms, Skunk’s Pheres), Photosynthesis
Respiration: Active (Lungs)
Thermoregulation: Endotherm (Shivering, Fat)
Reproduction: Sexual, Live Birth, Male and Female

The cuniculyn evolved from pudglyns that ventured out from the Arctic Subpolar Beach and into the Fermi Steppe when they found an area with a steady supply of food. Cuniculyns can produce 3 to 7 offspring per litter and they can do this 2 to 5 times during the spring and summer, which can cause their populations to quickly rise up and even recover from predators feasting on them, this is especially helpful against teacup saucebacks that are capable of preying on them and their young. Another way that cuniculyns deal with predators is by having a dark-blue skin, which not only helps hide them against the black volcanic soil, but also keeps them hidden whenever they’re still out in the dark. Plus, this dark-blue skin maintains photosynthesis thanks to the coloration being caused by anthocyanins. Their wing-leaves are a brighter blue than the rest of their body, making it easier to see each other; this comes in handy when they wave their wing-leaves to attract mates or alert each other of predators. Another defense mechanism the cuniculyn has is to simply run away from danger and hide, which comes in handy against the wolverback. While the cuniculyn is capable of shivering to deal with the cold, it further handles it by not only making small burrows with its wooden claws, but it also sometimes lines up the burrows with skunk’s pheres for insulation and the occasional snack when desperate for food. In temperate regions, it does not need to line up its burrow with skunk's pheres.

Shimmering Wolley (Figuramutante scintillans) (sparkling shape-shifter)
Creator: Disgustedorite
Ancestor: Greater Wolley
Habitat: Fly Tropical Coast, Hydro Tropical Coast, Oz Subtropical Coast, Time Subtropical Coast, Anguan Temperate Coast, Abello Temperate Coast, Ittiz Temperate Coast, Nergali Subtropical Coast, Clayren Temperate Coast, Maineiac Temperate Mangal, Clayren Temperate Mangal, Nergali Subtropical Mangal, Ittiz Temperate Mangal, Abello Temperate Mangal, Barlowe Temperate Mangal, Oz Subtropical Mangal, Time Subtropical Mangal, Barlowe Tropical Mangal
Size: 64 cm long
Support: Endoskeleton (Bone)
Diet: Carnivore (Miniswarmers, Grabbyswarmers, Krillpedes, Digging Filterpeders, Common Gilltails, Mangal Sauceback, Lesser Bloisters, Scuttlers, Sruglettes, Brushrums, Miniwhorls, Gut Anemoweeds, Hitchhiker Scuttler, Snapper Scuttler, Frabukis, juvenile Scuttleball Gillfin, juvenile Royal Scylarian, Diamond Pumpgill, Sucker Swarmer, Shieldscooter, Left-Right Scalucker, Greater Wolley, Floating Pumpgill, Sikai, juvenile Serpentinuscooter, Seamaw, juvenile Sardchovy, Dunki, Gulperpump, juvenile Ocean Scorpodile, Plump Gillfin, Golden Siever, Dartfin, juvenile Eastward Landlubber, juvenile Grazhun, Makai, juvenile Thrashing Seaswimmer, Larvaback, Iron Siever, Finback, Bubblerorm, Srugeing, Ripping Waterworm, juvenile Scorpodile, Minnosparrow, Triloraker, Pebbleback larvae, juvenile Metamorphling Gilltail, Cryobowler Srugeing), occasional cannibal of young
Respiration: Active (Nasal Gills)
Thermoregulation: Ectotherm
Reproduction: Sexual (Male and Female, Clusters of Frog-Like Eggs in Dens)

The shimmering wolley split from its ancestor. It has continued to develop its ambush hunting habits and its color-changing ability is as quick and complex as that of a Terran cuttlefish. It can even produce animated markings, in the form of pulsating stripes and other patterns which mimic the appearance of light reflected off the seafloor with the aid of bioluminescent flashes and flickers. This allows it to hide anywhere while remaining difficult for most of its prey, or its predators, to spot. Contrary to its generic name, it lacks the “shapeshifting” ability of terran cephalopods, instead relying on patterns to produce a false three-dimensional effect on its smooth skin when disguising among flora. It now has many bioluminescent patches all over its body, rather than purely in a row along its tail.

The shimmering wolley’s arms are robust, allowing it to not only cling to rocks but also directly modify its environment by digging or by grasping and carrying objects such as bones and flora using its opposable thumbs. It is able to transport and use entire flora because many aquatic flora species only have holdfasts, not true roots, and are not killed when “uprooted”. This allows it to engineer the perfect hiding spots throughout its territory. It does this because its physiology leaves it with very little it can do without a hiding spot, as no matter what it does to its color patterns a long and narrow object rising up on a flat seabed will draw attention. It is relatively smart and can find ways to work with unfamiliar material. This ability also allows for the construction of dens, so that eggs do not need to be laid in pre-existing hiding places that might be limited in number. Adult shimmering wolleys are territorial outside of mating.

The shimmering wolley hunts by hiding somewhere and staying very still, waiting for something to enter its line of sight or brush against its barbels. It will then launch out with a stroke of its tail and try to snatch its prey. Its narrow lower jaw cuts through the water with little disturbance. It has a suction cup-like tongue and well-developed hyoid, allowing it to pull its catch down its throat. Its barbels can mimic the appearance of a digging filterpeder’s antennae, allowing it to attract and catch some of their predators, however it will not do this if there are longjakes nearby, as the longjake will prey on it. It will move to different pre-made hunting spots throughout its territory, preventing prey from easily learning where not to go to avoid it.

The shimmering wolley has developed a mating display which makes use of both color-changing and the ability to grasp objects. A male will use objects such as bones, clumps of flora, and sticks like batons or pom-poms, demonstrating the dexterity to produce excellent hiding places for eggs, and rapidly change color, emphasizing both the performance and his fitness. Once he has caught the attention of a female, they dance together and he draws her towards a den he has already constructed. If it is to the female’s liking, they spawn inside the den. They share a territory from then on, taking turns keeping watch over the den while the other hunts. Once the eggs have hatched, they part ways, as do their offspring which are already independent. As juveniles are too small to compete with adults, they are exempt from territorial conflict with adults until they are older; however, adults will still consume juveniles sometimes.

Plyentree Venterpotatorus acervi

Creator: colddigger
Ancestor: River Plyent
Habitat: Wallace Tropical Rainforest
Size: 2 Meters Tall
Diet: Photosynthesis, Detritivore
Respiration: ?
Support: Endoskeleton (Jointed Wood)
Thermoregulation: Mesotherm
Reproduction: Sexual, Mucus Bound Spores, Two Genders

The Plyentree split from its ancestor to take on a more terrestrial lifestyle. They've redeveloped their singular eye for the sake of navigation. Despite having become more terrestrial, it's limbs still require a consistently moist environment in order to absorb nutrients. This leads to the larval form seeking out mud and bogs and seeps and other areas where standing water or consistent moisture exists to rest on or sink their limbs into and mature.

The reality of areas being better or worse for this use resulted in larvae accumulating in certain spots far more densely than others, resulting in piles of the small organisms attempting to reach the mud where it's wettest and push the others out. Quickly what resulted was the discovery of another source of moisture, The remnant cavities inside their neighbors.

The body of the plyents were not suited for the expulsion of their sudden intruders, but if they became too weak due to the extraction of moisture and nutrients then it became problematic for those that were feeding off of them. This rapidly selected for a two-way street where nutrients taken up by those directly in the mud was able to pass through the thin membranes of their internal cavity and the membrane of the limb stuck in them, and the passage of photosynthesis products back down to them for absorption.

This development of cooperation between individuals meant that they could just continually pile on top of one another to create larger and larger colonies. The limbs and body of a mature Plyentree are long and twist and wrap around their neighbors in order to secure the structure. The majority of photosynthesis occurs across the surface of the long body.

Reproduction is still performed with sexual spores, but rather than being released into the air The masses are oozed out in a thin mucus that dribbles down from the orifice of the Plyentree, down its sides and limbs, eventually into the orifices of those beneath it. As the spores join to form a zygote, which develops into a free embryo, the mucus it sits in is shifted from thin and runny to thick and nutrient rich. It grows to about the size of a marble then leaves the safety of the orifice and slides and tumbles down the side of the colony to the ground. Scampering off it will continue to grow, seeking light and water, and eventually settle into a new permanent home. Finding a young colony to clamber to the top of is preferable, being middle of the colony grants reproductive mucus the most mates to trickle down to before becoming too dilute by other members, while also allowing the Plyentree to grow larvae off its own directly. If no other colonies can be found it may settle into mud on its own, until another larva stumbles upon it to join and gradually form a fresh colony.

This post has been edited by colddigger: Nov 26 2022, 01:07 PM

Koorikoka (Koorikockan falcorovina)

Creator: MNIDJM
Ancestor: Montemsnapper
Habitat: Atmosphere (Troposphere), Central Darwin Rocky, South Darwin Rocky, Verserus Rocky, Wallace Volcanic, Iituem Plains Archipelago, South Darwin Plains, Wallace Plains, South Darwin Alpine, Verserus Alpine, South Darwin Highvelt, Verserus Highvelt
Size: 3.6 meters Long
Support: Endoskeleton (Hollow Bone)
Diet: Carnivore ([[Ascendophrey]], [[Sausophrey]], [[Vultoph]], [[Faxon]], [[Sansaws]], [[Woodsalcon]], [[Coastwoodufo]], [[Underswooper]], [[Wallyhawk]], [[Ophan Skeggox]], [[Albedophrey]], [[Brighteyes]], [[Nightsnapper]], [[Gnarblunter]], [[Shepherd Harnessback]], [[Argusraptor Complex]], [[Ophan Scimitar]], [[Hearthead]], [[Interbiat]], [[Nightsnapper]], [[Robynsnapper]], [[Nectarsnapper]], [[Cardicracker]] juveniles, [[Gnarbolonk]], [[Ferry Quail]] occasionally), Ovivory ([[Ascendophrey]] eggs, [[Sausophrey]] eggs, [[Vultoph]] eggs, [[Faxon]] eggs, [[Sansaws]] eggs, [[Woodsalcon]] eggs, [[Coastwoodufo]] eggs, [[Underswooper]] eggs, [[Wallyhawk]] eggs, [[Ophan Skeggox]] eggs, [[Albedophrey]] eggs, [[Brighteyes]] eggs, [[Nightsnapper]] eggs, [[Gnarblunter]] eggs, [[Shepherd Harnessback]] eggs, [[Argusraptor Complex]] eggs, [[Ophan Scimitar]] eggs, [[Hearthead]] eggs, [[Interbiat]] eggs, [[Nightsnapper]] eggs, [[Robynsnapper]] eggs, [[Nectarsnapper]] eggs, [[Cardicracker]] egg, [[Long-Tailed Flunejaw]] eggs, [[Ferry Quail]] eggs), Kleptoparasitism, Scavenger, Ptilophagy (Cephalischia feathers)
Respiration: Active (Lungs)
Thermoregulation: Endotherm (Downy Feathers)
Reproduction: Sexual, Two Genders, Lays Hard-Shelled Eggs, Nests

The **koorikoka** split from their ancestor to take advantage of the abundant diversity of [[lumenocula]]. With the rise of the lumenocula lineage of saucebacks, [[montemsnapper]]s found themselves under increased pressure, not just for competing directly with lumenocula for resources but with themselves becoming prey to several species. Some populations of montemsnappers began to respond by developing an acute aggression with regards to lumenocula, and over time became more active in their competition. In search of newer prey and safer hunting grounds, this lineage split off from the montemsnappers and began living in the drier shrubland and herbaceous environments of Wallace. At first this increased aggression manifested as hyperaggression when protecting their young. They seasonally congregate on nesting ground to mate and hatch their clutch, and will guard the colony collectively; if one nesting adult or young are attacked the surrounding colony members will target the aggressor in a frenzy, usually resulting in their evisceration and occasionally other members of the colony caught collaterally. However once the young are large enough to fly the colony will instinctively disperse so as to not strain the resources of the nesting ground. Males and females will stay together for a few seasons, forming packs with their young to help them hunt and providing their young with the skills needed to survive when they leave and form a new pack. These packs will disperse all over the continent, giving each pack wide swaths of hunting grounds of up to 5000^2 km per family unit.

When no longer in the protection of the colony, the other byproduct of the hyperaggression becomes apparent; they have shifted their diets to primarily hunting all saucebacks lineages in their environment. It began as therm harassing the species such as [[sausophrey]] or [[wallyhawk] ]s to steal their prey, but this quickly began to shift into active predation. One of the parents will scout out potential prey, soaring until they find their main desire, a sauceback with a fresh kill, and the pack will then descend to attempt to both kill the sauceback and steal its meal. If they spot saucebacks without a kill they believe they can take down, they will chase them using a pursuit pack hunting strategy, hunting their prey for hours until the prey collapses from exhaustion. They will even collectively attempt to chase their prey into the upper troposphere, with the aim of inducing hypoxia. This method has proven successful enough to take out most flying saucebacks, however the ascendophrey requires a modification to this strategy. They cannot fly as high as ascendophrey for the same length of time, however they just need to prevent them from descending long enough for hypoxia to set in. Individuals of the pack will harass the ascendophrey Attempts to dive onto the pack will usually prove fatal, as while a blow would prove fatal to the koorikoka caught by it, the descent is generally uncontrolled, and the koorikoka will attempt to roll and dive out of the way, baiting it low enough for the other members of the pack to swoop down from above and attack with teeth and talons. Like most skysnappers they have no sense of hearing, and relying on complex visual, olfactory, and behaviors cues to corrodinate and find meals. Supplementing this diet are other sources of protein and energy, such as during sauceback breeding seasons they will seek out nests that can be raided for eggs and unprotected juveniles. in addition, they have evolved the capability to digest sauceback feathers, breaking the keratin proteins down into useful amino acids. If saucebacks aren't available they will scavenge for relatively fresh carcasses when available or even hunt other prey such as other species of skysnappers or ground prey like [[gnarbolonk]], however they generally will not touch anything below approximately 30 cm as they are not usually worth the energy expense to hunt.

Mystery Capiri (Brachiocervus lazarus) (lazarus arm-deer)
Creator: Disgustedorite
Ancestor: Migrating Capispine
Habitat: Maineiac Marsh, Maineiac Mudflat, Maineiac Temperate River, Maineiac Temperate Riparian, Maineiac Lake, Maineiac Temperate Palus, Maineiac Montane River, Maineiac Montane Riparian
Size: 50 cm long
Support: Endoskeleton (Bone)
Diet: Omnivore (Yanisflora, Brieneux, Vingrasions, Maineiac Bubbleweed, Bubblebush, Shelterkelp, Bubblily, Baebula, Sappy Pinknose, Colonial Bubblgea, Pilonomroot, Marbleflora, Colonialballs, juvenile Leafy Plyentwort, Maineiac Bubblepede, Minikruggs, Pedesorm, Pedemuk, Eusuckers)
Respiration: Active (Lungs)
Thermoregulation: Mesotherm
Reproduction: Sexual (Male and Female, Hard-Shelled Eggs in Nests)

The mystery capiri replaced its ancestor. Small and seldom-seen, this little capiri seems, at first, to be a fairly ordinary capiri. Very little sticks out as special about it at all, in fact, as it is very similar to its ancestor in anatomy, though it is smaller and more omnivorous. But there is one strange detail that gives the mystery capiri its name: it appears to be displaced in time by about 50 million years.

The alleged extinction of capiris at the end of the snowball event was not nearly what it seemed, as there was one small wetland-dwelling species that managed to slip under the radar. It spawned a ghost lineage which apparently managed to raft to the volcanic island that would eventually become Lamarck. It survived unnoticed in the millions of years that passed, having laid low in the face of competition from other organisms in the area, and any fossils it left before just the last few million years were buried by frequent volcanic eruptions. The mystery capiri stands as the end point of that ghost lineage.

The mystery capiri bears many traits typical of capiris. It has a keratinous beak and crest, a pair of compound eyes each consisting of three eyes in a single socket, a color-changing sail, a single pair of legs derived from its forelimbs, and a tail derived from what was once a leg as well. The tail bears spikes at its end, which can be used to strike a chasing predator using a kicking motion. Less common for capiris, but typical of its derived ancestry, it lacks teeth, has a long prehensile tongue, and has spikes at the tip of each sail spine. Its body is covered in scales, but it has a layer of fat which allows it to hold in some of the heat it generates.

Moving on to the specifics of the mystery capiri itself, this small creature roams up and down the floodplain in small family groups, using its tongue to snack on flora and small easy-to-catch fauna that it passes by. Its favorite food is the yanisflora, which its ancestors also ate, but it will also eat other leafy flora in its environment. It regularly enters the river itself to feed on aquatic flora, even wandering into deep water and using the high placement of its nostrils to take breaths even when it’s completely submerged otherwise, but it usually sticks close to shore so that it can flee from aquatic predators.

The mystery capiri has little protection against winter chill, so over the winter the entire species migrates north to hibernate in the shelter of small natural caves carved along the mountain river. This is the only time one is likely to see a large number of them in one place. In the spring, they all wake up and disperse downstream to breed and lay their eggs along the river, lake, and wetlands. Mate selection is determined by color-changing displays and dances using their long tongues to show health and dexterity, respectively. Once their eggs hatch, parents and their young will proceed to start wandering the riverside together. The young grow quickly and reach full size after their first year, but they will not start breeding until their second. Mystery capiris have a life expectancy of 3-4 years, but if they are not killed by predators or disease, they can live as long as 12.