Sagan 4 Forum [Menu]

Cragmyr
(Cautesarbor balthazarii)

Creator: Bufforpington
Ancestor: Robust Arid Ferine
Habitat: Dixon Tropical Woodland, Dixon-Darwin Boreal, Dixon Tropical Scrub, Dixon-Darwin Rocky, Dixon Savanna, Dixon-Darwin High Grassland
Size: 4 m Tall
Diet: Photosynthesis
Reproduction: Sexual, Flowers, Berries

The cragmyr has split from its ancestor and has spread into the relatively barren lands of west Dixon. It primarily grows on the borders between montane and tropical environments, where the mountains' rocky crags meet the warmer temperatures of the tropics. Cragmyrs do not fare well in cold environments, and as a result, they do not grow in the higher reaches of Dixon-Darwin Boreal and Dixon-Darwin Rocky.



Cragmyrs primarily grow on rocky cliffs and crags, using their powerful roots to break into solid rock and rocky soils. These roots also serve as a holdfast that keeps them anchored in place on steep inclines. The cragmyr's trunk can twist and turn in response to gravity, allowing it to angle itself towards the sun, even when growing on the side of a cliff. The cragmyr doesn't lose its branches like its ancestor due to the warmer climate. In addition to this, the cragmyr's branches branch multiple times, allowing them to form a dense, wide canopy that can shade out competition. During the dry summer, the cragmyr will drop its leaves and aestivate in order to conserve water. Unlike its cousin the coniflor, the cragmyr's branches is incapable of photosynthesis and has lost its purple pigment in favor of a grey one. Like the coniflor, the cragmyr is also capable of producing a sticky, fast-drying resin. This resin is translucent and lavender in color. This resin smells similar to Earth's myrrh. Like the coniflor, the cragmyr uses this resin to ensnare small genus group fauna that tries to feed on it.

The cragmyr produces large, magenta flowers that in turn produce medium-sized fruits. These fruits are yellow-orange in color and taste like a combination of peaches and plums. The cragmyr produces these fruits during the winter.

This post has been edited by Bufforpington: Dec 22 2020, 11:03 AM

Chitjornacle (Loricatorumons flosclypeus)

Creator: Nergali
Ancestor: Chitjorns
Habitat: Dixon-Darwin Boreal, North Dixon Alpine, South Dixon Alpine, Verserus Alpine, Darwin Alpine, North Dixon Peak, Central Dixon Peak, South Dixon Peak, Verserus Peak, South Darwin Peak, North Darwin Peak
Size: 10 mm Tall
Diet: Photosynthesis
Reproduction: Asexual Budding, Fast Breeder

Chitjorns as a whole are naturally well adapted for eking out an existence under the harshest of conditions. They thrive with little soil, and can even grow on an otherwise barren rock. They have been known to withstand both baking beneath a hot desert sun or the freezing air of a snow-laden tundra, and some are even to be found upon the ocean floor of various shallow seas and sea mounts. It's all thanks to their sturdy chitinous shells, which serve to protect them not only from the elements, but from grazing herbivores as well. As such, it was only a matter of time before one of their number began to adapt and evolve in order to conquer the highest peaks of Sagan IV - in this case, the many mountains of the Dixon-Darwin supercontinent.

The Chitjornacles are the descendant of this pioneering Chitjorn species. Adapted to the high altitudes of the mountainous peaks they call home, they have evolved even thicker shells in order to protect themselves from the powerful blowing gales, the bone-chilling cold, and even the less filtered UV radiation that constantly bombard them. Their darker coloration allows them to absorb more heat from the sun which can then be retained better within their sealed shells, even despite their small size. Because of the lack of CO2 and essential nutrients, the Chitjornacles have shrunken in size so as to require less resources. When they inevitably spread down into the more hospitable regions of the mountains they call home, such as those of the alpine and boreal, they retained this small size due to the presence of already larger flora, including other Chitjorn species.

New buds will primarily form on the central "plate" that forms the top of the Chitjornacle, though some will form along the edges of their base. They are little more than a tiny green sphere in shape, and those that grow atop are readily dislodged by gusts of wind, which aids in their dispersal. Those that grow along the base, however, are much more sturdy in their positioning and will rarely be dislodged. This allows them to form steadily spreading patches that, as a whole, increase the survival chances of each individual by reducing the chance of dislodging.

This post has been edited by Nergali: Dec 22 2020, 11:46 AM

Ovilaro
(Setauris ovivorax)

Creator: Bufforpington
Ancestor: Dogelaro
Habitat: Dixon-Darwin Water Table, Vivus Water Table
Size: 2.5 cm Long
Diet: Ovivore (Snapperswimmer, Tasseled Phibi, Cave Prickworm, Dogelaro), Scavenger
Reproduction: Sexual, Eggs on cave ceiling

The ovilaro split from an ancestor and took to a life of consuming the many eggs that float haphazardly throughout the Dixon-Darwin-Vivus water table. Their tail fin has extended across their backs, forming a dorsal fin that helps stabilize the ovilaro while swimming in the water column. Their tail is now forked, which in combination with its subcarangiform mode of swimming allows it to move with greater efficiency than its ancestors and cousins. This is particularly important because of its largely pelagic lifestyle, in which it searches the water column for the free-floating eggs of various water table organisms. Their eyes have atrophied and are hardly functional due to them largely abandoning scavenging. However, they will still sometimes scavenge the corpses of species that the now assimilated flashstring cannot infect. This occurs most when their main food source of eggs is lacking. With the water column no longer a safe place to lay their eggs, the ovilaro has switched to laying their eggs on the cave ceiling, which is a place ovilaros rarely venture to due to the low egg density. However, this region of the water table is suitable for the eggs and fry, with the eggs using it as a safe place and the fry using it as a site to filter feed before switching to ovivory and swimming into the lower reaches of the water table.

Additional note- I propose adding the Snapperswimmer, Dogelaro, and Snapperworm to the genus Setauris. The genus Fluvius is way too big and with everyone wanting to break down needlessly massive genera, this could be a good opportunity.

Flashlaro
(Setauris luxrixator)

Creator: Bufforpington
Ancestor: Dogelaro
Habitat: Dixon-Darwin Water Table, VIvus Water Table
Size: 5 cm Long
Diet: Scavenger, Herbivore (Flashkelps), Kleptoparasite
Reproduction: Sexual, Spawning, Eggs laid in carcasses

The flashlaro split from its ancestor after developing an adaptation that allowed it to scavenge flashstring-infested carcasses. This adaptation was a mucus coat that prevented the buds of the now-assimilated flashstring to take root on the flashlaro's skin. The only part of the flashlaro's body that is not covered in mucus is the beak, which is too hard for the flashstring to take root on. The flashlaro's immune system has adapted to the buds of the flashtring, with the alimentary tract being lined in specialized immune cells that inject invading buds with potent poisons capable of killing them upon taking root along the tract. Oddly enough, the flashlaro's mucus defense actually helps the flashstring propagate in new carcasses. This is because when the flashlaro enters an uninfested carcass, some of the flashlaro's mucus coat rubs off onto the corpse along with the buds. These buds then take root in the unoccupied corpse and then take over it.

The flashlaro's second major adaptation its its ability to use bioluminescence. This comes from the flashlaro's accidental consumption of flashstrings while feeding on infested carcasses. The luciferin contained within the flashstrings is moved to bioluminescent patches that run along the flashlaro's sides. The bioluminescent patch can then be lit at will via the excitation of the stored luciferin. These patches glow brighter than the flashtrings themselves and can be used to startle both predators and competitors alike. If predators are not warded off by the flashing lights, they will surely die from the flashstring buds embedded in the flashlaro's mucus coat. Flashlaros are particularly known to appear at uninfested carcasses and use their bioluminescence to scare off the dogelaros feeding on it, giving the flashlaro the entire carcass to feed on. Male flashlaros also use their bioluminescence in mating rituals, where they create rippling patterns along the length of their bioluminescent patches to attract females. In order to better handle the brightness of their own bioluminescence, the flashlaro's eyes have redeveloped to the point that they can handle higher levels of brightness and make out shapes. However, they cannot perceive colors.

The flashlaro's third adaptation is its fins. The caudal fin has extended over its back like that of the ovilaro. This increases its stability while swimming. Meanwhile, the tail fin has become better suited to subcarangiform swimming. The flashlaro's final adaptation is its sharper beak that is more capable of ripping through the flesh of the carcasses that make up the majority of its diet.

This post has been edited by Bufforpington: Dec 27 2020, 05:39 PM

Baṛādohve (Vomeganis imperiosus)

Creator: MNIDJM
Ancestor: Hemodohve (Vomax rojo)
Habitat: Fly Tropical Shallows, Barlowe (Twilight Floor), Barlowe (Twilight Slope)
Size: Carnivore (Deep Ribbon Gilltail, Floating Pumpgill, South Polar Shardgill, Scuttleball Gillfin, Gulperpump, Diamond Pumpgill, Greater Wolley, Floating Pumpgill, Sardchovy, Royal Scylarian, Sindohve, Sinduhk, Marine Tamow, Seashrog)
Diet: 5.6 m Long
Reproduction: Sexual, Two Genders, Live Birth

After thousands of generations living without competition in the Fly Tropical Shallows, the hemodohve carved out a realm for themselves to rule over, gradually gaining the spot of apex predator. Now their descendants have succeeded them as the unparalleled masters of their domain.They are much larger than their ancestor, taking advantage of the open niche, and now the average female baṛādohve can reach sizes up to 5.6 meters in length and 4000 kilograms. Like their ancestors, males are smaller, only reaching about 5 meters and 3500 kilos, though outliers for both sexes do exist.

Baṛādohve live in pods of a few dozen individuals, thought they are naturally transient and individuals will regularly drift in and out of pods. Like their ancestors they mainly hunt the various gilltail species localized in the shallows, but they have expanded to the other inhabitants of the area. They are able to use their collectives to hunt, and will use their groups to corral schools of gilltails into tight, ball formations and will one by one swim directly into them, grabbing mouthfuls of prey. They will occasionally hunt other, larger prey when the opportunity presents itself. such as related Royal Scylarians, the native tamshrews, and even various related members of the Vomex genus. While hunting the tamshrews, their main method is to ram under their floating nests until they splinter, though success is limited and risk of injury from their natural defenses and spears make these more attacks of opportunity.

During mating seasons, females will establish "breeding territories", where they will carve out sections of ocean which can be miles wide and which they raise their young alongside those of their fellow group-mates. Regions with more plentiful food and fewer predators are prime candidates, and non-related females will aggressively defend their territories from other competing females, though blood relatives will be tolerated somewhat. They generally will have 1-2 young at a time, expending their resources into protecting fewer young. They have a naturally small population due to resource availability and habitat size, with the largest global population record reaching ~345,000. This low breeding size and limited populations keep them from overhunting in their habitats, but it leaves them vulnerable to external pressures and disease.

---
Original concept by Nergali

Sting Cells (Pungifili spp.)

Creator: MNIDJM
Ancestor: Sting Cell
Habitat: Global (Sagan 4); All aquatic environments
Size: 0.5 - 1 μm string width
Diet: Cytovore
Reproduction: Fission

Hailing from an ancient lineage, the sting cells are one of the most unique forms of life native to the planet. They are the smallest form of life known to have arisen on Sagan 4, adapting to existence as a cellular endopredator. As an endopredator that hunts by inserting part of itself inside its prey and absorbing from the inside out, they have greatly simplified their cellular structures, allowing them to exist at a size small enough to fit into their prey. They are generally at a width of roughly 0.5 - 1 μm, small enough to force their string through the cellular pores, though their length can be drastically variable depending on how recently they have fed. They use chemoreceptors to search out potential prey cells, searching for ones large enough for them to force their strings through pores in the cellular membranes. Once they have successfully captured their prey, they will force the majority of the length of their string through the cellular pores, destroy the central nucleus, hijack the cell to make all the necessary macromolecules it needs for survival and produce more copies of their genome, before draining the preys and repeating the process.

Not having to rely on internal mechanisms to generate a sophisticated internal makeup allow them the latitude to simplify their genetic structure. They have no centralized nucleus; instead they have clusters of redundant copies of their genomes that are contained in a nucleotide region spanning the entire length of the cells. This simplified composition has come at the cost of most of the sting cells complex organelles, as they have now grown dependent on their prey’s cellular mechanisms to manufacture most macromolecules. Reproduction is done through fission, where then end of their cells will begin to fray at the ends, eventually splitting into independent cells. They are extremely diverse, with each species being prey-specific. They are found in all potential aquatic environments, from deep sea vents, to polar coasts, to rainforest puddles, to desert oases.

Integrated Species
---
Sting Cell