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The Bristlesquid features clear misinterpreted anatomy, with the mouth and anus swapping places. It was too complex for this to be possible as it was in early bilaterians on Earth. Given how its descendants evolved from there, including evolving eyes on the wrong end of the body and putting armor over where the actual mouth should be, it would be impossible to redesign to fix it, and a transitional form insert would not do either because the external appearance remains the same.

More primitive filtersquids that never swapped their mouth and anus still exist, and forms that echo back to quids could be re-evolved from them. Unless someone has an idea on how to repair quids, I'd like to propose they be wiped out somehow. I have some ideas for it that are hopefully more interesting than just having a suspension-of-disbelief pandemic.

This post has been edited by Disgustedorite: Feb 10 2021, 02:01 AM

Depending on lifestyles, it might be possible to save at least some of the quids by proposing they can digest at least some food. through their hind ends, like sea cucumbers. Some sea cucumber species have anal "teeth" to prevent animals, such as pearlfish, from going inside its bodies.

If any quids primarily eat half-buried in sediment, having eyes far down on its body and having some digestive capability through its anus would make the most sense.

This post has been edited by Coolsteph: Feb 10 2021, 06:50 AM

This would have to be explained as far back as Bristlesquid, though. Bristlesquid is outright depicted with one of its tentacles up its butt.

Looking at the image, perhaps it could be explained away as it not feeding in this pic, but doing something else? They have holes in-between each tentacle through which water is forced through, as it states here:

"In spite of this, they continue to possess the filtersquid's feeding ability, which is to pull water into its siphon and through its filter-mouth into an internal chamber. Once this chamber is full, the collected food is swallowed, and the bristlesquid will then seal its throat and squeeze the water out though a small hole between its tentacles. The water jet is capable of slightly more directional pivoting, allowing more precise movements, and can produce quick bursts of speeds; this jet is their only form of movement."

Perhaps this might be a cleaning behavior, keeping the holes clean for times when something more than water is forced through them by mistake?

Admittedly, this would require changing the paragraph before, which details the whole setae-lined tentacles which are utilized for feeding by moving them into the mouth... unless somehow, since those holes are connected to the chamber where food is put, they might serve a secondary, unintentional function as additional mouths?

This post has been edited by Nergali: Feb 11 2021, 03:57 AM

There's still the issue of all of its descendants, though.