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Chitolaks (Kynoliths spp.)
Creator: Oceansky
Ancestor: Photolaks
Habitat: World Ocean (Twilight Zone and above)
Size: 20-75 μm long cells, up to 700 μm wide sheets
Support: Cytoskeleton, Test (Chitin)
Diet: Photosynthesis, Planktivore (1-65 μm), Scavenger, Detritivore, Nitrification
Respiration: Aerobic
Thermoregulation: Ectotherm
Reproduction: Asexual (budding), Horizontal gene transfer

In spite of the recent nitrogen crash, a genus of Photolaks descendants has emerged that uses chitin to form a test that protects its body from parasites and cytovores like Bentripars. This test has holes that allow it to reach pseudopods through, but these will retract if the Chitolak sense anything that might be a threat. These holes are usually congruent with their cell membrane, although fold inwards and pops out if the pseudopod it surrounds is retracted. This applies to the pseudopods connected to their stomata. If something tries to reach inside of these holes, they will use their pseudopod to pull whatever entered it into its body and try dissolving it. This serves as both a defensive and feeding strategy. This may result in tearing larger things that can't fully fit inside of it, and if this serves futile, it will simply try expelling it back through the way it came. But if this won't work either or it begins breaking apart itself, the individual will disconnect from the rest of the colony if it is in one.

The countless species of Chitolaks vary greatly in their diet, there being a total of 5 subgenera, three of which primarily differ in what species of Photosagnia they use the organelles of and where they live. The other two subgenera, however, are unique; one has a nearly global range and gains most of its energy from nitrification using organelles taken from consumed Globanitrates. The other subgenera has completely lost its need for photosynthesis and has become a full on heterotroph again, outcompeting the Common Sticclak in the process. They have developed a method of reproduction involving trading genetic information between individuals in a sheet, which has allowed for its wide diversity.

Many species which rely on the photosynthetic organelles of Photosagnia species will not latch onto objects, instead being able to reproduce after living for 1-5 hours. One subgenera, however, retains their ancestral lifestyle, and mostly come in reddish and purple colors due to primarily relying on benthic species for their organelles. These are also fairly well-rounded in terms of their diet, since the species they rely on themselves mostly rely more on organic matter to survive than photosynthesis. Members of these three subgenera may also be different colors, and some are very bad at sustaining their photosynthetic organelles, while reproducing the fastest. The one kind of unicellular Photosagnia none of these genera have managed to adapt to using, however, are Lithosagnia, since the hydrated silica on their cell wall, even in smaller species, can pose a huge risk to their pseudopods and interior, and the cell wall alone is tough to digest.

All species that rely on a species of Photosagnia to survive start life with a copy of the required organelles in their bodies, but only if the parent cell already had some. All five of the subgenera have collectively outcompeted their ancestors, Photolaks, in all of the environments they share. This has left only Photolaks in the Dorite Sea and Freshwater environments. Freshwater Photolaks were already very rare to begin with due to living for such a short amount of time, since they don't have access to Photosagnia Luculentus and overall seem like a mystery as to why and how they exist. These populations of Photolaks are referred to as "Paradox Photolaks". Species in Dorite, however, live just as they did before. Their test, which is primarily composed of chitin, is difficult to poke or tear through by some things, since because it is neither tough or thick, it's almost like plastic. Outside of this, most genera are largely the same as their ancestors, as strange microbes that have a lifestyle dependent on the organelles of other species and a life cycle involving drifting and stationary stages.

Fascinating. I believe this is the first instance of local-level extinction of a genus group by its descendants. It was useful to mention the "Paradox Photolaks".

Other Feedback

Template

Sentences in the template are customarily capitalized, most likely because they look better in this format. On the wiki, lines in the template are almost always consistently capitalized. The uncapitalized sentences are in the Habitat, Size, Diet, Thermoregulation, Respiration, Reproduction. I noticed the Creator, Ancestor, and Support lines are capitalized properly, so it seems this was an oversight.

The standard term for organisms that take on the temperature of the outside environment is “ectothermy”.

Description

A quick check shows that is one massive paragraph. Splitting it up into four paragraphs should be sufficient.

“Chitin” should not be capitalized.
“The test has holes[…] “it to reach […]” “if they sense” […]”. This suggests it’s the tentacles, not the full organism, which senses anything that might be a threat. Is that what you intended?
“Folds inwards”: “it folds inwards”.
“Primarily differing”: “primarily differ”.
“Are unique, one”. The comma should be a period or semicolon.
“Stolen from Globanitrates” This kind of exciting terminology might be popular in pop-science, but it seems unjustifiably emotionally-charged in this context.
“starts life”: “Start life”.
“However only”: “but only”.
"psuedopods": "pseudopods".
“Dependant on”: “dependent on”. Did you make this with spell-check? Even the Notes program on a Mac, which I’m using for this, can pick up on “dependant”.

I've made all the corrections and edits you suggested, plus fixed a few you didn't notice.

The material of the test should be specified in the form, like Test (Material)

I've added that now.