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Name: Indigallop (Tragogryphus velox)
Creator: OviraptorFan
Ancestor: Frilled Greenscale (Clypeatops ceratopsmimus)
Habitat: Vivus Rocky, Vivus Volcanic, Vivus High Grassland, Vivus Boreal, Vivus Alpine (summer resident)
Size: 1.6 meters long
Support: Endoskeleton (Jointed Wood)
Diet: Herbivore (Crystalpine saplings, Fibreflora, Aloeberacteus, Phalangrass, Marblemelon, Gecoba Tree fruit, Bloodsap Melontree fruit, Quone nuts, Boreal Tubeplage, Yuccagave, Snow Windbulb, Robust Arid Ferine, Crystal Swordgrass, Bristlepile, Chameleon Obsidishank saplings, Obsidoak saplings, Sunstalks, Pioneeroots, Marbleflora, Kory Claw, Pagoda Crystal, Mountain Pagoda Crystal, Tepostone, Cryobowls, Stoutplage, Crowned Kingrush, Fibrillius, Twin-Tail Orbibom, Feroak saplings, Broad-Trunk Obsiditree saplings), Photosynthesis
Respiration: Active (Lungs)
Thermoregulation: Endotherm
Reproduction: Sexual, Live Birth, 2 Genders

In Vivus, bubbleskins such as the bubblewraptor were the main threats. Being large pack hunters, these particular predatory shrews put large evolutionary pressures on the frilled greenscales. Since they lacked any real weapons to fight off these bubbleskins, the only real option for these verdanidermids was to flee. To better run from these carnivores, some populations of frilled greenscales became smaller and developed longer legs to move more quickly. Among other changes, this would lead to the evolution of the indigallop, who would split off from their ancestors to become fleet-footed herbivores.

Though it shares its range with the argeiphlock in the Vivus Rocky biome, it avoids competition by being less selective on what the species consumes. So while the argeiphlock feeds more selectively on flora parts that are more nutritious, an indigallop will just consume the whole thing. Their powerful wooden beaks allow the indigallop to crush tough flora so they can be more easily digested. The indigallop also still gets some of their energy from the photosynthetic scales that cover their whole bodies, though the scales have incorporated a large amount of anthocyanin within their tissues which allows them to blend in with the abundant purpleflora which helps them avoid being detected by potential predators.

The legs of the indigallop are noticeably longer and the whole body is leaner overall. This helps save weight and so they can move faster, while the longer legs mean a larger stride for their body size so they cover more ground compared to their ancestor. The two hooves on each foot help with both navigating rocky terrain and providing better traction as they run. The Indigallop has also, however, developed additional defenses that aid it when running away doesn't work. This includes large wooden spurs on their hind legs so which can deliver powerful kicks at anything behind them while the thorns around the tip of their butt-nostril have become larger and more robust and are used to smack attackers.

Much like their ancestors, the indigallop has a frill on both sexes, with males having bright colors on said frill to help attract mates. Males also not only have a larger cheek spike than females, but also have developed a second cheek spike. Unlike their ancestors, however, males do not use these spikes to fight each other and instead only use the four cheek spikes to show their health, age, and overall fitness to mates or rivals. While females lack the second pair of cheek spikes and their only pair of cheek spikes are slightly smaller, both sexes do occasionally use these spikes to gore an attacker from the side so it has become larger overall than their ancestor.

As the indigallop travels in herds that wander around the landscape as they spend most of their time feeding and watching out for danger, youngsters need to be able to keep up from the beginning. Because of this, female indigallops only typically give birth to one youngster at a time. Though they occasionally give birth to twins, one often is underdeveloped and so only one of them usually survives to adulthood. By having less young overall, the indigallop can give the calf more time and resources to develop, so they can run with the mother within a few minutes after being born. Male indigallops spend less time caring for one individual female and her calf since the baby is more developed and thus needs less intensive care and so they now spend more of their time guarding a small group of females overall. The herds of an indigallop can be relatively defined as an aggregation of small groups which in turn consist of a sexually mature male guarding his group of females and their young. Male indigallops will tolerate one another in these herds as long as none of them try to make a move on the other’s females, with any caught doing so often getting attacked by the male guarding that specific group of females. Any male indigallop will try to obtain more breeding females in their group when possible, and will try to do this either by challenging a male guarding a different group or sneaking into the group and trying to woo a female into mating with them. Males who do not guard any groups of females often come together into bachelor groups, which travel separately from the large herds. The males in these bachelor groups are often much less on guard with one another since there are no females in these groups for them to steal/guard. Once a young indigallop becomes around 1 and a half years old, they will leave their family group to join other ones or make their own.

Due to their adaptations for speed, better defenses like weapons and camouflage, and their more generalistic diet, the indigallop has caused the frilled greenscale to decline in the areas they coexist until they eventually died out. Now the frilled greenscale only persists in the High Deserts of Vivus, where the indigallop does not live due to the arid landscape not providing enough flora for them to make a living. The indigallop also travels into the Vivus Alpine during the warm summer months to take advantage of abundant flora growth such as pioneeroots and crystal swordgrass, but they must head back down into neighboring biomes when the alpine winter arrives since they would not survive the bitter cold it brings with it.

Here is my first submission for the gen, I had it ready for Gen 164 but someone beat me to the last slot before I could submit it.

The Crowned Treeshrog

Vulpelutra arbor
Creator: Changeling (Formerly Bonosaber)
Ancestor: The Maineiac Rivershrog
Habitat: Maineiac Boreal, Maineiac Temperate Woodlands
Size: 60 centimeters
Support: Endoskeleton (Bone)
Diet: Carnivore (Maineiac Uktank, Pebbleback, elderly Armored Pedesorm, Fruitsnappers, Frosty Sauceback)
Respiration: Active (Lungs)
Thermoregulation: Endotherm (Fur)
Reproduction: Sexual (Male and Female, Live Birth, Milk)

This species of Shrog has split from their ancestors to move into the trees of Maineiac, with its main population dwelling in the Boreal forest, though some populations have grown in more temperate areas. The trees have given them a further field of view, and their eyes and ears have developed to give them a wider range of senses. They prefer to function as ambush predators, and have harnessed their intellect to better ambush prey

Anatomy

The Crowned Treeshrog’s immediate change from its ancestor is the larger number of “horns” on its head. These are specialized osteoderms and are mainly ornamental, though they do have a simplistic use in determining hierarchy among cooperating nests. If a Treeshrog has bigger horns, it is assumed to be better at hunting to get enough food to support the weight on its head. For this reason in stalemates Treeshrogs will follow the Shrog with more ornaments. The osteoderms on their backs meanwhile have become fewer in number but larger, giving them mild protection against unlucky blows.

Their hind feet have also adapted to life in the trees, the toes separating and lengthening for a better grip. Their hands are elongated too, and the fur on their fingers is less dense. They are a bit more balanced on two legs, they are not true bipeds, but they still can stand upright and can walk on two legs when they have support. However when chasing prey they will still run on all fours, their spears gripped tight in their hands or teeth. Gripping their spears in their hands while walking has encouraged some of them to knuckle-walk, though it is still not an ideal posture for them. They are no longer good swimmers, though they still are buoyant. They have also adapted for a smaller size than their predecessor, as the Four Prongians are their preferred tree to nest in, and those trees cannot stand much weight.

One pair of their eyes are larger now, and mostly is used to see in front of them. The other two pairs of eye search the immediate area around them, looking for potential prey or dangers. Their head is a bit proportionally bigger now, in part because their brain has become more complex to handle not only its intelligence but it’s stronger senses.

Behavior

The Crowned Treeshrog typically live in small family groups of two parents and their current joeys. However they have inherited the ability to cooperate with hunts from their ancestor, and improved it. To this end they have developed two calls “Rah” meaning “chase” (prey) and “ikka” meaning “wait.” (for prey) When they are hunting, one family will harass and pursue prey, driving them towards a Treeshrog nest. As they draw close a second family will wait in the trees or bushes, and as the prey hurried past the second group will assault them with their spears, using surprise to cripple them. They have developed a slight hierarchy to better coordinate these hunts too, with Treeshrogs with the most horns typically given priority to assign roles.

Treeshrog nests still are far apart, but there is less of a gap than in the Rivershrogs. This is because Treeshrog homes are smaller, and are built into a tree, typically a Four Prongian but some nests will use Repeating Treebion’s when lacking options. They will use fallen sticks to support and mold the trees’ branches, encouraging them to bend and form a large hollow ring around the tree. These will be tied together with roots and baebula branches, with other branches used as support beams below the nest, a leftover from their ancestors’ stilts. These ring shaped nests will have a few simple rooms, places to sleep, store food, and store spears and nest repairing supplies,

Most Treeshrogs get impatient while waiting in ambush, so they will grind their claws down on their spears as a sort of fidget. This leaves a multitude of shallow gashes in their spears, as well as trimming their claws. They mostly use their tails just to sharpen spears and cut branches, and rarely ever will saw down a whole log.

Relations with their ancestor can be difficult, as Rivershrogs will enter the Boreal to harvest Four-Prongian and Repeating Treebion logs to make their nests out of. When Treeshrogs suspect Rivershrogs plan to knock over their homes they will begin to bark aggressively, and will hurl small sticks and twigs down at them. They have not figured how to throw spears, this is merely a territorial display. On less hostile occasions, Treeshrogs and Rivershrogs will cooperate on hunts, with Rivershrogs leading prey into Treeshrog ambushes.

While they can live up to roughly thirty five years, their life expectancy is roughly fifteen. Their ancestors have also passed down their “bisexuality,” with the number of horns and size of their big horn making a mate more desirable, regardless of sex. This does extend to any Shrog with large horns, and Rivershrogs and Treeshrogs will interbreed on occasion. This can lead to sterile hybrid, though multiple species nests are functionally impossible given their very different lifestyles. Treeshrogs will not typically breed with Wolvershrogs despite their overlapping ranges.

Camobacks can compete with Treeshrogs in the Temperate Woodlands on rare occasions, as both are ambush predators. Their strategies do differ as Treeshrogs are arboreal hunters deliberately lead their prey into an ambush using simplistic cooperative hunts, while the Camoback are solitary ambush predators who pursue their prey to catch them. Treeshrogs on occasion will accidentally disrupt a Camoback’s hunt by startling a herd, and while this sometimes can work in a Camoback’s favor, the larger predator is aggressively to the Shrogs. Treeshrogs for their part are aggressive towards Camoback’s, and will throw twigs at them to drive them off if they get too close to a nest. Logcrushers much like Rivershrogs could destroy their nests, so they try to drive them away as well.

…

Well, it’s been over a decade, and I am roughly twice as old as I was back then, but here’s my take on a Shrog. I am a bit rusty, so apologies for any missteps I have made. Do let me know if anything is inaccurate to Sagan 4 biology, geography, or anything else, and I will make adjustments.

This post has been edited by Changeling: Oct 29 2021, 06:37 PM

Rumpipe (Aurisus polyauris)
Creator: Disgustedorite
Ancestor: Grand Buttpiper
Habitat: Barlowe Temperate Woodland, Barlowe Temperate Rainforest
Size: 40 cm long
Support: Endoskeleton (Unjointed Wood)
Diet: Herbivore (Marbleflora, Marblora, Pioneeroots, Clusterblades, Rainforest Carnofern, Barnline, Tusovinda)
Respiration: Active (Lungs)
Thermoregulation: Endotherm
Reproduction: Sexual (Male and Female, Live Birth)

The rumpipe split from its ancestor. It has shrunken slightly to adapt for the forested environment. True to its name, its woody pipe-like butt nostrils are tightly curled against its rump, making them less conspicuous to predators than in other buttpiper species. Its external sacs have been visually internalized as well, though technically its rump has grown to envelop them, as they are internally covered by what amounts to a pair of bellows-like tails encased in skin. This is because being conspicuous to attract mates was judged by evolution to not be a good trade-off for camouflage in its particular case.

The rumpipe's scientific name--Aurisus polyauris--means "ear pig many ears". This is because of its vague resemblance to a pig, and because it has a ridiculous number of ears. Plent leaves can be easily reduplicated in most groups, and the outer ears of phylaurans are just modified leaves; therefore, the outer ear can be reduplicated as well. The many ears form a pair of ridges down the rumpipe's back, which break up its shape in the forested environment with aid from its many vertical stripes. The "ears" can also be raised and lowered in sync to communicate emotion, which is important for this social creature. Only the front-most pair leads to the middle ear, and therefore only they can detect sound.

The rumpipe is social, much like its ancestor. Its pipes are used not only to attract mates, but also to communicate with its group, producing complex whistling and honking sounds including warning calls (a disharmonious "HROOOOONK") and social noises (gentle whistles nearby and short toots at a distance). To attract mates, they "sing", much like a Terran songbird, using their four pipes to produce chords.

Rumpipes are nomadic, as they lack any means to protect themselves in nests or burrows. Like all ambulatory plents, they mate mouth to mouth and give live birth. Their offspring are fairly developed and can walk and even run within an hour of being born, despite their small size stemming from the limitation of having to squeeze out of their mother's mouth. This is so that the group doesn't need to stop to care for young, which would put them at higher risk of predation.

The rumpipe was so successful that it has outcompeted the buttpiper within its range. This is because its camouflage is more effective than the buttpiper's within Barlowe's woodland biomes, thus the buttpiper was eaten or chased away from its food source more often than the rumpipe. The buttpiper still exists in other biomes.

Fourmaw Sauceback (Quattuorgnathus megagingivus)
Creator: Disgustedorite
Ancestor: Logworm Sauceback
Habitat: Barlowe Temperate Woodland, Barlowe Temperate Rainforest
Size: 4 cm long
Support: Endoskeleton (Chitin)
Diet: Adult: Omnivore (Logworm Sauceback larvae, Teacup Sauceback larvae, Vermees, occasional cannibal of larvae); Juvenile: Detritivore (Wood, chitin)
Respiration: Active (Microlungs)
Thermoregulation: Adult: Endotherm (Feathers), Ectotherm (Hibernation) over winter; Larvae: Ectotherm
Reproduction: Sexual (Male and Female, Eggs and Larvae)

The fourmaw sauceback split from its ancestor. For some logworm saucebacks, being able to live longer as adults proved better for finding mates, resulting in an unexpected turn where some regained the ability to eat as adults. As they had lost their jaws, transitioning to being able to eat again was a slow, awkward process, but they ultimately found a solution: convergent with the long-extinct four-jawed saucebacks, the fourmaw sauceback has similarly arrived at a four-jawed mouth through elongation of some of its teeth and gums.

Each "jaw" consists of two teeth bound together by gum tissue. The spaces between the jaws each contain a single additional tooth which aids in swallowing, giving it a total of 12 teeth, which is the typical amount for the broader Dixon-Barlowe sauceback clade. The jaws can be retracted into the mouth, though the tips of the teeth remain exposed. The gums are also chemoreceptive, as they are in all beastworms, though they are mainly used for tasting while the nostrils remain in use for scent.

Adult fourmaw saucebacks are carnivores, as meat is easy to digest, and they primarily eat the larvae of other "shrewbacks". They will also eat vermees, which are in a similar ecological niche. Doing so eliminates competition for their offspring. They have a somewhat slower metabolism than other shrewbacks, so they do not starve extremely quickly and can go a few days without food. During the fall, they become excessively gluttonous, bulking up so that they may hibernate over winter and even eating the larvae of their own species. Compared to their ancestor's single-day adult life, an adult fourmaw can live as long as 3 years, though its health starts to deteriorate after only 2 due to damage to its telomeres caused by genetic drift in its ancestor. Like most saucebacks, they are blind and "see" using echolocation.

Juvenile fourmaw saucebacks are generally similar to logworms, though they can digest chitin such as that in glass flora more readily. They are ectothermic and reach their adult length before bulking up into what can be best described as a fat hairy sausage and undergoing metamorphosis in a burrow. Their "fat hairy sausage" stage is somewhat less fat than in their ancestor, however, due to their lower adult metabolism and less dire need to produce a ton of gametes. Juveniles brumate over winter and emerge as adults at different times throughout the year, generally exactly one year after the eggs they hatched from were laid.

Fourmaw saucebacks lack a mating season, but their mating practices are no less dramatic, just more spaced out. They are fertile throughout the year except during hibernation, and males will try to mate with any receptive female they encounter, identified by ultrasonic chirping calls produced using their tongues. As the need to find a mate is less dire, males no longer have giant manes, instead simply having longer feathers on the backs of their necks which are raised to intimidate one another. They will fight and sometimes even kill one another for the right to mate with a particular female, and it is not uncommon for older males to have scarred faces and torn ears. If more than two males are fighting over a particular female, however, the losers usually do not continue to fight and will instead mate with each other. Though this might seem counter-productive, it instantly reduces their aggression and hormone levels, preventing them from continuing to fight over nothing. Lone losers may instead attempt to mate with leaves or other shrewback species to a similar effect. Like its ancestor, the fourmaw sauceback offers no parental care and lays lots of eggs, though the exact number has reduced to only around 200 per mating.

Velocitoon (Sorex crash)
Creator: Disgustedorite
Ancestor: Opportunity Shrew
Habitat: Darwin Chapparal, Darwin Plains, Vivus Rocky, Vivus High Grassland, Dixon-Darwin Rocky, Dixon-Darwin High Grassland, Bone Temperate Riparian, Irinya Temperate Riparian
Size: 62 cm long
Support: Endoskeleton (Bone)
Diet: Omnivore (Sausophrey eggs, Hearthead eggs, Brighteyes eggs, Argusraptor eggs, Interbiat eggs, Cardicracker eggs, Teacup Saucebacks, Guangu eggs, Dinotuga eggs, Shikaaree eggs, Nectarsnapper eggs, Kehaida eggs, Ramchin eggs, Nightsnapper eggs, Robynsnapper eggs, Vivus Slitherworm eggs, Lizatokage eggs, Thin Lizatokage eggs, Egg Lizatokage eggs, Grassland Lizatokage eggs, Xatazelle eggs, Xatagolin eggs, Eggslurping Sorite, Fruiting Grovecrystal fruit, Tubeplage fruit, Scrubland Tubeplage fruit, Scrubland Quhft fruit, Boreal Tubeplage fruit, Feroak berries, Fuzzpile Berries, Bristlepile berries, Gecoba Tree fruit, Robust Arid Ferine berries, Cragmyr berries, Dungshell Fraboo)
Respiration: Active (Lungs)
Thermoregulation: Endotherm (Fur)
Reproduction: Sexual (Male and Female, Live Birth, Pouch and Milk)

The velocitoon split from its ancestor. Through convergent evolution, it closely resembles its extinct distant ancestor, the velishroot. Much like the velishroot, it is very fast. Though it still feasts upon the eggs of saucebacks (now identified more by scent than sound), it will eat other eggs as well as egg-eating competitors such as the Eggslurping Sorite. It has also adopted a taste for fruit, allowing it to avoid too much direct competition with either its direct ancestor or with the neoshrew. It is also able to utilize its very good hearing to locate and gobble up adult teacup saucebacks like they're popcorn, keeping the populations of the rapidly-reproducing tiny saucebacks in check. The velocitoon is also able to break open the shells of eggs, crystal fruit, and rarely even fraboos by holding them in its mouth and chucking them sideways into rocks. It has four toes on each foot.

The velocitoon's coloration allows it to blend in with soil. Vivus populations are often melanistic to match darker soils. Male velocitoons have unusual blue fur on the insides of their ears, which are attractive because they serve as a health indicator and can be used to signal status to other males. Normally, fur cannot be blue because it is a monofilament, but the velocitoon has found a workaround using the arrangement of the hairs themselves. This only works because the hairs are very short, so they remain in the right position to maintain structural color rather than flopping around too much like the longer fur on the rest of the body.

Unlike its ancestor, the velocitoon lives in small groups. It still lives in burrows, often much deeper than those of its ancestor, and when it steals burrows it excavates them further for its own use. It travels far from its burrow to find food, but when confronted by a predator it can almost always sprint straight home. Each social group contains a single dominant male, some number of subordinate males, and several females. The dominant male is generally the strongest and most attractive and gets first choice of females to mate with. Mating occurs every year in late winter. Velocitoon offspring are born as helpless fetal larvae, much like those of terran marsupials, and live exclusively in their mother's pouch suckling milk early in life. They develop enough to leave their mother's pouch in early spring, but in colder parts of their range they nonetheless remain in the burrow or rest in their mother's pouch to avoid being killed by predators or unexpectedly by late-arriving frost. Upon reaching adulthood, about 1 year after birth, most of them disperse to join other social groups.

The velocitoon indirectly caused the local extinction of the shikaaree. This is because the pressure caused by the consumption of their eggs caused shikaarees to experience a considerable dip in their population. The shikaaree was not eaten to extinction, but rather was unable to eat enough to maintain itself after the population dip because, without group tactics, large prey were able to successfully defend themselves against it more and more often until the local populations either starved to death or collapsed from inbreeding depression.

Name: Boschian Paardavogel (Caimocursor rapax)
Creator: OviraptorFan
Ancestor: Plehexapod (Plenthexus neoplentus)
Habitat: Darwin Plains, Darwin Chaparral, Vivus Rocky, Vivus High Grassland, Dixon-Darwin High Grassland
Size: 1 meter tall, 2 meters long
Support: Endoskeleton (Jointed Wood)
Diet: Carnivore (Snoofloo, Rosybeak Phyler, High Grassland Ukback, Handlicker Dundi, Sitting Dundi, Binsnoo, Varant, Grassland Lizatokage, Dundigger, Hearthead, Shroom Herder juveniles, Hearthead juveniles and larvae, Striped Phlock juveniles, Argeiphlock juveniles, Gruesloo juveniles, Scrambled Shrew, Kehaida, Gryphler, Brighteyes, Treehook Tamow, Spinebutt Plexo, Teacup Saucebacks, Smirking Soriparasite, Eggslurping Sorite, Sausophrey juveniles, Dinotuga, Vivusian Barkback, Vivus Slitherworm, Indigallop juveniles, Lizatokage, Thin Lizatokage, Ziraber, Egg Lizatokage, Phouka, Pikashrew, Clusterback juveniles, Xatagolin, Neoshrew, Tasermane, Dualtrunk juveniles, Opportunity Shrew, Stink Shrew, Interbiat, Xatazelle, Pickaxe Tamow, Desert Tilecorn juveniles, Velocitoon, Feroakage(ocassionally), Guangu(ocassionally)), Scavenger, Photosynthesis
Respiration: Active (Lungs)
Thermoregulation: Mesotherm (Basking, Muscle-Generated Heat)
Reproduction: Sexual, Live Birth, Two Genders

The boschian paardavogel split off from the plehexapod as populations moved away from hunting small insect-like creatures like vermees to hunting a wide variety of small game like lizatokages or small shrews. This would lead to a variety of adaptations to chasing down more active prey like lizatokages or small shrews. At first glance, the boschian paardavogel probably does not look too different from their ancestor. This is due to it retaining the long limbs for cursorial locomotion since they give it a larger stride length and thus cover move ground while using less energy.

The main differences are in the head and front limbs, with the boschian paardavogel’s hooked beak being well suited for ripping apart prey into small chunks that can then be swallowed. The bill is still made of wood, however, since the boschian paardavogel’s reproductive methods have not changed at all with a female still holding her young in a pouch. This pouch still gets filled with oxygen so the young can breathe, while the female does not eat and instead relies on fat reserves built up from eating large quantities of food beforehand. The male still aids in rearing the offspring by providing them fresh meat. Once the young become too big and unwieldy to safely carry, the mother will vomit up the juveniles, with the jaw’s ability to unhinge still helping to make the task easier. Due to the need for the taxon's jaws to be stretchy, however, the boschian paardavogel can’t make it tougher to better resist the stress of struggling prey.

Instead, the boschian paardavogel relies on its forelimbs to capture and kill prey, with the claw on these limbs having become large and serrated. Since these claws are the main killing tools, they often undergo a lot of stress from struggling prey so the evolution of calcified claws proved advantageous in the boschian paardavogel.

Much like the golden spinebutt plexo, the boschian paardavogel has high amounts of carotenoids and anthocyanins in their skin, giving the boschian paardavogel their orange and purple coloration. This adaptation developed overtime as the boschian paardavogels with such a feature were able to blend in with their surroundings and thus get close enough to prey to then initiate a chase. This also allows them to avoid potential threats such as argusraptors which are present in some of their range. If they are spotted by potential predators and are chased down, their forelimbs can swipe at attackers and deal lethal wounds or their “wing-legs” can deliver a powerful kick. The “tailstril” has also developed larger and more numerous “needles” to prevent predators from biting it, though these spines are not as enormous as those found on the spinebutt plexos.

Unlike their ancestors, the boschian paardavogel are cathemeral predators, meaning they are active at irregular intervals throughout the day and night. This allows them to hunt both diurnal and nocturnal prey and partially avoid directly competing with strictly diurnal or strictly nocturnal predators. In the Dixon-Darwin High Grassland, however, the presence of highly competitive argusraptors forced the local populations of boschian paardavogel into being strictly nocturnal since the saucebacks cannot see as well at night though the two species still get into confrontations at times.

Tada! Here is another descendant of the Plehexapod! This one going a very different path from the Spinebutt Plexos! Do give your thoughts on it!

This post has been edited by OviraptorFan: Nov 6 2021, 11:16 AM

Fatcoat (Properpellis atholus)
Creator: Disgustedorite
Ancestor: Torpcoat
Habitat: South Jujubee Temperate Ocean, South LadyM Temperate Ocean, Jujubee Tropical Ocean, LadyM Tropical Ocean, North Jujubee Temperate Ocean, North LadyM Temperate Ocean, Wind Temperate Coast, Dass Temperate Coast, Jlindy Tropical Coast, BigL Tropical Coast, Clarke Temperate Coast, King Tropical Coast, Chum Tropical Coast, Elerd Temperate Coast, Fermi Temperate Coast, Soma Temperate Coast, Oz Temperate Coast, Hydro Tropical Coast, Fly Tropical Shallows, Maineiac Temperate Coast, Wind Temperate Beach, Dass Temperate Beach, Jlindy Tropical Beach, BigL Tropical Beach, Clarke Temperate Beach, King Tropical Beach, Chum Tropical Beach, Elerd Temperate Beach, Fermi Temperate Beach, Soma Temperate Beach, Oz Temperate Beach, Hydro Tropical Beach, Ramul Temperate Beach, Maineiac Temperate Beach, Driftwood Islands Tropical Bank, Driftwood Islands Temperate Bank, Driftwood Islands Tropical Shallows, Driftwood Islands Temperate Shallows
Size: 70 cm long
Support: Endoskeleton (Jointed Wood)
Diet: Carnivore (Diamond Pumpgill, Scuttleball Gillfin, Cerulean Gillfin, Islandball Gillfin, Colonial Filtersquid, Wolley, Bloister, Strainerbeak, Gillrom, Imprisoned Wolley, Floating Pumpgill, Metamorph Spinderorm, Burraroms, Gulperpump, South Polar Shardgill, Gillarill, Southern Gillfin, Ocean Echofin, Follower Gilltail, Kiturorm, Scuttlers, Globespot Gilltail, Quralrorm)
Respiration: Active (Lungs)
Thermoregulation: Endotherm (Cotton, Blubber)
Reproduction: Sexual (Male and Female, Live Birth)

The fatcoat replaced its ancestor in its overlapping range. Its cotton pelt has mutated to cover its entire body again, supplemented by waterproofing oils to have it not cause drag exactly as it did in its ancestor's ancestor, and it is now straight instead of curly. This allows it to thermoregulate properly on land as well as water as a small creature. Speaking of, it no longer exists exclusively in water, as being a small plent with a heavy newborn size restriction and not being fully adapted for aquatic life, its ancestors' babies were extremely likely to drown immediately after birth and therefore they were under a massive selective pressure that led them to simply resume giving birth on land. This was extremely easy to do, as their legs were still well-developed and never actually lost any ability to be used on land. Its toe "bones" are broad and fused into flat, flexible paddles, which do not restrict its ability to walk while also making them function better for swimming. It has countershaded coloration, which makes it more cryptic.

The fatcoat has a powerful bite. It uses its prehensile tongue, which has a hand at the end, to snatch prey and pull it into its mouth. This is similar to the strategy employed by Terran cephalopods. It can administer an electric shock to stun smaller prey, but for larger prey it kills entirely using its bite. Its lower jaw no longer acts as a fin, as it did not provide much stabilization anyway and was better used as exactly what it is--a jaw. Its ears are small, but not nonexistent, and it senses vibrations in water better using fat that occupies the space where its dome once was. Speaking of, it lost its dome for the same reason it no longer uses its jaw as a fin--it was not assisting much in stabilization and, as a truly vestigial structure, it was completely lost. Its tail is short and points upwards so that the butt nostril may be quickly raised above water.

The fatcoat, as its name implies, is fat. When basking on shorelines, which it does regularly, it almost looks like a pathetic floppy sausage. Nonetheless, it is able to stand upright and waddle on land fairly well like a Terran penguin. Tropical populations are somewhat less fat, but still chubby, as being fat keeps them streamlined in water. It is social, basking, migrating, and hunting in groups of up to 30. As mentioned earlier, it gives birth on land, as it is not as aquatic-adapted as any secondarily aquatic animal that actually exists and can actually birth in the sea. Juveniles cannot dive at birth, as the limitations of plent reproduction and giving birth out their mouths forces them to be small, as it did in their ancestors--far too small to successfully fight currents and breathe. However, they are fluffy and able to float like ducklings or baby otters, guided and fed by their families swimming in the water below.

The fatcoat no longer has only one baby at a time (now 3-6) and gestates for considerably less time (1 month); in fact, its ancestor being listed as having 1 baby that gestated for a year was almost certainly an error, given its small size and mouth restriction that implied it somehow took a year to grow a baby that physically cannot be any larger than a rat. The fatcoat is very successful and can be found on every landmass. Its success can be owed in part to seafaring shrews, as it basks on their nests and on islands of driftwood that only exist as a result of their activity. This has allowed it to be able to technically bask and breed on open water through use of these floating structures.

Gallery image: Albino

Hypnotizer Waxface (Latrotherium pseudodentium)
Creator: Coolsteph
Ancestor: Pirate Waxface
Habitat: Fermi Temperate Beach
Size: 3 meters long
Support: Endoskeleton (Chitin)
Diet: Carnivore (Tilepillar, Sayront, Acucravat (mostly juveniles), Spinebacked Probeface (mostly juveniles) Gentonnas (mostly in winter) Blubber Flapper, Shorelance, Shailnitor, Chitjornpecker, young Flumpus (rarely), Hockel (rarely)) Scavenger
Respiration: Active (Microlungs)
Thermoregulation: Endotherm (Feathers)
Reproduction: Sexual (Male and Female, Ovoviviparous, Crop Milk)

Hypnotizer Waxfaces are an intelligent species, roughly on par with crab-eating macaques. Their use of tools gives them an advantage in taking down large prey or splitting apart meat from a carcass, though its advantages are limited due to its poor ability to actually craft tools.

==Diet==

Similarly to polar bears, their preferred foods are fatty, large fauna that get their food from the sea, but it's adaptable enough to eat all sorts of things. Tilepillars, Sayronts, Acucravats, Flumpuses and Gentonnas are its favorites, which aren't necessarily the most common in its diets. Gentonnas' thick blubber, starvation resistance, cold resistance, anti-predator adaptations and unique diet among large Fermian fauna mean they are, deep into winter, often the fattiest, otherwise in good condition, and the most available of all its suitable prey.

==Tools==

Their solitary lives seriously constrain the spread of new ideas, much less any community culture. Indeed, the only way their ideas spread much more than a genetic trait would is when one Hypnotizer Waxface is the model for a behavior to its mate, and the mate may, if their offspring are grown and its mate dies, take another mate and demonstrate that behavior to another.

Hypnotizer Waxfaces use spars of wood as tools. These tools are separated into two types: sharp-spars and broad-spars. Long, sharpened spars are used for hunting large prey or scaring off would-be competitors, though it is occasionally used for stabbing at the limbs of especially large and durable carcasses, functioning as an inefficient way to cut apart meat. Smaller spars with broader tips are used to uncover food in the sand or silt, to flip over stones, and occasionally to scrape sand off a carcass. Other than sharpening or narrowing the tips of spars using their tusks or mouth-ridges, Hypnotizer Waxfaces have little ability to modify tools and often takes them pre-made from local Shrogs.

Though the species as a whole can use various tools, some tools or techniques are limited to the populations that first came up with them, due to the lack of cultural spread, so any individual Hypnotizer Waxface only uses, on average, to 1-3 kinds of tools on anything approaching a regular basis.

Lacking a language, or even a sophisticated body language, they learn only by direct observation or experience. This is typically limited to young 'watching" (actually echolocating) their parents closely as they show how to use tools. Due to the limits of how many tools they use and how they learn how to use them, they cannot figure out how to use completely novel tools they find.

==Dexterous Physical Adaptations==

Lacking fingers or even a typical trunk, it manipulates objects using the back of its "neck" (actually a proboscis), the underside of its head, its mouth, mouth-ridges (similar to the beak-ridges of a goose) and tusk-jaws, a thumb-like spur on its back, and its toes. Changes to various parts of its body make manipulating objects somewhat easier than for its ancestor, if still awkward.

The back of its neck, or neck-palm, is bare and rough, and is used as a sort of crude arm when holding large tools. It is used roughly equivalently to a human carrying a stick by curling in an arm towards the chest. The young's neck-palms sport more feathers, but the feathers there are loose, and easily fall off as they handle large tools. The underside of its head, or "chin-palm", is sensitive. It something like a human palm, though much less sensitive. A Hypnotizer Waxface uses the sensory information from the underside of the head to adjust its grip when holding staffs, since its jaws themselves aren’t very sensitive.

For small objects, it simply sucks up small tools into its mouth, holding them by a combination of its mouth ridges and tusk-jaws. A lifetime of handling tools this way rounds down the points of its mouth ridges, but it is no threat to survival due to its use of various tools for killing prey and slicing apart meat.

A tough, calcified, somewhat bone-like spur grows like a horn from a small bare patch on its back, and early on its life grows within its body and fuses with its internal braincase, or "sauce". The spur is a sort of inflexible thumb that stabilizes the spars it grips.

Hypnotizer Waxfaces carry tools on their backs, amid coarse feathers. The feathers are softer and denser in the winter and when a female is carrying her offspring. The denser feathers may interfere with grip on their neck-palms and chin-palms, making them a little less dexterous.

==Behavior Between Mated Pairs==

When a female is carrying offspring, her mate is likely to pick up and carry her tools. More intelligent females will proactively, unwittingly use their mates as “pack animals” by loading tools on his back while she’s carrying offspring. However, they are not quite so intelligent they easily adapt to this unusual behavior: they have no language to convey the necessity of one of the pair carrying tools while the other carries the offfspring. Usually, the female of a mated pair must add tools onto her mate's back surreptitiously so he doesn’t shake off the extra weight. Similar stealthiness may be used when filching spars of wood from Shrogs, when abandoned Shrog nests are unavailable.

Their mating ritual involves prolonged observation, or "staring" (via echolocation, as they have no eyes) and “holding chins”, where they brush the undersides of the jaws together. Mated pairs periodically "stare" at each other and hold chins as a bonding ritual. They can select a new mate each year, although they commonly stay with the same one.

==Relationship with Gentonnas==

Hypnotizer Waxface often live near populations of Gentonnas, who do not fear them. Hypnotizer Waxfaces protect Gentonnas only inadvertently: predators that would eat Gentonnas are also threats to Hypnotizer Waxfaces' young and have overlapping diets. On the whole, living near Hypnotizer Waxfaces reduces predation on Gentonnas overall, especially for their young, and so fearing Gentonnas has not proven useful.

As much as Hypnotizer Waxfaces like the taste of Gentonna flesh, Gentonnas flee into the water too readily when frightened in warmer seasons, whether by a botched slaughter or predators other than Hypnotizer Waxfaces approaching. Gentonnas are also somewhat difficult to kill and dismember due to the process requiring trickery and tools.

When food is scarce (usually during winter), it lures a Gentonna away from the herd, sometimes with Mangot fruit-leaves, beyond the ability of other Gentonnas to see it, such as behind a rock. It slaughters the selected prey with a large spar (or spear filched from a Shrog) to the underbelly, usually after knocking it over first. It preferentially picks late-born juveniles or runts; they are easier to knock over, kill, and dismember.

It is more effective at luring away just one Gentonna from the herd and preventing the herd from noticing when another Hypnotizer Waxface is distracting the herd by repeatedly adjusting its neck shape on a staff in a rapid, conspicuous way. This “dance”, called “the hypnosis dance” or more humorously “the distraction dance” , varies among individuals, and even among individual occasions. For mated pairs, one may do a “group choreography” with several of its offspring (half-grown or more) all distracting the Gentonnas at the same time. Lacking a language or much ability to communicate, the sequence of pulling out and killing a Gentonna while another distracts it is often fumbled in some way.

It will attack any predator that gets too close to its Gentonnas, but especially Shrogs: their intelligence, use of spears, and good swimming ability make them the biggest threat to their "favorite foods". Populations that more frequently encounter Shrogs almost universally carry long, spear-like tools, which may be filched from the Shrogs themselves.

==Other Details==

Their waxy, waterproof feathers allow them to swim. Though their broader toes help them swim faster than their ancestor, they are not especially fast nor agile in the water.

It takes time to learn how to run without having large tools fall off its back, though, in a hurry, it will permit the tools to fall.

Name: Krotezuruck (Susochelys intervigilium)
Creator: OviraptorFan
Ancestor: Cryorasher (Tholusicalva lardum)
Habitat: Fermi Tundra, Fermi Polar Beach
Size: 1.4 meters long
Support: Endoskeleton (Bone)
Diet: Omnivore (Fat Korystal, Cryocanon, Stoutplage fruit, Polar Quilbil, Segmented Carnofern, Dome Crystal, Fruiting Glog, Polar Orbion stems, Beach Piloroot, Talfuzz, Pilonoroot, Retigroenx, Fuzzy Beachballs, Beach Carnofern, Polar Cellulosebane, Fermi Sunstalk, Sunleaf, Beach Colonystalks, Giant Hollowdome, Giant Hollowdome, Cryobowls, Glaalgaes, Chitjorns, Climbing Korrybug, Krugg, Helmethead Uksip, Uksor, Violet Cadovermi, Leafcutter Krugg, Spiked Krugg, Egg Krugg, Shieldworm, Spiny Wrigum, Snowsculptor Janit, Cloudswarmer larvae, Minikruggs)
Respiration: Active (Lungs)
Thermoregulation: Ectotherm
Reproduction: Sexual, Two Genders, Hemotrophic Viviparity of Larvae

As time progressed, the cryorasher began to decline, since being an ectotherm in a tundra environment proved to be disadvantageous. To survive, it would develop several unique adaptations to make it through the winters which resulted in these populations splitting off into the krotezuruck.

Much like its ancestor, the krotezuruck feeds on vegetation, though it is almost entirely herbivorous and only feeds on fauna as winter approaches to get enough nutrients to last the winter months. This gets turned into fat stored within their bulky tail, much like that of Terran lizards, to act as energy reserves during their long periods of torpor. Resting in their dugout burrows, krotezurucks will lower their metabolism to conserve as much energy as possible. The entire time, the thornback will rely upon anti-freezing proteins within their cells to prevent ice crystals of fatal size forming while they rest. Once the winter passes by and the environment begins to warm up, the krotezuruck will leave their state of torpor and leave the burrow to go back to foraging. They often emerge alongside hornsniffers, which often crawl into their burrows to seek shelter so they can also hibernate through the winter.

When the krotezuruck does emerge from its burrow in the spring, it begins feeding on the glut of food provided by a wide range of flora species that begin growing in the warm temperatures. The front of their mouths is now covered in a keratin covering in the form of a beak, allowing the krotezuruck to snip off bits of vegetation so it can then be processed by their back teeth. The larger jaw muscles and flatter teeth, combined with their ancestrally short face, means the krotezuruck can easily crush and grind up tough flora into a mushy paste that can then be swallowed for digestion to take place.

To protect itself from local predators, such as the velocidohve on the Fermi Polar Beach, the krotezuruck’s ancestral spines have become several rows of osteoderms that protect their head, spine, and flanks. When threatened, the krotezuruck can use their powerful jaws to bite at a threat, as they snap bones just as easily as the tough shells of crystal flora and glass flora that make up a decent portion of their diet. Their larger size also helps give them some protection, both from the cold as a larger mass means heat can be better retained, and from predators since things like a velocidohve are now too small to safely tackle a krotezuruck on their own and need to rely on their packs to hunt healthy adults.

Much like their ancestor, the krotezuruck retains its eggs within their bodies for the majority of their development. The development of the young mainly occurs as their mother is in a state of torpor during the cold winter, only being born once spring arrives. These newborns are similar to their mother in appearance, but have underdeveloped armor and the remnants of a tail fluke which gets absorbed into their bodies in a matter of days. The krotezuruck produces far less offspring than their ancestor, since their larger size and armor makes them less susceptible to predators, with a mother only producing two to three offspring at a time for a whole year.

Much like their ancestor, the krotezuruck mother provides nourishment for her offspring internally by producing “bacon goo”. The bacon goo is secreted from the oviducts. It derives its mineral content, especially its sodium, from nearby mineral-storing organs called "salt pouches" (though they are organs, not pouches). The bacon goo still comes from the gametes of a male krotezuruck, with the gametes of a male still coming in pairs so that one forms the embryo while the other forms the viscous substance. After they emerge from their mother, young krotezurucks can immediately shift to feeding on their proper adult diets.

Their more substantial defenses directed towards fending off threats, such as powerful jaws and armor, mean krotezurucks can live for over a decade, though sometimes individuals can live as much as two though this is rare. This gets offset by the krotezuruck’s lower reproductive rates, which means the population remains stable and does not grow out of control.

Notes: "Hemotrophic viviparity" is the scientific term for "the female provides nutrients internally and has 'live' young.

Here is my swap with @Giant Blue Anteater! Hope you like it dude! Do give your opinions on the species as well guys!

This post has been edited by OviraptorFan: Nov 6 2021, 11:20 AM

Name: Obsididaur (Ungulagryphus melanosquama)
Creator: OviraptorFan
Ancestor: Spike-Backed Greenscale (Ungulagryphus stegomimus)
Habitat: Vivus Volcanic, Vivus Boreal, Vivus Rocky, Vivus Temperate Rainforest
Size: 6 meters long
Support: Endoskeleton (Jointed Wood)
Diet: Herbivore (Hengende, Gecoba Tree, Bloodsap Melontree, Branching Qupe Tree, Woodyshroom, Hairoot, Gargantuan Obsiditree saplings and lower branches, Boreal Tubeplage, Feroak, Broad-Trunk Obsiditree saplings and lower branches, Obsidoak saplings and lower branches, Stoutplage, Marblemelon, Bristlepile, Robust Arid Ferine, Chameleon Obsidishank), Photosynthesis
Respiration: Active (Lungs)
Thermoregulation: Endotherm
Reproduction: Sexual, Live Birth, 2 Genders

While the spike-backed greenscale was doing alright for itself by feeding on lower growing vegetation, some populations began to turn their attention towards the canopy. By specializing towards the niche of browsers, these populations were able to get much bigger and split off from their ancestors.

In terms of general anatomy, the obsididaur is not too dissimilar from its ancestor before one gets to the neck, though there are a few minor differences. The limbs have become slightly thicker and more pillar-like to support its larger size, with the singular hoof on each limb still being enormous to better distribute the force of gravity combined with their weight. The “tailstril” of the obsididaur is still about as long, acting as a counterbalance for the front end but having also developed some additional defensive adaptations.

The ancestral wooden spines of the obsididaur have become more numerous, with the second row of spines facing outwards which makes them more effective at smacking potential predators like a megajaw or at competing herbivores such as hagloxes. To better withstand the stresses of being smacked into something at high speeds, the spines on the obsididaur’s “tailstril” have calcified, which makes them sturdier overall. While the spines do provide a formidable barrier to predators, obsididaurs will more often rely on the camouflage patterns to avoid threats. The photosynthetic scales that cover the creature’s body contain high amounts of anthocyanin, giving the obsididaur a dark blueish-purple coloration. The males also have re-developed a cheek spike, which came around when the genetic mechanism which suppressed development of its cheek spikes in their ancestors was deleted or rendered nonfunctional, causing the ancestral trait to re-emerge.

The largest noticeable differences in the obsididaur’s anatomy are the elongated neck and long tongue. Both of these adaptations are related to its browsing habits, both giving it a larger feeding envelope by increasing how high up it can reach foliage. The obsididaur does not feed on crystal flora, instead specializing to mainly browse on purple flora while occasionally supplementing their diet with black flora. This more specialized lifestyle meant the obsididaur could avoid competition with the hagloxes to an extent, since those saucebacks are more generalistic overall in what flora they consume. obsididaurs also differ from the solitary hagloxes by traveling in small groups, though they do not travel in great herds like their ancestors or close relatives.

While the “tailstril” spines are relatively large in both sexes, they are slightly larger in the males due to their ancestors using them for display, although it's not very distinct anymore since the species no longer uses their tails for courtship. Instead, males have nearly black heads which are purely for display purposes. When male obsididaurs fight one another for mating rights over females, they will stand next to each other and smack their heads and necks into their opponent, not too different from the fights seen in Terran giraffes. For these matches, the cheek spikes found only on males comes into use, as they can be jammed into an opponent and cause minor injuries. Eventually a winner is determined, either by one backing down, or by an individual getting crippled and being unable to keep fighting.

Unlike their ancestors, the obsididaur only gives birth to one youngster at a time, with the female guarding their calf until it can stand up and walk. Once the calf can follow their mother, she will bring them back to the herd where the male will then help protect them. Young obsididaurs have underdeveloped nubs for “tailstril” spines, which helps them to not get stuck in their mother’s throat or tear a hole as they are being born, which makes birth safer overall for both individuals but meant the young were more vulnerable to predators. To counter this, obsididaur herds are tightly-knit, with calves being kept in the middle so their parents can shield them from danger.

Alright, enjoy another species of Verdanidermid! Please do let me know if there is anything I need to make edits too, but I think what I got works well enough.

This post has been edited by OviraptorFan: Nov 6 2021, 11:21 AM

Dockshrog (Lutrasorex denavale) [Meaning: "Otter-shrew of the dock"]
Creator: Disgustedorite
Ancestor: Seashrog
Habitat: Fermi Temperate Beach, Fermi Temperate Coast, Fermi Desert (Rarely)
Size: 2 meters long
Support: Endoskeleton (Bone)
Diet: Omnivore (Marbleflora, Chainswarmers, Swarmerweed, Scuttlers, Pioneer Raftballs, Burraroms, Flashkelps, Squire Finworm, Fermi Tuffdra, Clawbiter, South Polar Shardgill, Strainerbeak, Southern Strainerbeak, Flamboyant Fan Bloister, Carnosprawl fruit, Mangrovecrystal crystals, Shell-riding Shocker, Miniswarmers, Common Gilltails, Squidwhals, Frabukis, juvenile Blueback Scylarian, Scuttleball Gillfin, Royal Scylarian, Diamond Pumpgill, juvenile Slaesopago, Gulperpump, juvenile Outtablue Scylarian, Southern Gillfin, Ocean Echofin, Marine Crystals, Mainland Fuzzpalm berries, Fuzzpile berries, Gourjorn, Gumjorn, Qupe Tree fruit, Fuzzweed, Baebula, Stalk Rastum (recreationally))
Respiration: Active (Lungs)
Thermoregulation: Endotherm (Fur)
Reproduction: Sexual (Male and Female, Live Birth, Placental, Pouch and Milk)

The dockshrog split from its ancestor. Many direct descendants of the seashrog either remain at sea, such as the wolvershrog, or settle on a landmass, such as most of the others. The dockshrog, however, has chosen something in between: it has settled on the northern coast of Fermi Island.

Often, shrogs are prevented from making permanent residence on beaches by predatory pirate waxfaces. However, Fermi Island is so small that transitional dockshrogs were able to manage it by brute force--that is, by hunting down and killing every single pirate waxface on the island, even following them inland to do so. They left the hypnotizer waxfaces alone, as these did not actively hunt the shrogs. Though pirate waxfaces still raft to the island aboard ghost nests, the dockshrogs try to kill them as they arrive, preventing pirate waxfaces from regaining a foothold on the island. This has resulted in Fermi becoming a sort of safe haven for shrogs, even though its arid interior doesn't provide much wood to harvest. Though dockshrogs rarely eat anything found inland in Fermi Desert, they do cross the island's interior on occasion while dispersing.

The dockshrog has four digits on each limb, though one is often hidden when viewed from the side due to the middle two digits being longer than the others. The inner-most digit on the front limbs is opposable, as it is in other shrogs.

==Nests==
The dockshrog is named for its unusual nesting habits. Its nests, which are mostly made of bonegrove, mangrovecrystal, and driftwood, are set floating among the mangroves and are connected to one another using constructed, floating platforms which serve a similar purpose to docks or boardwalks. These are round or square, similar in structure to the flat decks atop their nests, and are tightly bound together and connected to one another to form paths using woven indigestible leaves similar to that which forms the main waterproof barrier in tamjack nests as a whole. Three to five board-paths will be built extending outwards from each floating nest, some terminating in a bonegrove tree which keeps them anchored and others leading to other nests. Some lead to the tiny islands created along the coast by mangrovecrystals, the fast growth of which encourages the shrogs to regularly harvest them as building material. This creates a network of nests, collectively a "village", which are supported by one another and by the mangrove, preventing them from being swept out to sea. Dockshrogs walk along these paths to interact with other dockshrogs or to look out for prey hiding underneath.

Some paths lead further out to sea and terminate without any nest or tree. Some of these are made by accident, as a tsunami or a careless flumpus damages the "village", but others are intentionally constructed, first curled up along the edge of the mangrove before it is allowed to unwind and stretch out to sea. Dockshrogs use these to hunt in deeper water where they are more likely to find larger pelagic prey, while still being able to quickly return to the mangrove if there is any danger.

The construction of the floating platforms making up the "docks" is a modification of nest maintenance behavior and is primarily done by juveniles. This is in part because juveniles have more flexible, less ossified tails, which in turn makes them better at swimming than their parents. Though they can be built on top of nests and then pushed into the water, moving the platforms around and binding them to nests and neighboring platforms requires swimming. The wood used to make them is still gathered by adults, transported to the site by floating them in the water and guiding them with lighter pieces of wood held in hand.

"Villages" usually consist of 8 to 15 families and will have many unused nests that fall into ruin, though their connecting platforms are generally still maintained and used. Though larger "villages" can exist, ruined nests, bad weather, and careless megafauna can cause them to physically fragment and drift to different parts of the coastline, preventing giant ones from lasting forever.

==Social Behavior==
The dockshrog is more social than the seashrog, as evidenced by its floating "villages". Nests are widely spaced and usually occupied by a single mated pair and their offspring, much like seashrog nests. However, dockshrogs commonly wander along the floating paths to interact with other families. They form friendships deeper than mere tolerance, and friends may hunt, forage, groom, build, or relax together. Hierarchies do not exist except between parent and offspring, and their social groups have no leader. Dockshrogs are capable of some amount of mob mentality, which allows them to band together to attack or scare off a predator.

As many friendship behaviors were reserved for mates in their seashrog ancestors, instinct cross-wiring may occasionally cause a friendship between adult dockshrogs to take a brief unexpected turn as their instincts command them to mate. This unintended consequence of developing their social behavior usually leaves the pair confused and embarrassed after the fact, as instincts to remain faithful to their respective mates are still very much intact and they correctly anticipate a negative reaction if they were to find out.

==Vocalization and Body Language==
Dockshrog vocalization is roughly identical to that of seashrogs, with the notable exception of name-barking, which extends to adulthood and is used by friends and family alike to call out to specific individuals. Nameless barks are still used to grab attention before another call. Other calls with specific meaning, which are entirely instinctive, include "akakak" ("this is mine/not yours", often used when defending food or a play thing from another shrog especially among juveniles), "eeboor" ("come here"), "euhree" ("stop/don't"), "areeereeeeer" (an alarm call or scream, "I'm in danger/look out"), and "burbur" ("hello"). (Note that the letter B as used here is only an approximation rather than indicating exact pronunciation, and it only comes out of a shrog's mouth as a very soft "pop" sound.) They also still have emotion-related vocalizations that do not usually follow a bark, such as a threatening creaky growl, frustrated grumbling, nervous huffing, excited or playful chattering, a content sigh, terrified squealing, and a long whine indicating pain.

Dockshrog body language and facial expressions, too, are similar to those of seashrogs. To effectively communicate not just with other shrogs but with unrelated species, most of their body language is intuitive, such as making one's self small and unthreatening when scared, tensing up when stressed, and relaxing when content. Their facial expressions, however, are exaggerated to better support their more social lifestyle. For example, the "shrog smile" where the mouth hangs open and the ears point outwards; in dockshrogs, the mouth not only hangs open but is flexed very wide, sometimes resulting in soreness after a period of great excitement. The ears may also be flicked to emphasize their position. Similar to many non-human animals on Earth, a dockshrog only grins as a threat.

The dockshrog is less vocal while mating than the seashrog. This is because, as their nests are more or less static, a predator such as a stonebeak phlyer can use their calls to distinguish which nests are occupied and choose one to target. It still has a mating call, "brbrbrbrbrbrbree" repeated a few times, used by adults without mates to advertise themselves and more quietly by mated pairs to communicate the desire to mate.

==Feeding==
Like most shrogs, dockshrogs use tools, particularly wooden spears, to catch and kill prey. Juveniles, more aquatic than those of other shrogs, will also dive into the water to collect aquatic flora and small bottom-dwelling creatures such as scuttlers with their bare hands. As Fermi is very dry in terms of humidity and precipitation, dismembered prey stretched across a platform or dragged to the beach quickly dries out and can be preserved for a short time using salt from seawater, but much of what is caught is eaten within the same day. Fruit from the beaches, as well as crystals from chopped down mangrovecrystals, are readily consumed.

Dockshrogs generally catch small prey without assistance, but a pair will work together to wrestle something larger. Surplus is shared with friends and with other dockshrogs in the community.

==Tool Use==
Like other shrogs, dockshrogs use their saw-like tails to cut down trees, split wood into planks, and sharpen sticks into spears. The spears used by dockshrogs are generally made from mangrovecrystal wood, as it grows quickly and is therefore readily available. Being made of chitin instead of cellulose, it is also stiffer than other types of wood available. Spears come in two main types, thick spears that are used to stab and wrestle with larger prey and skinny spears that can skewer smaller creatures.

Juveniles are oddly more dexterous than adults when it comes to small tools. A juvenile might bypass the difficult task of biting through a bloister's carapace using a knife formed from a shard of bone or crystal shell to access the meat inside more quickly. Try as they might to show the adults this "trick" they learned, however, the adults can never quite get it right. The growth of muscles used in spearing and moving heavy logs, as well as the thickening of their callouses as they bear their adult weight on their hands, causes them to lose much of their juvenile flexibility, a fate that the youngsters usually meet as well. However, on rare occasions, a dockshrog will be separated or disabled from a young age and never learn to make spears nor build a nest; should it survive, it may retain this dexterity into adulthood.

==Reproduction==
Like its ancestor, the dockshrog is naturally monogamous. The odd "broken" pattern of its osteoderms is the result of sexual selection, as the emphasis of shoulders and hips creates an illusion of greater upper body strength, which is an important trait in a shrog. The facial osteoderms also play a role in attraction. Though monogamous, dockshrogs are also willing to break up with their mates and find a new one, which results in mating rivalry extending beyond younger males. A newly-mated pair will typically make a new nest which floats free among the connected nests of their community before paths are made. Much like the seashrog, the dockshrog has no specific mating season and females are almost always pregnant or nursing.

Like most other tamjacks, the dockshrog is placental but retains a pouch. Its more restricted habitat range and higher population density means it no longer has to produce an excessive number of young; instead, it only produces one or two at a time. It gestates for half a year, more similar to basal tamjacks, and carries newborns in a pouch. Though the newborns are not permanently attached to a nipple like a baby marsupial, the pouch effectively swaddles them and allows them to be carried without restricting the mother's movement. The tails of newborns, though already flat and keratinous, lack serrations and can bend easily, preventing them from injuring their mother. Juveniles can leave the pouch only 2 months after birth, but return to nurse until they are about 6 months old, at which point they are weaned. They can theoretically live independently by that age, but they remain close by and practice their construction and tool use abilities close to home until the age of 4 or 5 when their tail is no longer flexible enough for prolonged swimming. They reach full size at the age of 6, and if they do not find a suitable unrelated mate nearby, they may then disperse along the coast or across the island to other communities. They usually live to about 30 years, but with good health and luck can push 40.

==Relationships with Other Species==
Most partner species and parasites of seashrog adapt well to the different nesting habits of the dockshrog.

Cleaner and false cleaner borvermids fulfill the exact same role that they do in other shrog nests.

Shailnitors are just as babied by dockshrogs as they are by seashrogs, and the dockshrogs willingly help them up and down between nest and path. Using their shell lungs to float, the shailnitors can paddle between floating platforms and will lay their eggs among the abundant flora found in the mangrove. Though dockshrogs do not let their food spoil as often as seashrogs, their dung is just as abundant and they appreciate the shailnitors' efforts to clean up after them. The shailnitors which live with dockshrogs regularly interbreed with those that live with seashrogs, but they nonetheless tend to be slightly darker in color and have proportionally larger ears, better mimicking the appearance of juvenile dockshrogs to appeal to their sense of cuteness.

Kakonats are able to exist in greater abundance than they do in seashrog nests. A constant pest, they are able to run and hop along the same paths the shrogs made for their own convenience to get from nest to nest eating borvermids and any stored food they can find, as well as gnawing on the nests themselves. However, their presence isn't all bad for the shrogs, as they will eat the various potentially damaging puffgrasses that grow on the nests and platforms.

Shorelances prefer to stowaway on seashrog nests for the migratory benefit, but they will still enter dockshrog "villages" in search of food. They are agile enough to chase kakonats on the floating paths to attack and bite them to death.

With very little food stored, stowaway harmbless do not fare well in dockshrog nests. However, they are still present in the region due to the activity of other shrogs.

Sometimes, dockshrogs will interact with other species of shrog, particularly the seashrog. Though seashrogs are potential competitors, they have no choice in what beach they wash up on, so the dockshrogs don't bother them unless there is a food shortage. Seashrogs prefer using wood from trees growing on the beach while dockshrogs use mangroves which grow in the water, so they do not compete for building materials. Sometimes, orphaned young seashrogs may be adopted by dockshrogs, as juveniles of the two species look fairly similar and will activate their parental instincts.

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Note to self: an illustration of a juvenile trying to catch a chainswarmer but getting slapped in the face by its wiggles would be fun.

Uksapo (Sapoconcha ramul)

Creator: MNIDJM
Ancestor: Drake Uktank (Conchotic drakio)
Habitat: Ramul Temperate Beach, Ramul Temperate Woodlands
Size: 16 cm Tall
Support: Internal (Muscular Hydrostats)
Diet: Adult: Herbivore (Pioneeroots, Marbleflora, Snotflora); Larvae: Planktivore (Redmosses,Orangemosses, Hexmalaphoelia, Flovars, Floatfilms)
Respiration: Active (Shell Gills)
Thermoregulation: Ectothermic
Reproduction: Sexual, Two Genders, Eggs

The Uksapo are descendants of Drake Uktank that have found themselves isolated on the island of Ramul. Due to the limited resources compared to the mainland, the parent stock species could not survive in their original forms, instead over time being replaced by progressively smaller specimens. The condensing of their size has allowed them to utilize the Uktank locomotion methods. Each of their legs has the ancestral vertical and horizontal ring-shaped muscles, which support its weight like stacking tires. These muscles have bands of tissue reinforced with calcium carbonate that help keep them upright. This helps with more structural support, providing better muscular anchors.

Inside their shells is an extremely intricate patterning of gills, with a significantly increased surface area. This has given them more efficient oxygen absorption. Their skin and the internals of the shell have a thick mucus layer that keep them moist on land. This mucus also protects them somewhat in freshwater ponds and springs which they can use to feed and refill their shells, though they cannot reproduce in freshwater, as their eggs will become hypotonic, so they must return to the beach. The mucus also protects them from the worse effects of the ramulbane, though if an unlucky individual gets struck with a direct hit of spores they will have to rinse off in the closest body of water they can find.

They reproduce in the intertidal zone, away from potential predators in the water in protected tidepools and rock crevices. The females will lay their eggs into the pools, up to 100 eggs in a cluster similar to frog eggs, which the males will then enter and fertilize. Once mating is done, the males will remain by the eggs and aggressively defend them, to the point where it is not uncommon for them to starve to death. They will defend themselves and their eggs by waving their trunk claw and aggressively posturing. The claws are rather sharp and covered in micro-serrations on the underside, which will injury predators with weak enough skin, such as a [[bijadadu]]. Those that live long enough to defend the eggs will abandon them once hatched. The larvae will stay in the pools for 2 months, and will reach breeding age after a year. Adults live for about 7 years, though only about 20% reach adulthood.

Burrowed Snatching Boble Avarufolia littori

Creator: colddigger
Ancestor: Needlewing
Habitat: Jeluki Riparian, Jeluki Salt Swamp, King Tropical Beach
Size: 80 cm tall (with fully grown leaves)
Support: Endoskeleton (Jointed Wood)
Diet: Carnivore (Vermees, Minikrugg, Silkrugg, Teacup Saucebacks, Neuks, Dartirs, Sapworms) Photosynthesis
Respiration: Active (Lungs)
Thermoregulation: Heterotherm (Basking, Muscle-Generated Heat)
Reproduction: Sexual, Two Genders, Pouch


The Burrowed Snatching Boble split from it's ancestor the Needlewing to take on a somewhat different lifestyle becoming a true biennial organism. It's two stages in life are highly distinct from each other.

Similar to it's ancestor it begins life in it's mother's pouch, where it is crammed face up among it's 100+ siblings and will feed on anything dropped into its waiting mouth. After about 4 weeks the infant Boble and it's kin reach a leg length of about 2 cm and are expelled at once from their mother as a single unit. Once exposed this puck writhes apart as the young begin to move their gangly limbs freely for the first time.

At this point the infant Boble has a body less than 1 cm in length, with disproportionately long legs it scampers away from the group to hide from open spaces and search for things smaller than it to eat. Rooting through debris and underbrush for Minikrugg and Vermees, chasing down Teacup Saucebacks and Dartirs, their selection of prey increases in size alongside their own growth. Over the next year it gains a body length of 20 - 30 cm and reaches sexual maturity, at which point it seeks a mate. Females store the sperm for a short period after this.

After mating both males and females switch behavior from actively seeking prey or a mate to finding a secure spot in a sunny location safe from immediate flooding. Once found the spot is dug into and the Boble hunkers down, continuing to excavate often until buried nearly to its eyes. It will not leave this spot again.

It's legs shift position becoming lifted out from underneath. The segments lengthen and the limbs are transformed into precise grasping and striking weapons. Their nobby wings begin growing in size and complexity, allowing them to become developed organs meant for photosynthesis. At full size these wings can bring the length of a Burrowed Snatching Boble to 80 cm from wing tip to belly.

Predation behavior of course has changed as they now wait for prey to wander into their vicinity. Once this has happened it becomes a simple matter of either piercing the hapless beast, or scooping it directly into the Bobles waiting maw. After about 2 weeks if the Boble is female it's young will be done gestating and be transferred into the ribbed pouch. Much of the food captured will be mashed up and fed to them as their growing bodies demand it.

The large number of offspring becomes a very tight wad over time. The mass exerting pressure on the walls of the pouch, eventually the female has enough and shoves then out to start the process again. Often females have enough sperm stored for a second smaller batch of young to be attempted. Often successful, and yielding over all smaller numbers of smaller young, it's still common for a Boble to have begun their second batch too late and peter out before completion.


Their nostril tail has developed longer defensive needles that cover it's length in clumps. Alongside this physical defense the skin and wings of the Boble contain various poisons that trigger major digestive evacuation in many adventurous predators. Their insides however lack it, leaving them rather defenseless if skinned. If one were captured to be eaten, and their skin managed to be removed, the inner tissue would have the texture of a rambutan, and the flavor of pig fat soaked in kale juice.

Their eyes are perched atop their flat head to allow comfortable sight and focus on objects of interest while staying flat to the ground. When blinking their eyes can be seen to shift somewhat into their skull.


(Sketch of a Boble eyeing a potential Minikrugg meal)

Males transform during their second year like the females, rather than simply dying or continuing on in a neotenous state, due to two selections; removal from competing with juveniles, and more importantly to be decoys and dilute the female ratio in potential predators hunting grounds. By replicating the practice of burying themselves like females they decrease the likelihood of a predator biting into and damaging a female, while still learning avoidance of the distasteful organism when munching on a male.
Though they do compete somewhat with their sisters males lack a large clutch to rear and so rely far more heavily on their photosynthesis, granting much of the passing potential prey peace.

This post has been edited by colddigger: Nov 7 2021, 07:55 AM

Nightcrawler Borvermid (Borvermus terrincolae)
Creator: Jvirus
Ancestor: False Cleaner Borvermid
Habitat: Dixon-Darwin Boreal, Dixon-Darwin Rocky, Dixon-Darwin High Grassland, Dixon Savanna, Dixon Tropical Scrub, Dixon Tropical Woodland, Javen Tropical Woodland, Javen Tropical Scrub, Darwin Savanna, North Darwin Tropical Scrub, North Darwin Tropical Woodland
Size: 4 cm long
Support: Segmented Exoskeleton (Chitinous Plates)
Diet: Haemotroph (Carpozoan blood, Sagavermes Blood), Detritivore (Young)
Respiration: Semi-Active (Unidirectional Tracheae)
Thermoregulation: Ectotherm
Reproduction: Hermaphrodite (Live Young)

Having been spread throughout the Dixon-Darwin continent by the Twineshrog, False Cleaner Borvermids were introduced to a plethora of new hosts across the mainland. In order to exploit their new prey, the Borvermids had to adapt beyond the nests of their shrog hosts, and so the Nightcrawlers were born.

Nightcrawler Borvermid are common bloodsuckers which split from their ancestor, feasting on the red, iron-rich blood of Carpozoans and Sagavermes throughout their range. They more often feed on Carpozoans, as larger organisms of that type are more common, but rarer Sagavermes meals do just fine. During the day, the Nightcrawlers sleep beneath the soil, avoiding potential diurnal predators. At night, these nocturnal worms awaken to locate sleeping prey. Nightcrawlers creep slowly through the undergrowth, often winding themselves between and under rocks and flora to remain out of sight from nocturnal predators. Retaining the extendable and retractable eyestalks of their ancestors, the worms can peek from their hiding spots without revealing their bodies.

After finding a suitable source of blood, they pierce the creature’s flesh with pointed jaws, releasing compounds in their saliva to prolong bleeding. After around 20 minutes, the Nightcrawler will drink enough blood to sustain themselves for several weeks, sleeping in the soil until a new moon rises.

During a new moon, Nightcrawler Borvermids emerge from the soil en masse in order to breed. These events cause predators to gorge themselves on the mating Nightcrawlers. As Nightcrawlers are r-strategists, losses during breeding do little to hurt their populations, as both mated individuals will produce dozens of live offspring using nutrients from iron-rich blood. Less than a centimeter in length, these young are detritivores, living in the soil much like the ancestral Vermees, and possess a mucus coating to protect themselves from desiccation and infection. After just four months, they will grow into adults and begin feeding on blood.

Hailing from the coastal tropics, Nightcrawler Borvermids have had to adapt to some environments which become far too cold for them in the winter. If temperatures drop below a certain point, Nightcrawlers will instinctively gorge on far more blood than average. Afterwards, they will descend deep into the soil and insulate themselves with a mucus coating similar to the one which coats their young, hibernating until warmer temperatures return. In this state, they can go months without feeding. If a new moon rises during extremely cold temperatures, Nightcrawlers will not emerge to breed.

This post has been edited by Jvirus: Nov 3 2021, 10:03 AM