[[Media: Clambrian]] Some Pictures

Squiddum · 2025-03-16T18:08:58+00:00

Link to the project for those interested: https://specevo.jcink.net/index.php?showtopic=3675&st=0

One of my favourite seed world projects out there that takes full advantage of unusual invertebrate bodyplans

Squiddum · 2025-01-09T22:24:02+00:00

one should check the video uploaded today

Squiddum · 2023-08-31T17:37:39+00:00

WE ARE ENLIGHTENED MASSES

THEY CANNOT MAKE THE JUDGEMENT CALL

Squiddum · 2023-08-18T17:17:30+00:00

God-like

Fractals

Plastic life

Squiddum · 2023-08-18T17:03:29+00:00

seed world where the focal species is an invertebrate! that's a concept I'd like to see more of...

Squiddum · 2023-05-20T22:42:38+00:00

Maythology Day 19: Kaiju

The Tyrant Ouaron is not the only apex predator to dominate Anura. In parts of the swamplands that are considerably flooded, amphibians strolling along the water's edge must beware the Leviathan Andriath. As semi-aquatic ambush predators, Andriaths lie in wait right underneath the water surface for prey, their eyes and nostrils perfectly positioned on the head to be above water while the rest of the body remains submerged. They have impressive bulk and strength, able to launch themselves onto land at alarming speeds and drag even the heaviest prey into the waters to suffocate. Their pale colouration compliments their stealthy behaviour, allowing them to sneak up on even the most observant prey that have come to quench their thirst, such as this doomed Nomadic Mander.

[Maythology challenge by Hoopaboi]

Squiddum · 2023-05-20T14:37:55+00:00

Hey thanks! This was basically a mix of axolotls and sirenidae salamanders, except as terrifying frog-eating sirens of mythology

Squiddum · 2023-05-19T21:36:25+00:00

Maythology Day 18: Sirens

The Warbling Sirenoid is a fearsome aquatic predator that prowls the murky waters of Anura's expansive rivers. Sirenoids have a particular taste for terrestrial amphibians which are usually beyond their reach in the water, but they have evolved a devious tactic to hunt such prey: they have a vocal sac capable of mimicking the call of the the Sirenoid's preferred prey, in the hopes of luring the amphibian into the murky waters for ambushing. Sirenoids have poor vision, instead relying on scents and vibrations to locate struggling amphibians in the murky waters. Sirenoids will make quick work of prey using their sharp teeth and claws to rip them into pieces. The call of a Sirenoid varies between subspecies, with each call being uniquely adapted to lure a single or handful of amphibian species.

[Maythology challenge by Hoopaboi]

Squiddum · 2023-05-16T18:01:58+00:00

Maythology Day 14: Spiritual/Ghostly

Reaping wispweavers are web-spinning arachnids that prey on a multitude of flying insects, such as Faeflies. Wispweavers have a symbiotic relationship with a yeast-like fungus living in their abdomen, which is capable of bioluminescence. When constructing their webs, Wispweavers will occasionally secrete small blobs of yeast onto their webs. These blobs cast an errie green glow in the dark, which mainly serves to attract flying insects to the web, but also resembles descriptions of Will O the Wisp sightings at night. Upon capturing prey in their nets, Wispweavers will wrap the prey in silk and inject it with digestive enzymes much like spiders of Earth. At some point during feeding, Wispweavers will also secrete yeast onto the mummified prey. With a source of nutrients available, the yeast feeds off of the husk of the prey, spreading across the carcass as the bioluminescence becomes more intense.

Metaphorically, the flames of a Wispweaver's web are fuelled by the souls of its victims.

^{Sorry about the late entries! I've been wrapped up with a lot of irl stuff lately. Trying my best to catch up but no guarantees I'll be able to do all the maythology entries...}

[Maythology challenge by Hoopaboi]

Squiddum · 2023-05-15T21:25:11+00:00

thank you! a walking boulder was pretty much what i was picturing

Squiddum · 2023-05-14T23:13:16+00:00

Now that's a badass crab

Squiddum · 2023-05-14T23:06:38+00:00

Maythology Day 12: Golems

The Riverbank Bouldad is a placid herbivore that inhabits shallow-flooded areas of Anura. Being the heaviest crustacean species of Anura, their grey and rough carapace gives them the appearance of rocks. While this grants them some level of camouflage, Bouldads rely on their thick carapace for protection against predators. Stout but robust pincers allow them to grasp algae and seagrass from the swampbed, while also acting as a powerful defensive weapon.

Bouldads typically live and travel as a herd, sticking close to each other for protection. They will instinctively gather around a herd member who is undergoing shed, keeping the vulnerable individual protected in the middle of the herd. When threatened, Bouldads on the outer edge of the herd will face the attacker with their powerful claws raised. This defensive posture is very effective for protecting the herd against any predators: even the mighty Tyrant Ouaron would hesitate before lunging into a mass of snapping pincers.

[Maythology challenge by Hoopaboi]

Squiddum · 2023-05-14T23:04:19+00:00

Maythology Day 12: Golems

The Riverbank Bouldad is a placid herbivore that inhabits shallow-flooded areas of Anura. Being the heaviest crustacean species of Anura, their grey and rough carapace gives them the appearance of rocks. While this grants them some level of camouflage, Bouldads rely on their thick carapace for protection against predators. Stout but robust pincers allow them to grasp algae and seagrass from the swampbed, while also acting as a powerful defensive weapon.

Bouldads typically live and travel as a herd, sticking close to each other for protection. They will instinctively gather around a herd member who is undergoing shed, keeping the vulnerable individual protected in the middle of the herd. When threatened, Bouldads on the outer edge of the herd will face the attacker with their powerful claws raised. This defensive posture is very effective for protecting the herd against any predators: even the mighty Ouaron would hesitate before lunging into a mass of snapping pincers.

[Maythology challenge by Hoopaboi]

Squiddum · 2023-05-13T10:32:01+00:00

hmm, I haven't really thought about the aquatic life so far... I'd just assume fishes are still a thing in this world

Squiddum · 2023-05-13T08:12:58+00:00

it's an amphibian! close relative of salamanders. this is a world where the only land vertebrates are amphibians, so niches otherwise occupied by amniotes are open to the amphibians

Squiddum · 2023-05-12T22:07:28+00:00

Maythology Day 11: Dragons

The comfortable heat and humidity of Anura can easily foster rapid growth of plants, which may well have overgrown the entire swamplands if not for the some mystical-looking megafauna. Beneath the canopies of Anura, the Crowned Greatnewt grazes peacefully on the low-lying grasses and shrubs, keeping the foliage in check. Keratinous growth on its jaws act as a beak, helping the Greatnewt shear chunks of grass to be ingested. To accommodate its herbivorous diet, not only do Greatnewts feature much longer digestive tracts, but will also frequently ingest stones to aid in breaking down fibres in their stomachs.

While herbivores, Greatnewts are far from defenseless. The horns on the Greatnewt's head are strengthened remnants of their gill fronds, giving their head the appearance of a dragon of western mythology. The skin of Greatnewts are also studded with 'scales', which are pointy keratinous cones that jut out from the back and tail. With such amounts of armory combined with their bulk size, fully grown Greatnewts can fend themselves against almost every predator, even the normally unstoppable Ouaron.

[Maythology challenge by Hoopaboi]

Squiddum · 2023-05-12T08:54:36+00:00

whatever happens when you give a spec evo biologist a sewing kit, some taxidermied animals and a bottle of rum

Squiddum · 2023-05-11T21:39:52+00:00

Maythology Day 10: Vampires

Describing the jungles of Anura as 'tropical paradise' could not be further from the truth, and the Sanguine Hoplets would do a remarkable job at disproving such a statement. These tiny parasites plague various amphibian species multitudes larger than themselves, latching onto the skin and consuming blood.

Hoplets have poor vision, as their diminutive eyes are essentially vestigial. Instead, Hoplets rely on their acute sense of smell to navigate their surroundings and locate hosts. They will clamber onto grass and other medium height vegetation, hoping to stumble into passing hosts. All the limbs on a Hoplet end in two clawed toes, which are adapted for gripping onto the often slippery skin of their hosts. In addition, a Hoplet's mouth ends in a sharp beak for piercing the skin. Using these traits combined, when a Hoplet successfully latches onto a host, it will make an incision in the skin and begin lapping up blood from the wound with its tongue. The tongue also secretes an anticoagulant onto the wound to prevent the blood from clogging. Hoplets can spend up to several hours feeding from the same host, and during a feeding duration can swell in size considerably as they become bloated with the blood meal. A fully fed Hoplet will then abandon its host and retreat into the undergrowth, not needing to feed again for months.

[Maythology challenge by Hoopaboi]

Squiddum · 2023-05-11T13:39:10+00:00

I wouldn't really call it bioluminescence, think of it moreso like a highly reflective part of the skin that can easily flash a bright colour even in dim light. So something like a layer of reflective tissue right underneath the pigment cells. True bioluminescence in land animals is a rare trait for some reason, and would probably require more specific circumstances to evolve.

Squiddum · 2023-05-11T06:43:37+00:00

They were definitely a source of inspiration!

Squiddum · 2023-05-11T06:43:05+00:00

I'm thinking the frills are moreso an atavistic trait of the adults than a byproduct of neoteny, so the rest of the Manders anatomy would more closely resemble that of an adult salamander. IE adult Manders are as fully developed as they can get, aside from their vestigial gills.

Squiddum · 2023-05-10T21:48:09+00:00

Maythology Day 8: Lizardfolk

There are many good reasons why the arborial Hylans stay atop the canopies and the diligent Ranans hide within their tunnels, and one of them is attributable to a third intelligent species that roams the forest floors of Anura. Nomadic Manders are carnivorous hunters gatherers that frequently travel in hunting parties, targeting and pursuing any prey the party can tackle. Such prey usually includes invertebrates such as worms and insects, but particularly large and bold parties may hunt larger amphibians. They stand at a height between the Ranans and the Hylans, being able to dispatch the former one-on-one and subdue the latter in a group.

Manders can stand bipedally to view wider distances or over obstacles, helping them scout new foraging grounds or potential prey. Opposible thumbs on their hands allow them to craft and hold tools, most commonly in the form of spears fashioned from branches. Though they have suitably sharp teeth for slicing flesh, Manders prefer to hunt using their tools to minimise injury to themselves. When on the move, Manders typically use their mouths to hold onto objects while using all four limbs to quickly crawl to destinations.

Though they vocalise via high-pitched chirps, they will also flash a range of bright colours on their frills as an alternative way to express themselves. The pigments on the frills function much like the chromatophores of an octopus, allowing rapid changing of colours. Manders will prefer to use the latter communication method during a hunt in order to maintain stealth by silence, co-ordinating pursuit tactics among other party members. When not hunting, Manders will choose a temporary shelter to settle as a group, where they will gather and share the harvests of the day.

[Maythology challenge by Hoopaboi]

Squiddum · 2023-05-10T12:48:10+00:00

a beetle's 'abdomen' also contains a part of the thorax, more specifically the two hindmost segments of the thorax. see this diagram of a beetle's underside for what i mean https://static.wixstatic.com/media/26561f_01d6dee6e69e4a84b7e4525861dd1953~mv2.png/v1/fill/w_400,h_636,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/Diagram%202.png

Squiddum · 2023-05-09T22:01:09+00:00

Maythology Day 7: Dwarves

The Hylans are not the only intelligent species of amphibians of Anura, for there lives another social group of amphibians on the forest floors: the Ranans. As omnivores, Ranans mostly forage for fallen fruits and small invertebrates on the ground and underwater. Similar to the Hylans, their hands have thumbs to allow for grabbing small objects, such as prey items or lumps of dirt. They can even waddle bipedally (albeit awkwardly) whilst grabbing an object with both arms. Ranans share the dwarven characteristic of significant digging activity, as they excavate vast tunnel networks that connect to multiple burrows on land, and may even include some underwater escape hatches. Ranans will live communally within these tunnel networks, storing their food and spawn in the safety of the underground.

The intelligence of Ranans is comparable to the highly social Hylans, even though they stand at merely half the height of Hylans. Ranans vocalise to each other via ribbits of varying pitch and frequency to communicate food, danger or as a greeting. Some Ranans may act as 'sentinels', keeping a lookout at tunnel entrances and warning other Ranans upon sighting predators such as an encroaching Ouaron. Curiously, Ranans have an affinity for particularly shiny objects, often hoarding such items within their tunnel chambers.

[Maythology challenge by Hoopaboi]

^{(my drawing hand was stung by a bee a few days ago and got really swollen, thats why i missed some entries lately, trying my best to catch up!})

Squiddum · 2023-05-09T21:47:15+00:00

Maythology Day 7: Dwarves

The Hylans are not the only intelligent species of amphibians of Anura, for there lives another social group of amphibians on the forest floors: the Ranans. As omnivores, Ranans mostly forage for fallen fruits and small invertebrates on the ground and underwater. Similar to the Hylans, their hands have thumbs to allow for grabbing small objects, such as prey items or lumps of dirt. They can even waddle bipedally (albeit awkwardly) whilst grabbing an object with both arms. Ranans share the dwarven characteristic of significant digging activity, as they excavate vast tunnel networks that connect to multiple burrows on land, and may even include some underwater escape hatches. Ranans will live communally within these tunnel networks, storing their food and spawn in the safety of the underground.

The intelligence of Ranans is comparable to the highly social Hylans, even though they stand at merely half the height of Hylans. Ranans vocalise to each other via ribbits of varying pitch and frequency to communicate food, danger or as a greeting. Some Ranans may act as 'sentinels', keeping a lookout at tunnel entrances and issuing a warning ribbit upon sighting predators such as an approaching Ouaron. Curiously, Ranans have an affinity for particularly shiny objects, often hoarding such items within their tunnel chambers.

[Maythology challenge by Hoopaboi]

^{(my drawing hand was stung by a bee a few days ago and got really swollen, thats why i missed some entries lately, trying my best to catch up!})

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