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| Sif; a planet of golden plants and land reefs | |
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| Topic Started: May 24 2009, 10:51 PM (1,451 Views) | |
| Vultur-10 | May 24 2009, 10:51 PM Post #1 |
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This is a planet I'm working on. It is called Sif, after the Norse goddess known for her golden hair, because of the predominantly golden color of its plant life. Basic data: Sif is a little smaller than Earth (surface area 411,750,000 sq km, diameter 11,450 km) and of very slightly lower density. Its mass is about 4.2 x 10^24 kilograms. It orbits about 0.93 AU away from a sun of somewhat lower luminosity than ours. It is the second planet in its solar system, between sun-grazing Muspellheim (0.03 Earth masses, 0.09 AU) and the gas-giant Jotunheim (1.3 Jupiter masses, 3.2 AU). Sif's axial tilt is less than Earth's (15 degrees), giving it a larger temperate zone and smaller tropical, arctic, and antarctic regions. Sif has a single large moon, Mani (2% of Sif's mass). Another moon, no more than one-billionth of Sif's mass, may have existed at some point; some studies have suggested that the impactor that made the massive crater in the northern regions of Ullr may have been a moon that spiraled inward. Geography: Sif's surface is a little more than 80% covered by water, somewhat more than Earth. There are two continents – one, Ullr, lying entirely in the southern hemisphere, and the other and smaller one, Thrud, surrounding the north pole. Ullr is somewhat larger than Eurasia; Thrud, slightly smaller than Antarctica. These two continental masses occupy 17% of the planet, and various islands between 2 and 3%. The largest island group is the Lorithi cluster, named after its largest island, which lies north of Ullr. Its northernmost small islands lie north of the equator. Ullr's north is dominated by the immense Loki crater. This crater's interior, lying partially in the tropics and having a very low elevation, is Sif's warmest area (summer temps around 32 C, winter temps around 25 C). It contains a small sea, which is not contiguous with Sif's planetary ocean. It is slightly saltier than the ocean, but not so much as to impede a rich variety of life. Loki crater, around 350,000 square kilometers, is Sif's richest ecoregion. It includes some of almost all floral groups except the antarctic disks and those exclusive to Thrud, but the golden springtrees, knife palms, and shiningchains are especially notable. The dominant plant community is a mixed forest, though there are many savannahs. Northcentral and eastern Ullr, where the crescent-shaped continent bends east, are the zone of land-reefs. This area is fairly low and warm, but still quite cool by Terran standards (summer temps around 25 C, winter temps around -5 C). The reef-building plants are the dominant visible feature of this area, and their reefs are the dominant ecosystem. The southern body of Ullr, as the continent bends west again, is a plain rising toward low hills at the southern end. This is a quite cold land in winter (summer around 18 C, winter around -15 C) and accumulates deep snow. The dominant plant community is a prairie of golden whipgrasses and gladius palms. The very southwestern tip of Ullr leads into a peninsula made of jagged, high mountains, the result of ongoing collision between Ullr's tectonic plate and that of the antarctic islands. This Skadi Peninsula extends past Sif's antarctic circle. Its northern areas are cold but livable (summer around 5 C, winter around -35 C); its southern areas are a bitter cold that only a few forms of very hardy life can endure (summer around -10 C, winter around -65 C). Most of the Skadi Peninsula is glaciated, especially the southern end, but ice-free valleys exist: these are occupied by a very sparse community dominated by the antarctic disk plants. Thrud's north and west is a series of plateaus around the north pole. These are heavily glaciated (up to 5000 m thick in some areas) and the plateaus' rock has been pressed down by the weight of the ice; otherwise, they would be quite high. This area is at least as cold as Antarctica's coldest regions (summer around -35 C, winter around -80 C). Central Thrud is a low, chilly region of tundras and taigas dominated by several plant clades unique to Thrud: the fractal-branched trees and the grassferns. Summer is around 18C, winter around -10. Southeastern Thrud is another set of plateaus. These are cold (summer around 12 C, winter around -15) and have some glaciated regions. This area has the only green plants known on Sif. Sif Life: Sif life is based on TNA (threose nucleic acid), not DNA. The major groups of Sif life are the seabed microorganisms (Akarya), xenoamoebas (Bikarya), other microorganisms (Monokarya), and complex lifeforms (Sinumembrana) - themselves divided between plants (Xenoflora) - the rare green plants may or may not be members of Xenoflora; the data is still unclear - photosynthetic 'animals' (Florofauna), microscopic worms (Nanovermes), and purely-heterotrophic animals (Eufauna). It is not yet known whether the 'giant worms' are a group of their own between Nanovermes and Eufauna, or are actually animals - research into this group is very difficult, since they are rare, sink quickly when dead, and are sufficiently deadly to be practically impossible to study while alive. Some genetic data exists, but it shows such a distant relation to any other known group that it is of little help. --- Sorry if that post was a bit long; I'll hopefully start posting species tomorrow. Edited by Vultur-10, Jun 1 2009, 12:23 AM.
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| Xenophile | Jun 1 2009, 07:25 PM Post #16 |
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Formerly known as alienboy.
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Any pictures yet? |
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| Vultur-10 | Jun 8 2009, 08:12 PM Post #17 |
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Sorry, the pictures will take a while - I probably won't have access to a scanner all that soon. --- Common Slayer (Eufauna: Carnifices: Carnifex communis) Size: body and head 60-90cm long, total length with legs fully extended 150-220cm long; 20-70 kg Range: Most of Ullr, excluding Loki Crater and the very far south The common slayer is the most common medium or large predator in most of the areas with a significant human population. It resembles a six-limbed furry frog with a vaguely crocodilian head ending in a hooked snout. It generally moves quite slowly, walking (the four smaller legs are primarily used; the two large hind legs move in step, but provide little force). However, when the slayer sneaks close enough to its prey, it uses those hind legs to power an enormous leap, crashing down upon the prey animal. It then kills with the retractable claws on its forelimbs and its teeth. Common slayers are internally fertilizing, and lay 5-14 eggs twice a Sif year. |
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| ATEK Azul | Jun 9 2009, 12:18 PM Post #18 |
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Transhuman
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Wow those frogish creatures sound like a great idea i love it. |
| I am dyslexic, please ignore the typo's! | |
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| Vultur-10 | Oct 12 2009, 04:48 AM Post #19 |
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Sorry, it's been a while since I posted here. A rough map of the northeast of Sif, the most biodiverse region on the planet... Not artistic at all, but you can see the general shape of the coast, the location of Loki Crater and the Saemingr Hills, and the major biomes. Map key: upward triangles - mixed forest (knifepalms, golden springtrees) downward triangles - dense rainforest (knifepalms, branchpalms, whiplashtrees) circles - open woodlands (shiningchains, golden springtrees, watertrees) hatched areas - landreef areas (reef-building plants, airfluffs, coppertufts [in marshy portions]) Blank areas on land are plains or savannas (netgrasses, walnutgrasses, crustbushes) Edited by Vultur-10, Oct 12 2009, 05:02 AM.
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| Vultur-10 | Oct 12 2009, 04:52 AM Post #20 |
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I'm going to see what I can do with the more 'traditional' plants... then I'll get to the unusual nature of intelligence on Sif. Plant pics coming soon, I hope. PLANTS (XENOFLORA) Coppertufts (Cupropilosa) : More of a coppery orangish-brown than yellow or golden, this is the most primitive group of land plants on Sif. They are not quite nonvascular, as each shoot (up to 17mm long in larger species) is supplied with water by capillary action through a single vessel. The coppertufts are not particularly diverse; this is likely due to their limited niche (wet locations not occupied by the far-faster-growing true golden plants, generally meaning areas lacking both in silica and salt, such as deep clays in freshwater wetlands). Coppertufts reproduce mostly asexually; all species are capable of reproducing sexually, but the process is inefficient, and only in two species out of nine which have been investigated are a significant percentage of the offspring sexually produced. 38 to 46 species in six to ten genera, depending on classification, are known, though more almost certainly exist. Coppertufts form a soft ground cover in the muddiest, shallowest regions of most freshwater swamps and marshes of Sif, though they are somewhat rarer (yet still present) in Loki Crater due to competition from webworts. Most coppertufts can survive significant periods of total immersion in water; one species actually grows underwater in very shallow (<8 inches) places. It is believed that the ancestors of flapweeds might have been similar to aquatic coppertufts. Flapweeds (Volantifolia): Like coppertufts, flapweeds have a more orange or coppery tone than the true golden plants. Both their common and their scientific name come from the resemblance of the huge, roughly oblong leaves to wings which flap in water currents. A flapweed is quite a simple plant, though its vascular system is more developed than those of coppertufts, with side branches off the main vessel and a girdling set of vessels under the plant's rind or skin. Flapweeds reproduce sexually by releasing unisexual gametes into the water. Slightly over 200 species are known, all of which are traditionally placed in a single genus, but this has recently been questioned. Surfacegrasses, walnutgrasses, and netgrasses (Reticulogramines): A basal yet highly successful form of true golden plant, and one of the major components of the flora of Sif's grasslands. The portion of the plant visible above ground is only a small portion of its entire bulk, a large rooty mass of fibers which is symbiotic with various soil microorganisms. The surfacegrasses have heavier, succulent leaves (and are named for the way these leaves often lie along the ground) and are found in the drier grasslands. Walnutgrasses are named for the nutlike fruits that grow just beneath the soil. When exposed to fire, these break open and release seeds; however, it is very difficult for seed-eaters to get to the seeds. (Several specialized species have adapted to the task, however.) Walnutgrasses are thus dominant in fire-prone grasslands. The netgrasses are less specialized, a generalist group which is the most diverse of the three. The Reticulogramines are very diverse, with over 12,000-20,000 species estimated (5,793 species and 176 genera actually described). Next time: antarctic disks and reef-building plants! Edited by Vultur-10, Oct 15 2009, 07:03 AM.
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| Iowanic | Oct 12 2009, 05:17 AM Post #21 |
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Adult
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You've really put in the work and it shows. Good stuff. |
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| Vultur-10 | Oct 13 2009, 03:45 AM Post #22 |
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Antarctic Disks (Cryodisci): The relationships of this obscure group are fraught with uncertainty. They are tentatively placed near the reef-building plants by most, but some place them closer to the webworts. Antarctic disks are simple in structure; a single short stem (generally 0.7-5mm tall, though one species which lives in wind-sheltered environments has a stem up to 22mm), thick and woody, containing the main vascular elements; a disk supported by the stem, itself composed of dead cells and mineral matter incorporated into the matrix of cells, but penetrated by the branches of the vascular system, which form a sort of 'irrigation network' atop the disk; and on top, first a one-cell-thick layer related to reproduction and then layers of photosynthetic cells that form the majority of the disk's live cells. The borders of the disk are generally upturned, and project above the cell layers, forming the appearance of a bowl with a bare woody rim. Roots are few, but thick and largely woody. 'Wood' in this type of plant, as in the reefbuilding flora, is composed of a matrix of fibrous cells which incorporates microcrystals of silica, and other minerals in smaller quantities - the appearance of the whole is more like rock than Terran wood, or even that of other Sif plants like golden springtrees and knifepalms . The shared 'wood' type with the reef-plants is the main morphological evidence for their relationship to the Antarctic disks. Antarctic disks reproduce vegetatively (a root can, generally when triggered by unusually favorable conditions of soil moisture and minerals, sprout a new plant from its tip) and sexually (unisexual gametes are cast into the air in great clouds during windy conditions, meet with each other, and fall to the ground and sprout). The gamete-containing sacs form on the disk surface, produced by a single layer of cells which are quite inactive outside the reproductive season (the rainy season, when winds are strong but not too strong, and the soil is wet enough to support new sprouts). When a gust of wind strikes them (generally very quickly in the windy regions these plants inhabit), the sacs pop open and scatter gametes. Since antarctic disks generally grow close together, clustered in the relatively small areas suited to plant life in their cold, harsh region, great numbers of gametes fertilize and become sprouts. However, a young antarctic disk which has not yet developed the wood-sheathed stem and wooden disk will appear to be a soft, green, leafless shoot, little more than a mass of photosynthetic cells. The vast majority of these do not survive the cold and winds, and thus the population does not grow explosively. Roughly 400 species are currently known, in two main subgroups, traditionally classed as families: the larger one, about 290 species, generally divided into four genera (Antarctodiscus, Auridiscus, Cryodiscus, and Psychrophilidiscus), is the most diverse (though not the most visible, due to their small size) flora of the northern Skadi Peninsula. The smaller subgroup, 75 to 120 species, composed of the single genus Skadidiscus, is apparently descended from a single type of disk plant which seems to have been the only plant ever to colonize the ice-free valleys of Skadi Peninsula. Each valley has only one or two species of disk, but these are generally unique to that valley (most of the disagreement about the total number of species has to do with the 'splitting' or 'lumping' of the disks of closely adjacent valleys), and even valleys as small as 32 acres have been found to support endemic disk species. Reef-building Plants (Coralliflora): Sif's most unique and startling plant type, and arguably its most interesting and strange lifeform (admittedly only botanists argue this -- others are far too impressed by the bizarre and colossal Gegeneis of eastcentral Ullr or the mind-bogglingly immense worldwhales). The reef-building plants are, individually, small (0.3 mm-12 cm in widest diameter), relatively simple plants. Each has a root mass, a fleshy photosynthetic body, and a shell. More primitive reef plants, and the plants that begin a new reef in more derived species, are directly in contact with the ground. Thus, their root masses develop fully and extract - in addition to nutrients - silica and other minerals, which are added to their shells. The next few levels still draw up material from the soil, by developing their root mass into long roots which dangle between or beside the lower plants. Eventually the reef reaches a height at which the path to the ground is closed. Plants above this therefore have softer shells, though still hard compared to the integuments of most creatures. (Even without silica or other substances added to the matrix, the fibers still develop a covering of calcium carbonate if calcium is available, and are mostly composed of tough carbohydrate molecules similar to cellulose and chitin on Earth. Since light is required for photosynthesis, even a reef dozens of feet high will have only a single layer of live plants atop a huge mass of dead matter. They reproduce both sexually and asexually; sexual reproduction is dominant (>95% of offspring) in haliflora, the strong majority (75-90%) in groundcrusts, and accounts for about 40-70% of offspring in the conereefs and only 10-20% in the great corallines. Sexual reproduction here is more complex than in the more primitive Sif plants, and two sexes exist in the conereefs and great corallines. Gametes are scattered through the air, but meet the other gamete inside the female plant (in species with two sexes) or inside any plant (in monosexual species); in times when a new plant would not survive, the fertilized gamete is contained inside a protective seed coat to endure until conditions change - often years or decades, occasionally longer. Subgroups include: Groundcrusts (Terracortices): This most primitive surviving group of reef-building flora is exclusive to southernmost mainland Ullr and the northern parts of the Skadi Peninsula. They do not form true reefs, but low structures resembling a crusty accumulation on the ground (hence the name). Generally these are stacked only one to four plants high; also, their shells are far less durable and more digestible by soil microorganisms and other decomposers (containing structural proteins and more digestible carbohydrates), and thus 'reefs' or crusts of dead colonies often disappear within a few years. The number of species is a matter of heated debate, and estimates range from 3 (the three main regional groupings: southern mountains of Ullr, rocky plateaus of far southeast Ullr, and northern Skadi Peninsula) to (on the extreme end) many thousands, as some claim each small set of associated colonies is effectively a separate species, since new colonies generally develop from leftover seeds of old ones after whatever condition killed the original colony is gone - and thus share the genes of the previous colony. Due to their very large gametes, wind does not carry them far, so there is little gene flow between colonies separated by more than a hundred or so meters. For these reasons, it is generally thought that most species concepts are difficult to apply to these organisms. A division of the group into two genera is generally agreed upon, however: Terracortex of the rocky plateaus and Skadi Peninsula, containing about 90% of the known colonies, and Alticortex of the southern mountains. ...I thought I'd get to finish the reefbuilders today, but I don't have time. Next post: conereefs, great corallines, and the bizarre haliflora. Edited by Vultur-10, Oct 15 2009, 07:00 AM.
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| Vultur-10 | Oct 14 2009, 05:57 PM Post #23 |
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Here's a sketch of an average Antarctic disk, showing the photosynthetic layers' cell structure. Note the darker nodules on the rim; growth of the 'woody' substance produced is rarely regular.
Edited by Vultur-10, Oct 14 2009, 05:58 PM.
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| Vultur-10 | Oct 15 2009, 06:55 AM Post #24 |
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Conereefs (Conosaxi: Conosaxum sp.): The conereefs are the most basal reef-building flora to build tall structures (more than a few individuals thick). Not all conereef plants live on a reef; some colonies exist for decades before developing a true reef, or live in areas poor in silica crystals or calcium, in which case they are unable to develop shells sufficiently sturdy to support a reef. A reef forms layer by layer, as plants asexually bud new plants atop themselves. If the newly budded plant survives and grows well, the parent plant will eventually die when the newly budded plants grow large enough to cover it and cut off light to it. Thus, a reef of conereefs is composed of a single layer of living plants as a veneer over a roughly conical structure composed of the shells of dead plants. In the early stages of a reef, conereefs also reproduce sexually, spreading the colony horizontally as seeds drop to the ground around the parent plants. As the reef grows, for reasons yet unknown, asexual reproduction becomes dominant over sexual, and the reef narrows, forming the classical conical shape of this type of reef-builder. Conereefs are rare and not very speciose; it is generally agreed that each of the four localized populations (all found on the east coast of Ullr) is a separate species. Estimates from aerial surveys suggest a total of 2,000-3,000 reefs and 1,000-2,500 non-reef colonies exist, with the Northern Conereef Conosaxum septentrionalis being the most numerous at 1,500-2,000 total colonies (reef and non-reef), and the highly endangered Bay Conereef Conosaxum sinus being the rarest at a mere 17 known colonies (estimates suggest 20-30 total colonies). |
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| Vultur-10 | Oct 15 2009, 07:02 AM Post #25 |
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And a non-plant interlude: Cave Slayer (Eufauna: Protocarnifices: Antrocarnifex hyperborii) Size: 110-150cm long, 120-450 kg Range: warmer regions of Thrud The cave slayer is a nightmare carnivore of Thrud, the largest predator on the continent. It resembles a six-limbed toad, muscled like a brick, with teeth that overhang its mouth when closed. Its shaggy fur is quite thick. Its forelimbs are armed with immense claws; it walks using the knuckles of these forelimbs, like Earth's extinct giant sloths. Unlike the true slayers of Ullr, it does not attack by leaping; the prey it hunts is quite slow-moving. Cave slayers are internally fertilizing, and lay 2-4 eggs every other Sif year. They nest in caves, hence their name. Edited by Vultur-10, Oct 15 2009, 07:04 AM.
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| Vultur-10 | Oct 22 2009, 10:30 AM Post #26 |
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OK, back to plants: Great Corallines (Pseudoscleractinia): The great corallines are the classic land-reefs, one of Sif's most distinctive features. Unlike the conereefs, all great coralline colonies form reefs - without sufficient silica to form hard shells, they cannot survive. A reef forms layer by layer, just as those of the conereefs do. Reproduction is primarily asexual, but unlike conereefs, great corallines can bud off offspring horizontally as well. The great corallines are divided into three genera - northern Parvocorallia whose reefs rarely exceed two meters in height, and Petrophyton and Lapidoplanta of the far east. The latter two can have reefs up to ten meters high and thirty meters wide. They differ primarily in the shape of individual shells (roughly hexagonal vs. square). Saltplants (Haliflora): One of the strangest Sif lifeforms, these plants form their shells by incorporating crystals of salt rather than silica. Since salt is soluble in water, their shells are covered both inside and outside by a watertight membrane of dead cells. They do not form true reefs, but small colonies rarely more than 2 meters in diameter, and only one plant high. Individual plants vary in size between species, from microscopic to about the size of a small coin (1 - 1.2 cm). --- So, what's left for golden plants are the springtrees and whiplashtrees, knife and gladius palms, fractal-branched and water trees, and the 'goldstems' - the most diverse plant group on Sif. Edited by Vultur-10, Oct 22 2009, 10:40 AM.
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| Vultur-10 | Dec 25 2009, 03:06 AM Post #27 |
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Convergence gone crazy: cursorial omnivores of Thrud The continent of Thrud is divided by its complex mountain ranges into six separate lowland regions. Five of these six regions are occupied by a cursorial, omnivorous species of animal averaging between 10 and 30 kg, feeding especially on wideroot goldstems, pseudoclams, and the smaller species of the lizardlike herbivores that dominate the continent (and the eggs and hatchlings of the larger species). All appear quite similar, somewhat like a six-legged raccoon with hairlike scales instead of fur and a head resembling that of a praying mantis with a crocodilian jaw. However, these five similar species come from three entirely separate evolutionary lines. One is a slayer, a distant relative of the cave slayers of the continent; one is a pseudolizard, related to the herbivores on which it preys; and one is the only surviving remnant of an otherwise extinct Thrud evolutionary line, once vastly diverse. |
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Sif_map_upperUllr.gif (255.06 KB)
9:31 AM Jul 11