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| Gyrosprinter / Thar; my new musings on aliens | |
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| Topic Started: Feb 24 2010, 03:55 PM (2,652 Views) | |
| Canis Lupis | Feb 24 2010, 03:55 PM Post #1 |
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Dinosaurs eat man, woman inherits the Earth.
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We all know that Earth and Snaiadi animals are quadropeds. Nereid animals are tripeds whereas Pandoran and Furahan animals are hexopods. Creatures from "Alien Planet" are, for the most part, bipeds. With one variation. It's still a biped, yes. But not the familiar bipeds. ![]() This is a gyrosprinter, presumably descended from a quadroped. Each pair of limbs has merged into one limb so that it has only two limbs: on the front and one on the back. First, I'd like to know how plausible the gyrosprinter actually is. But now for the meat of the topic. After watching "Alien Planet" again, I started thinking about a world with a gyrosprinter-like sapient. From there, I started thinking about a world ruled by various gyrosprinter-like creatures. Antelope, lion, whale, mole, and monkey-like animals seem the most plausible creatures for this limb structure. Obviously, flying niches would be out of the question unless they evolve what the flying lizards of Borneo have evolved. So, how plausible does a world dominated by vertical bipeds (bipeds with a limb structure like a gyrosprinter) sound? BTW, I'll be adding random creature descriptions here and there on this topic. I'll see if I can add a picture of each. |
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| Empyreon | Apr 13 2010, 06:37 PM Post #46 |
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Are you plausible?
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Start with something in the water, IMO. It gives a good foundation for the big picture of Tharian evolution. |
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Take a look at my exobiology subforum of the planet Nereus! COM Contributions food for thought
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| Canis Lupis | Apr 13 2010, 06:41 PM Post #47 |
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Dinosaurs eat man, woman inherits the Earth.
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Okay. So one vote for grassland and one for ocean. Let's see. Eenie meenie minie mo... I'll go with oceans. As Empy said, that kind of biome gives a good background of evolution on pretty much any planet. Plus, oceanic animals are the only ones I can draw well. I'll probably do a pelagic zone, focusing on the whale-like gyrosprinter descendent. I know THAT will get the ball rolling. |
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| Temporary | Apr 13 2010, 07:06 PM Post #48 |
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Transhuman
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i'm curious to see how that could swim. |
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| Canis Lupis | Apr 13 2010, 07:12 PM Post #49 |
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Dinosaurs eat man, woman inherits the Earth.
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You'll have to wait until tomorrow. But just a hint: back leg for power and spinal movement for turns. They're quite flexible. Basically, imagine how a finless dolphin would swim. Or, better yet, sea snake (except with a whale-like tail motion). |
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| Temporary | Apr 13 2010, 07:21 PM Post #50 |
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Transhuman
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Ah, not really a hint but a great description. I can't wait. |
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| Canis Lupis | Apr 13 2010, 07:37 PM Post #51 |
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Dinosaurs eat man, woman inherits the Earth.
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Yeah, I'm not too good with dropping hints rather than explanations. This is why my best April Fool's Day pranks are on the internet. |
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| Canis Lupis | Apr 15 2010, 08:49 PM Post #52 |
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Dinosaurs eat man, woman inherits the Earth.
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Okay, first creature. Enjoy! Kingdom: Tharthazoa Phylum: Dikephala Class: Kranostoma Order: Phidaina Family: Kiboteridae Genus: Marinus Species: Machairia Scientific name: Marinus machairia Common name: Bubbler, bubble back, delphiser More commonly called the delphiser (an amalgam of "delphinidae" (which is the family Earth dolphins belong to) and "serpent"), this creature also goes by the name the bubbler, the bubble back, or, in the scientific community, Marinus machairia. The delphiser evolved from a shoreside ambush predator, which eventually made its way into the water. From there, this shoreside predator evolved into the diverse order Phidaina, containing groups that fill the niches of whales and seals. In fact, the family the delphiser belongs to (Kiboteridae) is not what scientists and the layperson considers a whale-type family. In actuality, the kiboterids are actually occupy seal-like niches, as evidenced by their anterior spike. In most kiboterids, this spike is curved, allowing them to tug themselves onto land in a manner similar to Earth walruses. But there is one genus (Marinus) that has converged on the whale-like family's design, evolving to be fully marine. Scientists aren't quite sure what the niches of these creatures resembles. There has been speculation that these niches are most similar to narwhals, but some have contested that the niche more resembles that of dolphins. The delphiser usually hunt in teams of three, made up of one male and two females. Since they live in the pelagic zone (more often known as the oceanic desert (figurative of course)), food is relatively scarce and all species have learned to make the best of any oppurtunity. As such, species have evolved sophisticated hunting techniques and the delphiser is no exception. The delphiser group actively seeks out schools of undopleurans (the favorite food of most phidains). Once a school is found, the delphisers swim around the school, surrounding them with bubbles in a manner similar to Earth dolphins. Once the school is corraled, the delphisers take turns swimming through the school, skewering up to six undopleurans on their anterior spike at any given time. While most kiboterids have a nasty reputation of confusing human swimmers as food and/or a rival, the delphiser is one of the few exceptions. Since it makes a living off smaller undopleurans, it rarely attacks anything large (usually prey two feet long is its limit, but they have been known to attack larger prey in times of distress. Picture: http://specbiofan.deviantart.com/art/Delphiser-for-Thar-160869002 Since I updated "Thar" today, that means I will update "Project Nostalgia" either tomorrow or Saturday. Depends on how much time I have on my hands. |
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| Canis Lupis | Apr 17 2010, 08:45 PM Post #53 |
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Dinosaurs eat man, woman inherits the Earth.
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So nothing to say about this guy? I'm moving on to some other species tomorrow. Probably its prey. |
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| Temporary | Apr 18 2010, 08:34 AM Post #54 |
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Transhuman
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I might be mistaken, but was it sticking out a fairly long tongue in that pic? |
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| Canis Lupis | Apr 18 2010, 08:40 AM Post #55 |
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Dinosaurs eat man, woman inherits the Earth.
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Nope. No mistake. That tongue is similar to an elephant's trunk. Since the spike is immobile, the delphisers had to evolve a way to get the food off the spike and into the mouth. That's where the tongue (which just wraps around the prey) comes in. |
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| Empyreon | Apr 18 2010, 10:42 PM Post #56 |
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Are you plausible?
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What kind of creature did this and its kin evolve from? Are we looking at whale-like mammaloids here, or are they more reptilian in origin? I really like the corralling technique too. It shows teamwork and perhaps even some intelligence.
This is just me shooting in the dark, but I see that eventually evolving into the bases of both the tongue and the spike coinciding, and even the tongue maybe growing around the spike like a sheath, pulling back to expose the spike and get prey, then resheathing and scraping off food in a single stroke. |
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Take a look at my exobiology subforum of the planet Nereus! COM Contributions food for thought
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| Canis Lupis | Apr 18 2010, 11:34 PM Post #57 |
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Dinosaurs eat man, woman inherits the Earth.
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More like mammaloids. The ancestor was a typical kranostome: bicycle bipedalism with a hard bony head. It had tubes coming from its breathing holes that looked sort of like water plants, allowing the creature to stay submerged for long periods of time without prey noticing. The creature had a large spike on its head which it used to pierce prey (in a similar manner to the delphiser, minus the bubbles). A tongue would then come out and wrap itself around the prey. To launch itself out of the water, this creature had a very muscular back leg. Over time, this back leg evolved into a caudal fin-like organ, propelling the creature through the water with very powerful bursts of speed. Turning was accomplished by simply turning the body in the direction of travel. This design proved highly efficient in the Tharian waters and the ancestral creature soon diversified to occupy "whale" and "seal" niches. In most species (particularly in the "whales"), the front limb is atrophied and there is no evidence of it. This gives the "whales" a very hydrodynamic design, allowing them to be some of the fastest cretures in the oceans. In the "seals" (as you can see in the delphiser), the front limb atrophied into a spike. In most species, this evolved as a way to tug themselves onto land. However, in the delphiser and kin, this spike evolved as either a weapon against predators or a hunting tool. In the marinus genus, this spike is stationary and longer in some species. However, there is one kiboterid species (fully marine, but with a spike design so strange that it has earned its own genus) which maintains much of the arm. For most of the time, the arm is located in a chamber inside the body. But when prey draws near, the arm is launched from the body with surprising skill. This particular species does not possess the long tongue as the arm retention allows the creature to extend the spike to the mouth rather than the mouth to the spike. That's basic evolutionary history of the phidainans right there. Though undoubtedly, as I make more creatures, the evolutionary history will be added to or revised.
Thanks. The delphiser is one of the more intelligent phidainans, though by no means the most. I'd have to give that award to...well, I won't spoil it. You'll just have to wait. But I'll give you a hint: it launches its spike rather than ramming it into prey.
That could work. Though how would the food get into the mouth if the tongue was down on the spike? Unless I'm misunderstanding, that resheath and scrape technique would cause the prey to detach from the spike and not get into the mouth but rather float away. Unless of course the tongue has some sort of "lip" which grips the prey and deposits it into the mouth while still resheathing. |
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| Empyreon | Apr 19 2010, 01:31 AM Post #58 |
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Are you plausible?
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Boy, I hear you there. It's a big "organic" process. ![]()
I look forward to it!
That's more what I was thinking. It would grab onto skewered prey with a finely muscled tongue, slide it off an into the mouth, then wrap back around the spike. |
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Take a look at my exobiology subforum of the planet Nereus! COM Contributions food for thought
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| Holben | Apr 19 2010, 07:21 AM Post #59 |
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Rumbo a la Victoria
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I'm worried about struggling prey not too much smaller than the creature damaging the tongue- can it be armoured or really heavily muscled? |
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Time flows like a river. Which is to say, downhill. We can tell this because everything is going downhill rapidly. It would seem prudent to be somewhere else when we reach the sea. "It is the old wound my king. It has never healed." | |
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| Empyreon | Apr 19 2010, 04:56 PM Post #60 |
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Are you plausible?
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The spike doesn't look like it could handle prey that large, IMO, so the creature wouldn't go hunt that big of prey. I could be wrong, though. I'm curious about the skeletal structure of the delphiser, though. I'm having a hard time seeing how it exhibits the 'bicycle' pedalism. |
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Take a look at my exobiology subforum of the planet Nereus! COM Contributions food for thought
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