| Speculative biology is simultaneously a science and form of art in which one speculates on the possibilities of life and evolution. What could the world look like if dinosaurs had never gone extinct? What could alien lifeforms look like? What kinds of plants and animals might exist in the far future? These questions and more are tackled by speculative biologists, and the Speculative Evolution welcomes all relevant ideas, inquiries, and world-building projects alike. With a member base comprising users from across the world, our community is the largest and longest-running place of gathering for speculative biologists on the web. While unregistered users are able to browse the forum on a basic level, registering an account provides additional forum access not visible to guests as well as the ability to join in discussions and contribute yourself! Registration is free and instantaneous. Join our community today! |
| Obscure Taxa; For interesting or obscure organisms you'd like to share. | |
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| Topic Started: Dec 14 2016, 09:46 PM (48,949 Views) | |
| lamna | Apr 6 2017, 03:56 AM Post #211 |
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I just learned about this group, so maybe everyone else knows about them. Goes to show just how many kinds of fish there are when someone who's pretty interested in zoology only just learned about the most numerous vertebrates on the planet, the Bristlemouths.![]() They are a deep sea group that emerged in the Miocene and can be found pretty much world wide. Older estimates for their population put them in the billions to a trillion, more recent ones based on sonar rather than trawling suggest their are trillions, possibly quadrillions of them. They are a major component of the deep scattering layer, a layer of fish and squid that can confuse sonar and look like the ocean floor. They also are born male and mature into females. |
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Living Fossils Fósseis Vibos: Reserva Natural 34 MYH, 4 tonne dinosaur. [flash=500,450] Video Magic! [/flash] | |
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| DINOCARID | Apr 6 2017, 09:51 AM Post #212 |
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Adolescent
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I've always thought of puffers and porcupine fish as reef animals. My perspective on them has been delightfully expanded:![]() Meet the pelagic porcupine fish (Diodon eydouxii), present in shallow habitats but not restricted to them, ranging across the tropical and subtropical waters of almost every ocean on the planet in schools of up to several thousand individuals. On their oceanic travels they feed on pelagic crustaceans, fish larvae, other zooplankton, and even small adult fish, which requires a burst of tail-driven speed, which their usual dorsal and anal fins' flapping cannot provide. While other porcupine fish can become surprisingly large, up to nearly a meter, eydouxii does not grow past ten inches. They spawn in pairs at the surface, and the eggs float for a few days before hatching into finless, toothless larvae. They gradually develop into strikingly blue, spotted juveniles that may associate in age-exclusive schools. ![]() A small juvenile. ![]() A subadult. By the time they become adults, they lose most of their surreal blue coloration, fading to muted blue-grays patterned in black squiggles and rings. Perhaps most interesting of all, their choice in habitat as well as their size mirror the juvenile life and body of other Diodon species, raising the intriguing possibility that they are low grade physical and behavioral paedomorphs. |
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Check out my deviantart here Projects The Fieldguide to Somnial Organisms The Tetrarch (coming soon) | |
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| Beetleboy | Apr 6 2017, 10:00 AM Post #213 |
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neither lizard nor boy nor beetle . . . but a little of all three
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Wow, thanks to lamna and DINOCARID in the posts above for bringing those fascinating fish to my attention, both very inspiring for a possible upcoming project based on an alternative universe ocean, focusing largely on fish and invertebrates. Also, pufferfish are awesome. I may post unusual fish here in the upcoming week, maybe tomorrow. |
| ~ The Age of Forests ~ | |
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| Kachimushi | Apr 6 2017, 12:13 PM Post #214 |
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Zygote
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![]() Salicornia plants are a signature plant of the wadden sea region I live in, but you may have never heard of them if you don't live near any salt marshes. They are a succulent flowering plant genus exclusively found in saline environments. To be able to draw water out of the saline ground through osmosis, they have to concentrate large amounts of salt inside their leaves. While they try to balance the high concentration out by storing lots of water in their leaves as well, the cellular damage still limits their lifetime to little more than six months. |
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| Rodlox | Apr 6 2017, 01:10 PM Post #215 |
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Superhuman
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quite cool little plants. they look almost Devonian in their design, and that's a good thing. |
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.---------------------------------------------. Parts of the Cluster Worlds: "Marsupialless Australia" (what-if) & "Out on a Branch" (future evolution) & "The Earth under a still sun" (WIP) | |
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| lamna | Apr 6 2017, 02:21 PM Post #216 |
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Oooh samphire. Shame you can only get it by the coast if you're unwilling to spend silly money on it, they really are quite tasty. |
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Living Fossils Fósseis Vibos: Reserva Natural 34 MYH, 4 tonne dinosaur. [flash=500,450] Video Magic! [/flash] | |
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| Kachimushi | Apr 6 2017, 04:06 PM Post #217 |
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Zygote
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![]() Here's another interesting species from the Wadden Sea: Bledius spectabilis, a species of rove beetle that is one of the few insects able to survive in the tidal zone. They construct sealable chambers in the sand in which they hide during high tide. When breeding, they actually build small additional chambers in their burrow for their larvae. The mother beetle then feeds the larvae and protects them from predators as they develop inside their underground chambers.
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| HangingThief | Apr 6 2017, 05:12 PM Post #218 |
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ghoulish
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That stuff tastes good? I'll have to try it sometime. On the subject of pelagic tetraodontiformes, here's a few more: The pelagic triggerfish (Canthidermis maculata) is pretty self explanatory. ![]() ![]() The oceanic puffer (Lagocephalus lagocephalus), in its deflated state, could be mistaken at a glance for any old fish- but don't stick your finger in its mouth or eat it, as the former will probably result in a painful wound and the latter in certain death. The only information I can find on its diet is "fish, squid and crustaceans", but closely related species with more benthic tendencies are recorded to make a habit of consuming large quantities of gorgonians. ![]() ![]() ![]() The Slender Mola (Ranzania laevis) is a relative of the much better known mola, only smaller and more...um...slender. ![]() It has small, narrow fins that cut through the water like rotor blades, allowing it to swim considerably faster than its bigger, broader relatives. Juveniles are particularly elongated, and swim in large schools like in the video below. ![]() |
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Hey. | |
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| Uncanny Gemstar | Apr 6 2017, 05:28 PM Post #219 |
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Godfather of SE
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Ok the little molas are adorable, majestic, and totally alien looking. My life is better now that i know they exist. |
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Recent Projects Old Projects | |
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| Flisch | Apr 6 2017, 05:30 PM Post #220 |
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Superhuman
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Evolution: You know, what would be cool? Earth: Do tell. Evolution: Fish without a caudal fin. Earth: Uh, how would they swim? Evolution: I dunno, maybe using their anal and dorsal fins? Earth: But, why would they lose the caudal fin in the first place? Evolution: I dunno, it's just cool. Earth: It's unrealistic. Evolution: Whatever, I like it. Earth: You're silly. Evolution: Don't judge me! |
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| HangingThief | Apr 6 2017, 05:54 PM Post #221 |
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ghoulish
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There's certainly a lesson to be learned from the slender mola: its mode of locomotion is likely far less efficient than that of a typical small pelagic fish, which is probably why there's thousands of them and only one slender mola. But that doesn't stop it from existing! |
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Hey. | |
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| IIGSY | Apr 6 2017, 06:35 PM Post #222 |
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A huntsman spider that wastes time on the internet because it has nothing better to do
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Catenulida are most basal living members of platyhelminthese. They are a sister group to all other flatworms, Rhabditophora. They are mostly aquatic animals that eat algae and detritus. Ya'know, the usual way of life for many microscopic animals. Though, one genus, Paracatenula, lives by bacterial symbiotes. |
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Projects Punga: A terraformed world with no vertebrates Last one crawling: The last arthropod ARTH-6810: A world without vertebrates (It's ded, but you can still read I guess) Potential ideas- Swamp world: A world covered in lakes, with the largest being caspian sized. Nematozoic: After a mass extinction of ultimate proportions, a single species of nematode is the only surviving animal. Tri-devonian: A devonian like ecosystem with holocene species on three different continents. Quotes Phylogeny of the arthropods and some related groups In honor of the greatest clade of all time More pictures Other cool things All African countries can fit into Brazil
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| DINOCARID | Apr 7 2017, 08:41 AM Post #223 |
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Adolescent
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I know of Ranzania but that video was really cool, as were the two other pelagic tetraodontiformes, which I did not know about. We now need to go forth and spec about pelagic tetraodontiformes! |
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Check out my deviantart here Projects The Fieldguide to Somnial Organisms The Tetrarch (coming soon) | |
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| Beetleboy | Apr 7 2017, 09:50 AM Post #224 |
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neither lizard nor boy nor beetle . . . but a little of all three
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I'm on it . . . Now, for some little-known critters . . . ![]() This a cornetfish, also known as a flutemouth (family: Fistulariidae, genus: Fistularia), is a group consisting of four species, found in tropical and subtropical seas wordwide. They can grow up to 2 metres (6.6 feet) in length, and are obviously rather thin and elongated, with bizarre face. They are generally found in coastal waters, particularly on coral reefs, where they tend to feed upon invertebrates such as crustaceans, as well as small fish. ![]() ![]() These two are ribbon eels (Rhinomuraena quaesita), also known as the leaf-nosed moray eel or bernis eel, is a species of moray eel, the only member of the genus Rhinomuraena. Based on observed colour changes, it is generally considered a protandric hermaphrodite (first male, then changing sex to female), although this has yet to be confirmed. Colour change related to sex change is not known from any other moray eel species. The presumed juveniles and subadults are jet black with a yellow dorsal fin, in adult males the black is replaced by blue, and adult females are entirely yellow or yellow with some blue to the posterior. The blue adult males range from 65 to 94 cm (26 to 37 in) in length, while the larger yellow females can reach up to 130 cm (51 in). ![]() This is the Australian ghostshark, Callorhinchus milii, is a cartilaginous fish (Chondrichthyes) belonging to the subclass Holocephali (chimaera). Alternative names include elephant shark, makorepe (in Māori), whitefish, plough-nose chimaera, or elephant fish. It is found off southern Australia, including Tasmania, and south of East Cape and Kaipara Harbour in New Zealand, at depths of 0–200 m (0–656 ft). They use their hoe-shaped snouts to probe the ocean bottom for invertebrates and small fishes. From spring to autumn, adults migrate inshore to estuaries and bays and females lay their eggs on sandy or muddy substrates. The eggs are contained in large yellowish capsules. The egg partially opens enabling seawater to flow in to the egg capsules after a few months and juveniles emerge from the capsule after six to eight months as about 12 cm (4.7 in) in length. Maximum age is estimated to be 15 years. |
| ~ The Age of Forests ~ | |
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| Nyarlathotep | Apr 7 2017, 10:36 AM Post #225 |
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The Creeping Chaos
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Presenting... ![]() The Cave Loach (no scientific name has been given yet)! The very first cave dwelling fish ever discovered in Europe, this animal was only discovered in south- German caves in 2015 and has challenged perceptions on how quickly cave dwelling adaptions can develop. Genetic studies suggest this species is at most 20,000 years old, this showing the dramatic changes for adaption that cave dwelling animals show, as well as the isolation these creatures can reach even in populated Europe. As you can see, the differences with surface dwellers is already profound. Anyone studying or interested in troglodytes should find this useful as a reference. The study done on them. |
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