nochromity

[nochromity]

From: @pollyannam3

To: @nochromity

Note: "Noch, I have been buzzing since the day I found out I would get to write for you. You are one of my best friends in the world and getting to make this for you has been the highlight of the month for me. I hope you like all of my headcanons and that I did your pairings justice!! I love you so much, my friend! You are so very very dear to me, I can't imagine a better friend! 

You light up my life and always make me feel loved and safe <333"

Link to written work: (Here)

“You should not run so far, you know not how quick we can follow. Other things can be faster, and if you’re foolhardy I can’t guarantee your safety.”

This voice was not heeded, as Quirrel excitedly waved for them to follow. Nailmaster Oro was following, but was being easily outpaced by the pillbug. 

“Oro, my love, my nettle, you need to see this immediately. Small jabs like that can wait!”

He crossed under a natural arch in the Kingdom’s edge, pausing under the shade to let his companion catch up. 

“I say that not for myself.” Oro finally caught up to Quirrel, and they both turned and heard, “HEY DON’T STOP-” 

From the distance, Tiso crossed the expanse, albeit with a staggering limp supported by a simple cane. It helped immensely with his balance, since he was missing an arm now. 

It took him a moment but he finally caught up with his partners, despite the wobbliness.

Oro regarded Tiso with his usual blank look, but said with a concern in his voice, “Really, take up my father on the physical therapy advice.” 

Tiso responded by playfully jabbing Oro with the end of his cane, “I got it!”

“You won’t win this fight. You’re practically out of breath.” “Try me!”

Quirrel grabbed Tiso by the shoulder and Oro by the neck of his cloak, gently pulling their humorous spat apart. “We’re here for a reason, dears.” 

Tiso and Oro huffed, and gave Quirrel their attention. “I found this place while hunting, and thought you both would adore this view for a pleasant outing. I figure after your surgery and your visit with your brothers, you could both use just. A day to sit.” He gestured at both of his dears, who nodded. They were both going through big things. 

Healing from wounds physical and emotional. 

Quirrel waved again, and they followed him through the arch and across the last bit of the path. 

They came across a cavern, extending to what felt like infinity off the edge of the cliff. The buzz of aspids was near, but far enough away to not worry. All they could hear was the chug of Boofly wings. 

“So your plan for us is to sit, do nothing, and watch booflies be brainless?” Tiso gestured his fingers to the view, flabbergasted.

Quirrel sat down, kicking his feet off the edge of the cliff. “It is a wonderful view. You could talk, if you like. You like hearing that voice of yours.”

“...You got me there.” Tiso moved to sit next to Quirrel, Oro following to help him. Without a word, the large bug gently sat Tiso down so his torso wouldn’t be aggravated. 

Tiso looked up at him, a look of silent thanks.

Oro looked down, a look of silent gratitude to be needed. He stood there. For a hot second. 

“Oro, you may sit too, nettle dear.” 

“Oh…Oh, correct.” Oro plopped down, crossing his legs above the cliff instead of risking them below.

They all sat, and the quiet set in. The only noises were the ambience of the bugs below, Tiso stretching and his back cracking, or Quirrel taking the old cracked glasses off of his head to give them a squeaky clean on the cloak Oro had given him. The little squeak, squeak, squeak combined with him putting them back on the top of his head made Tiso ask, “Do you even need those?” 

“Ah, no, they aren’t my prescription, anyways.”

“Then why do you have them…?”

“They belonged to an old dear friend of mine, is all. Passed long ago.”

Tiso hummed, thinking about his shield, hung up at their lovely little home. “That’s nice of you, what of you, big guy?” Tiso looked at Oro, wondering if he related to such a story.

“Do not call me “big guy” or I will go back to calling you “Runt”, Tiso.”

Tiso waved his arm down, “Hey, I’m just playing.”

“Find out if I am.”

Tiso gave Oro a little shove, “Do you have any cool keepsakes or what?”

Oro flicked his hand, making Quirrel chuckle at their antics. Always entertaining, the two of them.

“Not many. None of importance.” Oro put his hands in his lap, fiddling with two of his fingers. Feeling the cracked shell underneath, trying to think if he wanted to share.

“Ah, I see, You revel in being boring at times.” Tiso spoke, so blunt Oro could almost mistake his partner’s voice for his brother’s. 

“Hey-” Quirrel gave him a gentle smack with the back of his palm to Tiso’s shoulder. “Ow-” Tiso said, despite having little to  no feeling on that side of his body. 

Oro put a hand on the side of his head, fiddling with his mask as he thought.  He didn’t know if he wanted to share: but they both shared things like this often. At least knowledge of their existence. 

“I have a moth wing-feather. Old books from my father. Pots that held childhood meals, things like that.”

That made both Quirrel and Tiso pipe up. “What was that?” Quirrel asked, inquisitive but with an air of lightness.

Oro grew confused, “Books from my father?”

“Where’d you get a moth feather???” Tiso blurted, making Oro regret his words. He reached up and pulled down his bandanna, to almost try and cover his eyes. 

“Ah that, a loathsomely boring story, you’ll find it ridiculous and odd. I should not share.”

Tiso, in a tizzy, tried to stand in fiery passion for his answer.

“You can’t not share! You’re telling me our beloved broody spark of a nailmaster got close enough to a moth to get a FEATHER and refuses to tell us how?? Like-”

Quirrel put a hand on Tiso’s shoulder, and pulled him back to sit before he fell in an awkward way for his injuries. “We did not pry for your precious story. We will not pry for Oro’s. Is that alright, my nettle?”

Oro nodded, and Tiso could only pout and attempt to cross his arms by just wrapping the one around his body, tucking his hand under his small stump.

“Let us set our own pace, and be calm with one another. The last thing we need is an argument and for one of you to get thrown off this edge to the spikes below.” Quirrel ran his hand over his headscarf and adjusted it, giving both of them a look, “If you cause that fight, I will not leap to the rescue and injure my back.” Quirrel scolded, mostly Tiso, who just coughed and mumbled under his breath about just being curious. They went back to a slightly tense silence. 

Oro closed his eyes and went into his thoughts. Quirrel pulled up a leg and let out a small sigh of relief. 

Tiso rubbed his residual arm, and looked at the booflies.

He wished they could just go catch one, eat, and then go home to amend the awkwardness. 

The gusts of wind from the Fool’s falling grave was getting a bit cold. If there was anything he hated more than his partners being upset, it was the cold with his injuries. 

It made the ant begin to shiver, the naturally coldest of the three of them. He then felt a heavy warmth come over him, and saw Oro quietly putting half of his cloak around Tiso. 

Tiso looked up at him, and gave him a small smile. Oro just kept looking down, as if what he was doing was unconscious. Quirrel saw them move into a small cuddle, and scooted closer to join. It was calming, the protection against the winds on top of the buzzing below.

It felt…safe. They should all just sit, and be safe, despite their quarrel. 

The thrill of sparring and hunting was top tier in Tiso’s heart, but he could see it in Oro and Quirrel’s postures. This was better.

Oro felt Tiso melt closer to him, and in turn Quirrel pressed more into Tiso. A line of falling into comfort. A comfort that he has no idea how he could get used to it like this. Not again, at least. 

Not since he was young.

Not since…

Since he was…

…Safe.

He held onto Quirrel with one hand, and adjusted Tiso’s poor posture with the other, moving to fully shield them. He bent his head close to Tiso, and whispered.

“The feather was from an old friend.”

Tiso looked up at him with wide eyes, but a claw booped him gently. “Shh.” Oro said, gesturing to Quirrel who was, hilariously, already dozing in the warmth.

“Oh…” Tiso adjusted himself, and let Quirrel settle down into his lap as Oro held the two of them close.

The quiet turned back to comfortable, as the chug of boofly wings and the buzz of bees lulled it into being. 

Oro looked over his partners, and reveled in that. 

He knew where that feather was, a keepsake of the past. 

Of a Past love. A love that was so short lived but so dear. He hoped to keep blue headscarfs and canes that fold into nails away from the keepsakes. He wanted them to keep where they were for now.

He wanted them both there. In his arms, despite any grumbling or huffing that usually comes with cuddles, he loved every moment of it.

He wonders how he earned it, as Tiso dozes too. He keeps him upright for his poor back.

The isolated nailmaster, sitting on the edge of the world. 

The crushed gladiator, sleeping on the edge of the world.

The retired scholar, resting on the edge of the world.

To ever find warmth, and comfort, and love, and light, and everything in between.

Sticking together, no matter how hard life throws them down, they’ll never be thrown away.

They would grow beyond the edge, and break the boundaries. One precious moment at a time. 

After, a short nap, of course. As they doze, bees and booflies circling curiously about, they know it can't be long before they’re bothered. 

It’s no mind.

The edge of the world’s change would wait for them.

[nochromity]

Round 2.5 - Ctenophora - Tentaculata

(Sources - 1, 2, 3, 4)

One of two classes of Ctenophora is Tentaculata, the “Tentaculate Comb Jellies.”

The common feature of this class is a pair of long, feathery, contractile tentacles, which can be retracted into specialised ciliated sheaths. Instead of stinging cells, the tentacles have colloblasts, which are sticky-tipped cells that trap small prey. Some species may flick their tentacles to lure prey by behaving like small planktonic worms. Body size and shape vary widely among tentaculatans. Some are bioluminescent, allowing them both to scare away predators and attract small prey: from microscopic larvae and rotifers to the adults of small crustaceans. They are named for the comb rows of cilia which they use to swim. The beating of these combs refract light, producing rainbow-like colors.

Propaganda under the cut:

The Redspot Comb Jelly (Eurhamphaea vexilligera) is unique in that it can actually produce bright orange-yellow ink as a means of escaping predators

The “Warty Comb Jelly” or “Sea Walnut” (Mnemiopsis leidyi) (though I grew up calling them “Leidy’s Comb Jellies”) (image 4) has an oval-shaped and transparent lobed body that glows blue-green when disturbed. It is biologically immortal, can consume ten times its body weight, and its anus only appears when it’s ready to defecate. They are native to western Atlantic coastal waters, but have become established as an invasive species in European and West Asian regions.

Named after the Greek goddess of sailors, the genus Leucothea can be identified by their oblong bodies which have fairly long lobes, taking up almost half of their length. They are transparent, bioluminescent, and have gelatinous spikes that are thought to serve a sensory purpose as they are found to point towards stimuli, the way a ship points towards its destination.

The Venus Girdle (Cestum veneris) (image 3) is the largest ctenophore of all known ctenophores, reaching up to a 1.5 metres (4.9 ft) in total length. Venus girdles resemble transparent ribbons with iridescent edges. Canals run the length of the ribbon in which bioluminescence activates when disturbed.

Haeckelia is a genus of ctenophore which is unique in that, instead of colloblasts, it has cnidocytes, explosive stinging cells usually only present in cnidarians. It does this by stealing and retaining cnidocytes from its cnidarian prey.

Some deep sea tentaculatans are blood red, as this allows them to be camouflaged in the deep sea, where red light does not reach.

[nochromity]

reminder that being against ai also means being against character.ai and not using character.ai and not interacting with character.ai

i've never talked to chatgpt i've never talked to character.ai i have no interest in talking to a chatbot even if it's fun or based on my comfort character. if we want companies to stop using ai we need to tell them we aren't going to interact with it - so don't.

don't talk to robots. full stop.

[nochromity]

Round 2.5 - Tardigrada - Eutardigrada

(Sources - 1, 2, 3, 4)

One of two classes of tardigrades, Eutardigrada (“Smooth-bodied Tardigrades”) consists of the orders Apochela and Parachela.

When you picture a tardigrade, it is probably a eutardigrade. Eutardigrada contains the most species of the two tardigrade classes. Most of them are terrestrial, though some are adapted to a freshwater or marine habitat. As opposed to heterotardigrades, eutardigrades are smooth and sausage-shaped, and lack external sensory organs. Their claws are combined into double claws or aligned in two rows.

Most of the scientific study on the survivability of tardigrades has been done on eutardigrades. They are known for their extreme resilience, being able to survive extreme temperatures and pressures, air deprivation, radiation, dehydration, starvation, and even exposure to outer space. However, they prefer to just live in mosses, lichens, and sediments, munching away on plant cells, algae, bacteria, or small invertebrates (including smaller tardigrade species; that’s not cannibalism btw, plenty of chordates eat other chordate species!) They are not considered extremophiles though, as they are not adapted to exploit extreme environments, only to endure them. They do this by going dormant in harsh environments, for up to 30 years, only to rehydrate and continue living when conditions are safer!

Members of Eutardigrada have been around since at least the Middle Cretaceous. The oldest known living species are Beorn leggi and Aerobius dactylus, which have existed since the Late Cretaceous!

[nochromity]

Round 2.5 - Platyhelminthes - “Turbellaria”

(Sources - 1, 2, 3, 4)

Unfortunately, “Turbellaria” is a paraphyletic class and is no longer valid. Many of the orders within this group are more closely related to their parasitic cousins than to each other. While I am doing my best to avoid paraphyly in this tournament, there are many groups formerly within Turbellaria that have not been assigned a higher classification yet, and I do not want to leave them out. So for now, this is an oddball poll that includes the unrelated orders Bothrioplanida, Gnosonesimida, Polycladida, Prolecithophora, Prorhynchida, Proseriata, Rhabdocoela, Tricladida, Macrostomida, Dolichomicrostomida, the family Haplopharyngidae, and the genera Bradynectes and Myozona.

That being said, this is a group that encompasses the “free-living flatworms” that do not live parasitic lifestyles.

Like all platyhelminths, turbellarians have no internal body cavity and lack specialized circulatory and respiratory organs, so gas exchange is by simple diffusion. They are either microscopic or are flat and ribbon- or leaf-shaped, and vulnerable to fluid loss, so are relegated to aquatic or moist environments. Their body is filled with mesenchyme, a connective tissue that can regenerate injured tissues and permits asexual reproduction. The nervous system is concentrated at the head end. Most turbellarians are predators or scavengers, and terrestrial species are mostly nocturnal and live in shaded humid locations such as leaf litter or rotting wood. Carnivorous turbellarians usually have an eversible pharynx that can be extended by being turned inside-out, and the mouths of different species can be anywhere along the underside. However some are symbiotes of other animals such as crustaceans, and some are parasites. Small aquatic species use cilia for locomotion, while larger ones use muscular movements of the whole body or of a specialized sole to creep or swim. Some are capable of burrowing, anchoring their rear ends at the bottom of the burrow, then stretching the head up to feed and then pulling it back down for safety. Some terrestrial species throw a thread of mucus which they use as a rope to climb from one leaf to another.

All turbellarians are simultaneous hermaphrodites, having both female and male reproductive cells, and fertilize eggs internally by copulation. Some of the larger aquatic species mate by “penis fencing”, a duel in which each tries to impregnate the other, and the loser adopts the female role of developing the eggs. Unusually among animals, in most species, the sperm cells have two tails, rather than one. In most species miniature adults emerge when the eggs hatch, but a few large species produce plankton-like larvae. Many turbellarians can also clone themselves by transverse or longitudinal division, and others may reproduce by budding.

Turbellarians, or at least free-living Platyhelminths, emerged in the Middle Triassic.

Propaganda under the cut:

Planarian flatworms can regenerate new heads, tails, or entire bodies thanks to their vast amounts of pluripotent stem cells, cells that can essentially become any cell in the body.

Two planarian species were successfully introduced to the Philippines, Indonesia, Hawaii, New Guinea, and Guam to control populations of the invasive Giant African Snail (Achatina fulica), which was displacing native snails. (However, they ended up also being a threat to the native snails, who woulda thunk)

Some planarians are being used for mosquito control. These species can live in artificial containers that attract mosquitoes, so they are less likely to become invasive themselves.

Land planarians tend to get a bad rap due to several invasive species, but there are over 830 other species of land planarian who are just doing their thing

The freshwater species Microstomum caudatum can open its mouth almost as wide as its body is long, to swallow prey as large as itself.

Marine flatworms can detect approaching threats via light and dark sensitive cells on their pseudotentacles (the little folds on their heads that look like eyestalks.) They basically mimic having eyes and it works

Many marine flatworms mimic poisonous nudibranchs (which are molluscs) and some terrestrial flatworms mimic venomous snakes (which are chordates), both animals which are very very far removed from flatworms

Many tropical flatworms can be just so, so beautiful:

Flat Freak Fursday

[nochromity]

Message Hello and happy Stagbells! I spent far too long on this, haha, but it was fun! I put a little story into this scene- Cloth and Quirrel were talking while Quirrel prepared some winter beverages, then Tiso came in to drape himself over the couch (and Cloth) and rant about his day, only to be interrupted with a forehead kiss.

I hope it's to your liking!

From: @nochromity

To: @7lemon-lord7

[nochromity]

Round 2.5 - Cnidaria - Scyphozoa

(Sources - 1, 2, 3, 4)

Scyphozoa is a marine class of cnidarians commonly referred to as “true jellyfish”, “jellyfish”, or simply “jellies”. They are composed of three living orders: Coronatae (“Crown Jellies”), Rhizostomeae (“Root-mouth Jellies”), Semaeostomeae (“Flag-mouth Jellies”).

Scyphozoans usually display a four-part symmetry and have an internal gelatinous material called mesoglea, consisting of as much as 98% water. A ring of muscle fibres within the mesoglea surrounds the rim of the dome, and the jellyfish swims by alternately contracting and relaxing these muscles. As medusae, they eat a variety of crustaceans and fish, which they capture using stinging cells called nematocysts. The nematocysts are located throughout the tentacles that radiate downward from the edge of the umbrella dome, and also cover the four or eight oral arms that hang down from the central mouth. Some species, however, are instead filter feeders, using their tentacles to strain plankton from the water. The mouth opens into a central stomach, from which four interconnected diverticula radiate outwards. Some genera also have smaller mouths in the oral arms. The lining of the digestive system includes further stinging nematocysts, along with cells that secrete digestive enzymes. The nervous system usually consists of a distributed net of cells, although some species possess more organised nerve rings. Some species also have pigment-cup ocelli, though they are not as advanced as Cubozoan eyes. Coronataens (ex: image 2) are characterized by a deep groove running around the umbrella, giving them the crown shape which gives them their name. Rhizostomeans (ex: image 1 and 3) do not have tentacles nor other structures branching off from the edges of the bell. Instead, they have eight highly branched oral arms which fuse together as they approach the central mouth of the jellyfish. Semaeostomeaens (ex: image 4 and gif below) have four long, frilly oral arms flanking their quadrate mouths, as well as tentacles.

Most species of Scyphozoa have two life-history phases, including the planktonic medusa or polyp form, and the inconspicuous, but longer-lived, bottom-dwelling polyp, which seasonally gives rise to new medusae. Most species appear to be gonochorists, with separate male and female individuals. The gonads are located in the stomach lining, and the mature gametes are expelled through the mouth. After fertilization, some species brood their young in pouches on the oral arms, but they are more commonly planktonic. The fertilized egg produces a planular larva which, in most species, quickly attaches itself to the sea bottom. The larva develops into the hydroid stage of the lifecycle, a tiny sessile polyp called a scyphistoma. The scyphistoma reproduces asexually, producing similar polyps by budding, and then either transforming into a medusa, or budding several medusae off from its upper surface via a process called strobilation. The medusae are initially microscopic and may take years to reach sexual maturity.

Scyphozoans have existed since the Early Cambrian.

Propaganda under the cut:

The Lion’s Mane Jelly (Cyanea capillata) is one of the largest jellyfish, with the largest recorded specimen having a bell width of 210 cm (7 ft) and tentacles around 36.6 m (120 ft) long.

Jellyfish of the order Rhizostomeae are considered edible, both as a delicacy and for use in traditional medicine, and are eaten mainly in Asia, typically dried and/or salted.

The giant Nomura's Jellyfish (Nemopilema nomurai) can reach similar sizes to the Lion’s Mane Jellyfish, and their large size and quantity often negatively affects fisheries in East Asia. Aside from humans, their only predators are swordfish, tuna, sunfish, and leatherback sea turtles. A decrease in predators and an increase in favorable conditions and warming seas have caused an explosion in population, displaying that an increase in animal populations is not always a good sign! Scientists are studying their venom for use in medical applications, such as for treating joint disease and in cancer research. The Japanese company Tango Jersey Dairy also produces a vanilla and jellyfish ice cream using Nomura's Jellyfish.

While most jellies are exclusively marine, the Bay Nettle (Chrysaora chesapeakei) ventures into the Chesapeake Bay’s brackish water all the way up into the freshwater of Baltimore’s Inner Harbor.

The Giant Phantom Jelly (Stygiomedusa gigantea) is a deep sea jellyfish that is rarely seen, with only around 110 sightings in 110 years. It thought to be one of the largest invertebrate predators of the ocean's midnight zone and twilight zone, with an umbrella-shaped bell that can grow up to 1 m (3.3 ft) in diameter and paddle-like arms that can grow up to 10 m (33 ft) in length. The bell's pliant tissue allows for the jellyfish to stretch 4 to 5 times its size, presumably to engulf their prey. They do not have any stinging tentacles and instead use their arms to trap and engulf their prey which consists of plankton and small fish. The Giant Phantom Jelly has a symbiotic relationship with the Pelagic Brotula (Thalassobathia pelagica), for which it provides food and shelter beneath its massive billowing bell, while the fish aids the jelly by removing parasites.

The Mauve Stinger (Pelagia noctiluca) is a fairly small purple jellyfish that is able to glow in the dark (bioluminesce). Light is emitted in the form of flashes when the medusa is stimulated by turbulence created by waves or by a ship's motion. Unusually among cnidarians, Mauve Stingers are able to consume phytoplankton, alongside copepods and other usual planktonic fare.

The Moon Jelly (Aurelia aurita) (see gif above) is gaining popularity in aquarium touchtanks as they lack long tentacles and their sting has little to no affect on humans. They are also one of the longer-lived jellyfish, living up to two years in their medusa form, and are easy to rear and feed, making them a good candidate for giving humans an up-close learning experience with jellies.

Fun fact: my dad let me watch The Sphere (1998) when I was 7 and it gave me Scyphophobia, a fear of jellyfish, that lasted for several years. I knew the behavior of the jellyfish as depicted in the movie wasn’t real, but I still wouldn’t enter the ocean for the next 5 years, and when I did start entering the ocean again every time I saw a jellyfish I would get out and not go back in again for another full year. It took a touch tank and several positive experiences with some moon jellies to get over my fear, and now I would say I’m fully recovered!

[nochromity]

May i present to you my hollow knight- rain world au?

some random facts that i come up with, while thinking about this au - monomon is iterator, as all dreamers. but pk in ancient , as well as a wl, but wl right now is echo. where is pk no one knows - all dreamers are destroyed in some way, also they are like dead? but not quiet - monomon is under water (she fell under her sea, so in first doodle, quirrel and ghost are on top of her!) - quirrel is scavenger! - ghost is having a little bit transparent skin, and also full of void, but like more of hk void

i also have a lot more ideas,and traditional doodles with more character ideas but for now its all so i will call it part 1 ?

[nochromity]

✨ Please reblog to make it reach out to as many people as possible, but KEEP IT SPOILER-FREE to make people listen to the music with an open mind 💖

Artists and titles will be revealed after the poll's conclusion, check the original post for an update! ✨

(Audio replaced, 4 hours after poll started)

[nochromity]

Round 2 - Mollusca - Gastropoda

(Sources - 1, 2, 3, 4)

The class Gastropoda is the most diverse and successful class of molluscs, living in most habitats in saltwater, freshwater, and on land. They are one of the largest classes of animals, second only to insects. Members of this class either have an external or internal shell, or have lost their shell secondarily. Gastropoda includes the snail clades Sorbeoconcha, Hypsogastropoda, Architaenioglossa, and Neogastropoda, the snails and slugs of the clades Heterobranchia, the snails, slugs, and limpets of the clade Neritimorpha, the deepwater limpet clade Neomphaliones, the “true limpet” clade Patellogastropoda, and the primitive snails and limpets of the clade Vetigastropoda.

The anatomy, behavior, feeding, and reproductive adaptations of gastropods vary significantly from one clade to another, so it’s hard to make a general summary. As you can probably tell above, the terms snail, slug, and limpet are not taxonomic, but moreso descriptive! The word “snail” is generally used for gastropods with an external shell big enough for the body to withdraw completely inside. Marine snails tend to have many names based on their shell shape, such as abalone, conch, periwinkle, whelk, and cowrie. “Limpets” are generally considered to be marine snails with a simple, conical, flattened shell. “Slugs” are snails that have no shell or a very small, internal shell, while “semislugs” are snails that have a shell that they can partially retreat into but not entirely. These groups are all paraphyletic, as some slugs are closer related to shelled snails than they are to other slugs and vice versa. Shells have evolved and been lost within the many different gastropod lineages. These species are wildly diverse, living from the depths of hydrothermal vents to dry deserts to inside other organisms as parasites.

Gastropods are distinguished by an anatomical process known as torsion, where the visceral mass of the animal rotates 180° to one side during development, such that the anus is situated more or less above the head. The gill-combs, the olfactory organs, the foot slime-gland, nephridia, and the auricle of the heart are single or at least are more developed on one side of the body than the other. Torsion is present in all gastropods, but the opisthobranch gastropods are secondarily untorted. Gastropods typically have a well-defined head with two or four sensory tentacles with eyes, and a ventral foot. Gastropod eyes range from simple ocelli that only distinguish light and dark, to more complex pit eyes, and even to lens eyes. Most shelled gastropods have a one piece shell (though there are some bivalved gastropods), typically coiled or spiraled, at least in the larval stage. This coiled shell usually opens on the right-hand side. Many species have an operculum, which acts as a trapdoor to close the shell. Like most molluscs, they have a rasping, toothed tongue called a radula. Gastropods can be herbivores, detritus feeders, predatory carnivores, scavengers, or parasites.

Some gastropods have seperate sexes while some are hermaphroditic. Many undergo elaborate courtship rituals before mating. Some utilize unique calcareous or chitinous “love darts” in courtship, which are coated in allohormones that enable their partner to receive and store more sperm. Gastropods will lay eggs which hatch into larvae, some of which are planktonic trochophore or veliger larvae. A newly hatched snail is called a neonate, and their larval shell is called a protoconch.

The fossil record of gastropods dates back to the Late Cambrian, with Chippewaella and Strepsodiscus, though these may be stem-gastropods as their only gastropod characteristic is a coiled shell. Crown-gastropods arrived and began to diversify in the Ordovician, though they were still less common than bivalves. By the Mesozoic, the ancestors of many of our modern living gastropods had evolved. Most ancient gastropods were marine, with some land snails appearing in the Carboniferous, but not becoming common or diverse until the Cretaceous.

Propaganda under the cut (warning: gif heavy!)

Gastropod shells make up many of the “seashells” washed ashore after the animal dies, and are created by the animal via secretions of chitin and conchiolin from its mantle edge. Unfortunately, many species are also endangered or extinct in the wild due to overcollection of live gastropods to be killed for their meat or “collectable” shells, as well as due to habitat destruction, pollution, and climate change.

The Rough Keyhole Limpet (Diodora aspera) has a symbiotic relationship with the Scale Worm Copepod (Anthessius nortoni). The limpet provides host for the copepod, which in turn bites predatory starfish to discourage them from eating the limpet.

The largest gastropod is the Australian Trumpet (Syrinx aruanus), a sea snail that can measure up to 75 cm (2 ft 5.5in) long and weigh up to 18 kg (40 lb)! While the animal’s shell is well-known and valued by collectors, it is rarely seen alive.

“Micromolluscs” are numerous species of gastropod with adult shell lengths of around 600 μm. You could say this is no bigger than a grain of sand, and you would be right, as many of their washed up shells are sand. Not much is known about these species and many remain unclassified as their minute size makes them very challenging to study.

Members of the family Conidae, known as “cone snails”, are some of the most venomous animals on earth. They use a modified radula tooth like a dart or harpoon to attack and paralyze their prey. Their beautifully patterened shells lead to humans sometimes trying to pick them up, resulting in the snail using this tooth in defense. The harpoons of some of the larger species of cone snail can even penetrate gloves or wetsuits. Symptoms of a more serious cone snail sting include severe localized pain, swelling, numbness and tingling, and vomiting. Symptoms can start immediately or can be delayed for days. Severe cases involve muscle paralysis and changes in vision and respiratory failure that can lead to death. Cone snail venoms are mainly peptide-based, and contain many different toxins that vary in their effects. Cone snail venom is under study for its use in the medical field, as it works quickly and precisely. Many of the compounds target only a particular class of receptor. This means that they can reliably and quickly produce a particular effect on the body's systems without side effects; for example, almost instantly reducing heart rate or turning off the signaling of a single class of nerve, such as pain receptors. Ziconotide, a pain reliever 1,000 times as powerful as morphine, was initially isolated from the venom of the Magician Cone Snail (Conus magus). It was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in December 2004 under the name Prialt. Other drugs based on cone snail venom targeting Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, depression, and epilepsy are in clinical or preclinical trials.

Sea slugs:

[nochromity]

she's free and alive

crazy what you can do with jspaint and a dream, huh? didn't think i would be able to replicate the art style of the last unicorn with what i've got, but god DAMN if i didnt give it a good try!!!! very proud of how it turned out. now heres my thoughts on this:

i just feel like stp could work as a crossover with the last unicorn very well. its very existential

[nochromity]

QUIRREL

The best boy! I've wanted to do a design for Quirrel for quite some time, and I'm so happy with how he turned out!

[nochromity]

Journal Entry 112: Hive Knight

(Drawing a hornet everyday until Silksong comes out - Day 659)

probably ones of my favorites (top 5 at least)

[nochromity]

[nochromity]

Round 2 - Arthropoda - Insecta

(Sources - 1, 2, 3, 4)

Our last athropods, the hexapod crustacean class Insecta, is one of the most successful groups of animal on earth. They are the most diverse, with over a million known species, comprising more than half of all eukaryote (animals, plants, fungi, etc) species, making them the “Default Animal.” They are comprised of three main groups: Archaeognatha (“Jumping Bristletails”), Zygentoma (“Silverfish” and “Firebrats”), and Pterygota (winged or secondarily wingless insects).

As hexapods, insects have a three-part body plan: head, thorax with 6 legs, and abdomen. They have compound eyes (some in addition to ocelli) and a pair of antennae. Many groups have 1-2 pairs of wings as adults. Insects have many means of perceiving the world: compound eyes and ocelli for seeing, tympanal organs for hearing, and receptors on the antennae and mouthparts for smelling. They live in almost every environment and occupy almost every niche. Many are aquatic, or have aquatic larvae. They are the first animals to have evolved flight. Some are solitary, some are social, some live in large, well-organized colonies. Some communicate with pheromones, some with sounds, some with bioluminescence. Some are venomous, some are poisonous. Most insects hatch from eggs, though some are birthed live. Some hatch as miniature adults, some go through a partial metamorphosis in which the larval stage looks vastly different from the adults, and some go through a complete metamorphosis in which a nearly immobile pupa is formed. Some insects provide maternal care. Some are carnivores, some herbivores, some omnivores, some parasites. Some spend most of their lives in their larval stage, and don’t even feed as adults. Due to the high diversity of insects, it would be impossible for me to summarize them further!

Fossil insects are known from the Paleozoic Era, during which they achieved large sizes, such as the giant dragonfly-like Meganeuropsis permiana, with an estimated wingspan of up to 710 millimetres (28 in), and a body length from head to tail of almost 430 millimetres (17 in).

Propaganda under the cut:

Insects are absolutely critical in all ecosystems, forming the base of the food chain, turning and aerating soil, controlling pests, encouraging or controlling the growth of plants, scavenging and recycling biological materials, and creating topsoil. Without insects, our planet would die.

There are many contenders for “largest insect.” The Giant Stick Insect (Phobaeticus serratipes) is the longest insect in the world, with specimens recorded at over 56 cm (22 inches), including their legs. The Giant Weta (Deinacrida heteracantha) is the heaviest, with a record of 2.5 ounces. Queen Alexandra’s Birdwing (Ornithoptera alexandrae) has the largest wingspan, which reaches up to 30 cm (1 foot) wide.

Meanwhile, the smallest known adult insect is a parasitic wasp, Dicopomorpha echmepterygis, commonly called “Fairyflies”. Males are wingless, blind and measure only 0.127 mm long.

Many insects are popular pets, including various species of mantis, cockroach, beetle, moth, and ant! Some are even domesticated, including silk moths and honeybees.

Many insects are eaten by humans, and farming insects for food is considered more sustainable than farming large chordates. These farmed arthropods are referred to as “minilivestock.”

Shellac is a resin secreted by the female Lac Bug (Kerria lacca) on trees in the forests of India and Thailand. It is used as a brush-on colorant, food glaze, natural primer, sanding sealant, tannin-blocker, odour-blocker, stain, and high-gloss varnish. It was once used in electrical applications as an insulator, and was used to make phonograph and gramophone records until it was replaced by vinyl.

One of the biggest ecosystem services insects provide for humans is pollination. Crops where pollinator insects are essential include brazil nuts, cocoa beans, and fruits including kiwi, melons, and pumpkins. Crops where pollinator insects provide 40-90% of pollination include avocados, nuts like cashews and almonds, and fruits like apples, apricots, blueberries, cherries, mangoes, peaches, plums, pears, and raspberries. In crops where pollinators are not essential they still increase production and yield. Important pollinators include bees, flies, wasps, butterflies, and moths.

Many insects are sacred to humans. In Ancient Egypt, scarab beetles were used in art, religious ceremonies, and funerary practices, and were represented by the god Khepri. Bees supposedly grew from the tears of the sun god Ra, spilled across the desert sand. The Kalahari Desert's San People tell of a legendary hero, Mantis, who asked a bee to guide him to find the purpose of life. When the bee became weary from their search, he left the mantis on a floating flower, and planted a seed within him before passing from his exhaustion. The first human was born from this seed. Dragonflies symbolize pure water in Navajo tradition. In an Ancient Greek hymn, Eos, the goddess of the dawn, requests of Zeus to let her lover Tithonus live forever as an immortal. Tithonus became immortal, but not ageless, and eventually became so small, old, and shriveled that he turned into the first cicada. Another hymn sings of the Thriae, a trinity of Aegean bee nymphs. Native Athenians wore golden grasshopper brooches to symbolize that they were of pure, Athenian lineage. In an Ancient Sumerian poem, a fly helps the goddess Inanna when her husband Dumuzid is being chased by galla demons. In Japanese culture, butterflies carry many meanings, from being the souls of humans to symbols of youth to guides into the afterlife. Ancient Romans also believed that butterflies were the souls of the dead. Some of the Nagas of Manipur claim ancestry from a butterfly. Many cultures use the butterfly as a symbol of rebirth. And the list goes on…