#Seastar

[artypurrs]

Art by the amazing artist @deyonside of lord bloodraven brynden rivers thank you so much 🫂

[evolutionsvoid]

Anything can be an ecosystem, it is just a matter of nutrients and consistency. So often we think that habitats are things that only exist outside our walls, where civilization hasn't fully taken hold. Some folk think we sapient species live completely separate from the natural world, that our lands are omitted from everything else. To them, there is a clear line between what is "nature" and what is "civilization" and once you cross those boundaries, the other ceases to be. But in truth, it is all connected, and our homes are a part of the system like everything else. A city may seem vastly different from any other habitat on the planet, but it is still an ecosystem nonetheless. We are but the fauna running about within, and one of the species that thrives in it. And to the shock of some, there are other creatures that do incredibly well in these man-made habitats, finding living within them just as comfortable as we do.

Sewers and dumps don't seem like much but areas of pure filth, but there is still nutrients to be found. Just because we don't eat the stuff doesn't mean it is useless. Look at the dung beetle, an insect that lives off of fecal matter. While a sewer would be a vile land for us, it would be a paradise to such a coprophage. Things in the wild feed off of waste, it is a natural thing. So when we make areas that are nothing but filth, then some species flock to it, seeing an endless buffet. The Otyugh is one such creature.

When one first sees an Otyugh (probably in illustration over real life), it may be hard to wrap your head around what it actually is. The anatomy seems all over, with arms, legs and heads starting to blur together. Some would claim they are a three-legged species with two tendril arms and a large eye stalk, which is an understandable mistake. The Otyugh is hard to decipher as it moves and feeds, and its anatomy changes depending on the situation. In truth, it is actually a large echinoderm, one that possesses six limbs. Two of these arms are sensory, while the other four are designed for feeding, manipulation and moving. All six have sensory organs for smelling and tasting the world around them, but only two have prominent eyes. These organs are much stronger on these limbs, versus the crude eyes on the others that can only tell between light and dark. All arms work together to help the creature move and feed, though hunting for food isn't exactly a challenge for an Otyugh.

As I made clear, this species is one that feeds entirely on waste, finding poop and filth quite delicious. It isn't just feces, it is anything rotting, foul and discarded that they eat. Their central mouth is a complex arrangement of grinding plates, shredding teeth and potent acid, all designed to consume absolutely everything that gets shoveled in. They are the cleanup crew of the world, like all scavengers, and will erase any detritus or corpse that has been left behind. They are practically immune to poison and disease, devouring plague ridden carcasses without worry. They are essential creatures to areas rife with rot, which is why they have found their way to humanity's sewers.

Otyugh are a species that originally relied on dragons and other megafauna to survive. Their vast amounts of waste gave the Otyugh sustenance, and thus they were commonly found near dragon lairs. Small creatures don't offer enough for such large beasts, but that changed when some species started stockpiling their filth. When the Otyugh caught wind of humans creating places specifically for waste and trash, they were quick to move in. Here was another consistent source of food, in a place that seemed tailor made to them. At first, people were repulsed, but then they realized if they didn't want the Otyugh there, then they would have to go down there and drive them out themselves. Suddenly, no one was complaining anymore.

While most folk don't bother with these creatures, times do come where people do confront them. I know in some big fancy cities, they don't like the image of a giant poop eating seastar dwelling below, so they got the bright idea of getting rid of them. In other cases, their population gets out of control and they start looking for extra sustenance in face of all this competition. Whichever the reason, trying to drive one out or fight it will quickly make you regret your life choices. Otyugh may be sewage suckers, but they can be extremely dangerous. Their tendrils are dexterous and thorny, capable of whipping them with deadly force. Their limbs are many, allowing them to attack from many angles and continue the battle should they lose one or two. The maw in the center of it all is an "everything-grinder," which can reduce an armored warrior to juice if they get too close. On top of all that is the fact that they are dripping with filth and vileness, which can lead to nasty infections or sickness should one be exposed. Sometimes slayers will succeed in killing an Otyugh, only to succumb to a horrible rotting disease weeks later from a mere scratch they had received. In most cases, fighting them is straight up not worth it. It should only be a last resort, for when the Otyugh start spilling out from their sewer homes and begin eating "fresher" things.

To go back to that earlier mistaken description, of a beast with "three legs, two arms and one eye stalk," there is a reason that was a common belief. When Otyugh are feeding, they are laying down in the ocean of filth, positioned like any seastar you would see on the coast. Mouth down, arms out, just enjoying life. When buried in this waste, you can't really see them. Their bodies are colored and designed to fit in with piles of manure and disgust around them (as if anything would want to eat them), and thus folk miss them most of the time. However, when threatened, the Otyugh will rear up to look much larger and expose its pulverizing maw. This is done by using three tendrils for support, like legs. Two feeding limbs are flailed about in a threatening manner, while a sensory tentacle is held high for it to see its attacker. Now that it has made itself obvious and known, people start paying attention. This is why that description became commonplace, as these postures were how folk even got to see them most of the time!

A funny thing to note is that humans are probably way more familiar with the Otyugh than dryads. Honestly, it was a while before I even got to see one myself! This is because dryads collect and compost their waste at home, making sewer systems rare in our towns and cities. Due to large efforts to recycle and reuse, we don't have large areas of the stuff for an Otyugh to settle in. This isn't meant to be a dig at humanity, more just a neat observation. I will say that some dryads made a business of utilizing an Otyugh to rapidly breakdown substances and objects a normal household couldn't properly handle. It is like a rapid transformation of waste into fertilizer, for those who don't want to wait. Bring your junk to these places, let the Otyugh eat it and get its fertile expulsions in return. An odd business, but it seems to be working pretty well! Of course, there are also rumors that some of these establishments earn the real coin from folks who want certain "somethings" to "disappear..."

Chlora Myron

Dryad Natural Historian

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"Otyugh"

While this entry is written by Chlora, it is one that I would say is not canon. Mainly because I know the DnD company is incredibly litigious and not fans of their stuff being used anywhere else. I mainly drew this thing up because I thought it would be fun and the entry was me exploring the "what if" scenario.

But hey! An Otyugh that is an echinoderm! Hmm. Like a big ol seastar! Hmmm! Perhaps like a starfish! HMMMMMM!

[mbari-blog]

Deep-sea stars

The deep seafloor is home to a dazzling diversity of star-shaped invertebrates. From expansive abyssal plains to rocky canyons, these stars—in the subphylum Asterozoa—have adapted in various ways to thrive in the deep.

Some of these underwater stars scuttle across the mud on an army of tiny tube feet. Others perch on rocky outcrops, waving a twisted tangle of arms in the current.

Their diets range from tiny drifting plankton to scavenged scraps, or crustaceans, worms, and even the occasional fish! Several of these sensational stars have armored plates for protection, while others spew nasty slime when a predator tries to grab a bite!

Understanding and documenting the amazing biodiversity of animals in the deep sea is increasingly critical. Fishing pressure, pollution, and climate change all threaten ocean health. Help us spread the word about protecting the important but rarely-seen habitats deep below the ocean’s surface.

[starbound-jupiter]

Hear me out.

Seawatt and EMF were in a relationship in the beginning, or before the beginning, of the series. By the end of the Second Movie, they both (obviously) have crushes of Evbo.

Seawatt gets brought back.

This is the first time that EMF and Seawatt have actually, really, talked since they broke up (EMF sending Evbo to Seawatt's lab was kind of petty break up stuff). No, when EMF was held hostage doesn't count, for the purposes of the story, we're saying they didn't really talk, just stood at an impasse vaguely glaring.

Evbo has, unknowingly entered relationships with both of them (Noob level doesn't teach you shit about relationships), so it's a lot of awkward tension, but it's endgame Polykour.

LIKE- HE GOT INTO THE RELATIONSHIPS AND WASN’T AWARE OF THE FACT, OR HE DOESN’T REALIZE THAT YOU’RE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE DATING MULTIPLE PEOPLE WITHOUT HAVING A CONVERSATION FIRST???

either way. i’m cackling, this is the best thing i’ve read all day 😭😭

[lordbloodraven1000eyes1]

Art of bloodraven & shiera seastar made by @alexx_moralesss on Twitter

[rapidpunches]

I Wonder Why I Have A Headache?

[bibi-likes-to-draw]

Don’t mind me! Just making concept stuff for Trollex’s moms!

Reblogs greatly appreciated!

[todropscience]

NEW SEASTAR SPECIES DISCOVERED IN JAPAN

Researchers in Japan have described a new species of sea star, named Paragonaster hoeimaruae. This remarkable sea star features a distinctive red and beige coloration, five arms, and spans just over 10 centimeters in diameter.

The discovery was made off the coast of the Izu Peninsula in Sagami Bay, south of Tokyo. However, the species is also found in southwestern Japan, indicating a wide but previously undocumented range. This new sea star inhabits depths between 150 and 350 meters.

Between 2021 and 2023, the team collected various marine species from around Japan. These sea stars were gathered from shrimp and crab cages used by fishers in Hokkaido and Shizuoka prefectures, located in northern and central Japan, respectively. Additionally, beam trawl surveys, where a large net is dragged across the ocean floor, were conducted by a Yamaguchi prefectural fisheries research ship. The sea star’s name, hoeimaruae, was inspired by the fishing vessel Hoei-maru, which first collected the specimen.

With approximately 250 species of sea stars inhabiting the waters around Japan, it is surprising that a species as large as this one had been previously overlooked. This discovery highlights how the diversity of species in Japanese waters is still underestimated, despite extensive knowledge of Japan's marine ecosystems and biodiversity.

Photo;  I. Kobayashi

Source: Kobayashi et al., 2024. Pseudarchasteridae (Asteroidea: Paxillosida) in Japanese waters, with description of a new species and range extension of three species. Journal of Natural History.

[artstuff123]

Art of bloodraven & shiera seastar dancing (figured being at court & all they probably dance together whenever there is a dance happening) art made by the great artist @tosquinha thank you very much for making this for me 🫂

[evanorphia]

favorite regulus or sirius ships?

okay so for regulus: jegulus, bartylus, (sapphic) marylus, and rosewater are probably my favourites but i also ship other ships with regulus like regulily and moonwater and i’m not even gonna touch on poly ships

and for sirius: wolfstar, xeno/sirius, and (sapphic) seastar... and that’s like the only sirius ships i ship

[artypurrs]

Artwork of bloodraven & Seastar made by the amazing @toastyydoodles

[maskedinfinate]

The bride and the ugly ass groom

[noahtally-famous]

heathette / seastar 'watching movies' hcs

⋆ canonically, heather loves scary movies, horror is her favorite genre. the saw movie franchise is her favorite.

⋆ bridgette clutches heather's hand in a death grip throughout the entire movie whenever it's heather's turn to pick. by the middle of the movie, she's got her arms loosely wrapped around heather like a koala; by the end, she's half on heather's lap and peeking out with one eye

⋆ heather complains half-heartedly but they both know she doesn't mind it one bit

⋆ bridgette doesn’t even try to hide the fact that the jumpscares get to her. she’s stuck to heather’s side throughout and watching with her head on heather’s shoulder, one eye peeking out, at the slightest hint of tension and/or when the background music changes. both her hands have both heather’s hands clasped tight

⋆ halloween movies are always a toss-up between them ranging from bridgette's cheesier halloweentown and hocus pocus to heather's scream franchise, friday the 13th, and texas chainsaw massacre. the whiplash between cheesy goofiness and full-on gore and horror can be startling to any other person who may bingewatch with them, but they're so used to each other's attunement they basically don't even notice

⋆ heather pretends she hates the 'mindless gore and horror' trope to keep up pretenses, but coming from the girl who adores the saw movies, that's a basic lie right there. she's a horror girlie at heart

⋆ while she loves any sort of actual horror movie/show, heather holds a slight preference toward the older horror movies--more unfiltered gore, and jumpscares

⋆ bridgette prefers the adventure-type of genre, as well as ocean documentaries. heather doesnt mind the former, but the latter can get pretty boring to her (or so she says) however she still lets bridgette pick them because it gives her the opportunity to watch how invested and excited bridgette gets

⋆ particularly whenever a documentary about the ocean and/or sea animals is on, bridgette can get pretty rambly or, at some points, even rant about the welfare of both cases. she sits up with her knees on the couch, waving her arms around, gesticulating. heather listens and hums in agreement, she loves when bridgette gets passionate about literally anything

⋆ on some occasions, heather tried to connect the dots and chooses movies like jaws and the meg to watch because it's a combination of their two interests; the ocean/sea animals and horror aspects. these types of movies are a wild card for bridgette, heather finds out. sometimes she enjoys them, tolerates them, doesn't mind them, (which are all surprises to heather ngl even though she was the one to choose them because she lowkey expected bridgette to be scared, especially when it came to the sea animals), but in some rare cases depending on the plot of the movie, bridgette doesn't necessarily get scared but she gets horrified. the reactions are more or less the same though; heather's hand is in a death grip, bridgette's head is on her shoulder, invested despite herself. (heather counts that as a win, still)

⋆ its a habit for movies nights to involve loads of blankets. bridgette adores them, whenever it's time to watch a movie, there is either going to be a blanket fort or blankets piled all over the couch with bridgette at the center of them--she turns more and more into a blanket burrito the more horror-y the movie is

⋆ heather starts off sitting on top of the blankets; bridgette places one loosely over her shoulders...then she wraps another one...eventually heather is tugged into her blanket pile and they're both wrapped up in an assortment of them

⋆ or heather has on like one or two blankets max, but ends up with a blanket burrito in the form of bridgette plastered to her side or half on her lap

⋆ heather half-heartedly grouches again, but again they both know she doesn't mind it. especially when bridgette's arms are around her, which, in her opinion, is much better than all the blankets

⋆ sometimes bridgette turns her into a blanket burrito, takes pictures of the end result, and teases heather endlessly about it. (she calls her the 'pouty burrito' and has a folder in her camera roll dedicated solely to it)

[starbound-jupiter]

hey. hey. HEY. thoughts on seawatt/EMF… we need to consider them as a ship. they’re sooo toxic yaoi. seawatt determined to keep EMF trapped under his control. EMF determined to topple seawatt over… always fighting the other. i know their fights r the messiest ones out there… i need to see them kill (kiss) each other

YES YES YES WE SO DO

imo, the whole reason polykour works so well is because evbo balances the two out. they’re such different flavours of Insane, and oh boy do they ever clash- but i could totally see them form a mutual bond over a third party and slowly becoming deeply fond of each other. (which they are so so annoyed about)

HOWEVER. what happens when we just throw them into the ring without a mediator?? yk, for science!! ^ - ^

first off- i do not think they would ever admit they’re in something that (at least vaguely) resembles a relationship. these guys will insist they hate other until the fucking sun blows up. like you actually cannot leave them in a room together, they will retain their composure for all of two minutes.

and it’s so confusing for everyone else because they’re also so possessive?? they absolutely despise each other, so it makes no sense to anyone else, but their whole dynamic is like. yes i hate him. yes i want to tear out his fucking throat. but he’s mine.

and yeah. their fights are messy. when they fight, they FIGHT. no rules, no etiquette, no nothing- they’ll just tear each other to shreds, and it’s so homoerotic jesus christ.

they have also kissed more than a few times, of course. and it’s always messy and violent and desperate- and they literally refuse to talk about it any other time.

(this is partially because seawatt just straight up insists it never happened.)

[lordbloodraven1000eyes1]

Art of bloodraven & shiera seastar made by @alexx_moralesss on Twitter

[fishyy-stims]

Starfish time-lapse | source