#silverswimmer

[dragonthunders01]

Spec Evo Vault, Rainbow Squid

Among the largest organism of "The Future is Wild" timeline, as well the largest squid and animal on the planet in 200 M.y. in the future, the Rainbow Squid is one of the extraordinary representatives of how far cephalopods achieved in terms of evolutionary adaptations on color change

Morphologically speaking it still maintains the average squid shape with a large mantle and equally sized arms, although these not longer serve purpose on hunting and seem to be only relying on their main tentacles under the flattened horizontal row of arms that placidly undulate.

Anatomically and behaviorally, however, there were some remarkable changes, including the now longer lifespans that extend up to a century. With such long life, they were able to develop their intelligence further in a way that is capable to control their chromatophores extraordinarily.

This animal is capable of mimicking its surrounding environment to the point it can turn invisible in any direction, imitating the upper light of the surface or the dark bottom of the ocean, as well is capable of produce varied flashing multi color patterns tht works out for warning of any minor intruder swimming towards them.

This trick also helps them to hunt down the local Ocean Flishes, this thanks that their flat arms can imitate the school of Silverswimmers, and when one of these gets into the range, the flish is caught off guard with one of their tentacles.

Normally they wander across the ocean solitary with no boundaries but once a year in the full moon in autum equinox, they reunite in the south region facing the supercontinent in order to mate, and like giant oversized birds of paradise with LED screens for ornamental organs, the males to court a female display a spectacle of colors and lights.

Although with their size, and with the ecological vacuum left of the last mass extinction eliminated a chunk of possible competitors and dangers, they are still vulnerable to the few predators around, specially to the attack of large groups of sharkopaths, derived fasts sharks characterized by their coordinated method of hunting that is guided by electroreceptors and flashlights patterns across their bodies that allow them to communicate the location of a prey (they will have their space in an spec vault entry).

If one of those is capable of locate and attract enough individuals, a Rainbow squid only hope is to remain hidden with their camouflage, and even with that, panic can eventually end up causing it to lose their veil and leave them as the dinner of the far future sharks.

Notes

-There is something bugging about the hunting behavior of the Rainbow Squid that seems to be so inefficient regarding the nutrient value would offer just to hunt few flishes in a single day, for an animal that their size is as big as a whale which ingest a single animal of the size of a seagull, there should more suitable or preferable prey, and we are talking about an animal with one of the largest brains on 200 million years, is like a guy hunting bees and just ate them one at the time.

-I would have liked the body plan of this animal was more varied than just bein a big squid with large flat tentacles, something on that size as well living far in the future likely would change further and considering how diverse are squids and octopuses it could offer even more possible shapes apart of the streamlined surface coleoids, considering the rainbow squid is mostly an ambush predator and probably is a descendant of deep water species.

[ninque-demoness]

Requested picture of a silver swimmer mermaid

[tsunflowers]

these are called silverswimmers but I think they should be called "glorb"

[dragonthunders01]

Spec evo Vault, Ocean Flish

An iconic future critter, the Ocean Flish from The Future is Wild stands remarkable of this documentary most featured animals, these constitute a bizarre new radiation of vertebrates from the ocean after tetrapods were wipe out of the face of earth, becoming one of the many recovering animals on 200 million years hence.

This inhabits the coastal regions of the new supercontinent, thanks to the environment lack of competitors that were wiped out 100 million years before with no other trace of land tetrapods left, the sky was basically open for this clade of fish to take over in the last millions of years, being this one of many representatives of a larger group that have diversified across the coasts of the Global ocean and inside parts of the main continent.

According to the canon of the documentary, flishes are descendant of cods, or at least they come from a branch that diverged from cods a time ago that after the mass extinction recolonized the surface and upon the vacuum they developed the ability to fly thanks to strong wings derived of their pectoral fins.

Unlike tetrapods wings, the flish arm anatomy evolved in a way totally divergent in structure, having a short very muscular arm made of three main bones joined in a way that provides a stable and strong base, as well providing great flexibility while flapping and lift enough to fly.

In a general view the anatomy of this animal is remarkable for preserve the Actinopterygii shape with high derived features such as the almost lobed fish like fins, the jawcaps and the strange horizontal fluke instead of the vertical posture of current fishes as well other external features include the lack of any operculum totally sealed, an spiracle upper head that might be related to pulmonar respiration and the most remarkable feature, it extendable jaw.

This peculiar jaw configuration supposedly help them in their method of hunting as these are dipping predators of the pelagic silverswimmers, having the only feature of Actinopterygii developed further with a very extendable mouth with only 2 rows of 3 teeth on the tip.

Although the documentary didn't expose more about their behavior or lifestyle outside of hunting, the main manga did some minor exploration of their land behavior being there showing that they raise their children like altricial seabirds, as well showing that they are capable to stand on land with their pectoral fins up and extended without any folding capability.

As said before, is well known that this animal also has a relative on the forest regions on the north west region of Pangea II but on base of the book description, there may be also a really larger diversity of these derived flying vertebrates covering different niches similar to modern birds, specified by the mentions of comparable analogues of birds.

Probably to add more about this fact on the conference made of the doc (included in the DVD extras) Dixon exposed some concept ideas of more flishes or at least different flish color pattern configurated to specific ecological niches based again on birds.