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Dragonthunders — TFIF concept, Slugfish diversity

Published: 2018-08-12 21:29:38 +0000 UTC; Views: 27098; Favourites: 352; Downloads: 60
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Description In the old days of the old canon of TFIF, in my attempt to create totally new kinds of animals from unconventional groups I tried with a lineage unique in many ways, one ancient in which the now dominant tetrapods emerged, although these were kept for another hundreds of millions of years under the water and mud, in the rigth moment they were able to rise and evolve into a new and cosmopolitan branch of terrestrial vertebrates for a second time, these are the Slugfishes  (Baenaventria) named like that due to the first designs I made as well for being the basal species looking, being compact big headed creatures that used a single derived ventral foot similar to the gastropod foot, all being descendants of the Dipnoi or Lungfish.

I must say that this in itself the concept was created long before TFIF, around 2014 when I was formally starting as a speccer, being just an interesting concept to explore. These would not see their introduction to the project canon until 2016 in my comic attempt "In the oblivion the Phanerozoic ", appearing around as example creatures for the time period fauna. Then I made a more orderly entry on this group, at least on the basics of the basal species (link in the name slugfish above) and had planned the introduction of species with greater morphological variations, some more bizarre than others for the far future updates in the new earth Aeon.

Of course, I rebooted the project, and with that it is likely that the story of these and its evolutionary path will change in many ways, although I do not want to change or retire much about them, this is by far one of my most favorite creatures I've done and I hope to develop some of the original ideas, but for the moment at least, I share the things I've done so far.

The main idea was that from 750 million years on, slugfishes would become a group of great diversity rivaling the ancient and in that moment extinct tetrapods amphibian and lepidosaurs in numbers and forms, becoming quite common and predominant in several ecological niches.

First of all there would be the most basal slugfishes that possess the ventral foot, the majority are covered by varied plates on the upper part of their body, with their head being totally covered in most species. 
a) Large predator with jaws capable of cutting bodies and bones like a snapping turtle.

b) A species with an effective defense against voracious hunters, as a puffer fish is able to inflate its body and grow three time its actual size, together with its long spines around the body, is a difficult creature to swallow.

c) A very efficient defensive body plan throughout many groups and species as in the woodlice, centipedes, armadillos, trilobites, this species of slugfish is completely covered by bands-shaped plates that together allow it to roll into a ball.

d) Camouflage is a fairly common strategy in many clades to go unnoticed, so it would not be rare to find some specimens using this, in the case of this slugfish that mimics a group of leaves of a far future plant.

e) As well this is other form that camouflage as root and decaying plant matter.

f) These herbivorous slugfishes of the size of cows evolved in islands, have a look of an absurd cartoonish stegosaur figure, with a long body and without legs, with its long jaw and the huge rows of plates.

Another branch of the slugfishes are the plateless forms, being snake/lizard like species covered by tiny scales or a layer of mucus in some amphibian species.
g) Small serpentine form with a long body, presents a grayish brown color with several light blue spots and marks that warns of its toxicity.

h) Medium size omnivore slugfish, inhabitant of tropical islands, has a striking coloration and a row of orange/red spines across its back.

i) This species of amphibian slugfish developed neotenic characteristics becoming a creature similar to early tetrapod with four muscular extremities, neck and eyes in the upper part of its head, however, this possesses its visible ventral foot, large external gills, in addition to some extended plates forming a caudal fin.

As a convergence to the ancient anurans, a lineage of terrestrial forms of compact body and long legs appeared which are called Exiguupods, but unlike the long legged amphibians, they are completely terrestrial, covered by plates and scales.j) This arboreal species has developed the ability to glide, developing a huge patagium which is supported mostly by its hypertrophied hind limbs, and to move on the surfaces of trees or on the ground is able to move with its ventral foot although he is able to also use the hind limbs.

k) One of several tropical species that possess a remarkable bright coloration, is a frugivore that inhabits bellow the canopy of the fruit trees and is a major seed disperser.

l) A species of temperate environments of simple coloration, it is the size of a rabbit and as they are common small herbivores, being active during the day.

m) Very small Exiguupod, inhabits very humid areas in rainforests, feeding on insects, fungi and plant material.

n) This type of savannah dweller is a voracious omnivorous form, being equal to an honey badger in behavior and aggressiveness.

In the main point of divergence of the Exiguupods from the basic slugfishes, another lineage diverged as well, much more aberrant in anatomy, arose from any other vertebrate terrestrial clade that has existed. at first these were a variety of "slugfishes" that had developed a long tail which was used to jump alongside with their legs. Interestingly several lineages derived from these had experimented with varied forms or structures of tails which improved or changed the jumping ability of these, and by selection some of these began to derive and modify the tail according to the efficiency of such structure. Eventually of all the designs just one stood out , from a clade that survived from the rest and prospered, the spring form, the vertebrae of the tail coil forming the base of this spring, in conjunction with series of muscles and ligaments, and the skin that joins it as a single cylindrical mass, the springfoots emerged, small, agile and bizarre vertebrates with a high derived spring like appendage that helps them mobilize in long jumps.
o) The Wrinkled Springfoot is the basic form of this clade, characterized by its cylindrical foot with fold where the tail is. Their diet vary depending on the species, but most of them feed on small arthropod, mollusks as any other types of animals that can fit in their mouths.
Their heads are pointed and occupy a third of the body, with a flat face devoid of nose and a jaw that can be enlarged twice. It has only one pair of functional limbs which are located in front which only use for small movements or to clean, while behind only has a pair of atrophied fin-like limbs.
On the left there is a kind of silver colored species, it is an inhabitant of the high peaks of the mountains that survives and feeds on the few animals that inhabit the region, on the right, a jungle dweller species, it has a very striking coloration of red and orange, it is capable of throwing a disgusting liquid when it bounces that protrudes from the middle of its spring folds.

p) Some species of this clade went as well to different paths and did not become totally dependent on the spring appendage, like the Hallucinotherus, an inhabitant of forested cliffs, this species came from a clade that developed funcional limbs, however, it still retains the spring tail, although this has changed shape, being now more spherical, is unable to take long jumps but it still can soften the fall of these. Its jaw is mobile, it is articulated at the base of the skull and being able to move without any problem independent of it, and can to open up to an angle of 180 degrees.
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Comments: 19

TheGuardianxxyy538 [2024-12-28 04:14:39 +0000 UTC]

👍: 0 ⏩: 0

SonicCaleritas [2019-01-04 23:01:32 +0000 UTC]

Cool but how do they smell

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AntFingers [2018-08-13 08:09:10 +0000 UTC]

The springfoots are fantastic.

👍: 0 ⏩: 1

Dragonthunders In reply to AntFingers [2018-08-14 17:39:02 +0000 UTC]

Thank you I hope one day I can add them to the actual project.

👍: 0 ⏩: 0

Tarturus [2018-08-13 05:50:09 +0000 UTC]

Fascinating concept.

👍: 0 ⏩: 1

Dragonthunders In reply to Tarturus [2018-08-14 17:38:29 +0000 UTC]

Thanks

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ToaJaniceAnteverse [2018-08-13 03:26:50 +0000 UTC]

fantastic.

👍: 0 ⏩: 1

Dragonthunders In reply to ToaJaniceAnteverse [2018-08-14 17:39:09 +0000 UTC]

Thank you

👍: 0 ⏩: 1

ToaJaniceAnteverse In reply to Dragonthunders [2018-08-14 18:55:54 +0000 UTC]

your welcome.

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Ryan-Bowers [2018-08-13 02:22:17 +0000 UTC]

Holy shit this is fantastic work man

👍: 0 ⏩: 1

Dragonthunders In reply to Ryan-Bowers [2018-08-14 17:38:14 +0000 UTC]

Thank you buddy

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Ryan-Bowers In reply to Dragonthunders [2018-08-14 17:53:10 +0000 UTC]

No problem keep up the great work 

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malevouvenator [2018-08-13 00:31:08 +0000 UTC]

Colorfull bois!

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Dragonthunders In reply to malevouvenator [2018-08-14 18:54:57 +0000 UTC]

Yay

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Starfieldhouses [2018-08-12 22:00:48 +0000 UTC]

Love how thought through and detailed your creatures are.

👍: 0 ⏩: 1

Dragonthunders In reply to Starfieldhouses [2018-08-14 17:38:03 +0000 UTC]

Thank you

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bhut [2018-08-12 21:48:26 +0000 UTC]

Truly this is a lot of very diverse-looking animals. 

👍: 0 ⏩: 1

Dragonthunders In reply to bhut [2018-08-14 17:38:22 +0000 UTC]

Thank you

👍: 0 ⏩: 1

bhut In reply to Dragonthunders [2018-08-14 17:54:58 +0000 UTC]

Don't mention it.

👍: 0 ⏩: 0