Divebell
Basic Information
Anatomy
Internally the divebell hasn't changed much from it's ecoglobe ancestors. The main developments are external, primarily with the calcium carbonate shell that covers the main body. The shell is durable and grows with the animal as it ages.
A unique feature to this species is the development of armored eyelids that will close when the animal feels threatened. They developed from the ancestral pseudo stalks of the ancestral ecoglobe.
The tentacles' appendages moved further down the tentacles and have reduced in size. On tentacles 3,4,7 and 8 they have become thin and barbed to hold on to the larger creatures it tends to. Tentacles 1,2,5 and 6 have developed small two digit graspers formed from the fusing of the appendages used for catching prey or pulling parasites off from other creatures.
The tentacles are capable of retracting into the bell. They will coil in on themselves but unlike the eyes the space in which they retreat into lacks a covering to completely seal off the shell.
Genetics and Reproduction
Similarly to it’s ancestor the ecoglobe, the divebell would retain gametes until it can find a potential mate, then expel its gametes. Though unlike the ecoglobe who kept them caught in the tentacles, divebells kept the gametes within the shell in the space where the tentacles would retract. When the mating season arrived divebells would cluster together and release the gametes in close proximity to ensure fertilization, cloning is still plausible though much less common.
Growth Rate & Stages
Divebells are born shell-less but are visually indistinguishable from their adults besides size. Juveniles would remain with adults while their shells form and harden, often taking refuge within the shell of the adults should predators approach. After 2-3 local months the offspring would be fully formed and the offspring would swim off on their own. The average lifespan for a divebell would have been 10 local years.
Dietary Needs and Habits
Divebells are opportunistic carnivores that were quite comfortable feeding on anything smaller than themselves. Feeding on parasites of larger species allowed them to increase their dispersal and have an easily exploited food source.
Biological Cycle
Divebells lived in the shallows around Kub Shay. They were more tolerant of changes in water temperature then their ancestors but their reliance on the migration patterns of larger species has caused their range to be limited to the shallows of one continent.
Additional Information
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
The divebell’s eyesight improved compared to its ancestors as the armored lids help limit the amount of light that will enter the eye. Protecting it from brighter lights and allowing it to focus it’s vision.
Symbiotic and Parasitic organisms
Divebells were found to live on various large bodied species such as magnospina, megacaris and even the carnivorous killer bottles.
Comments