Interwoven

Sky Shepherds

Caelumopilio pictoratus

This work serves as the official kickoff for my illustration project called "Exobiotica". The creature pictured is a Sky Shepherd. As its name implies, it carries on an aerial existence - maintaining neutral buoyancy via internal hydrogen compartments. The front appendages serve two functions- they are used to physically herd or corral the species of floating creature they subsist on, and also they are equipped with color-changing tissue that is used as communication between members of their group. Like them, most of their predators and prey are essentially floating gas bags which are highly susceptible to rupture. Thus, the Sky Shepherd evolved sharp appendages for use in attack and defense. Propulsion in any direction is achieved by the intake of air at the ventral posterior end, and then subsequent directional exhalation of the air through any of the four siphons. The next work will I produce will feature these creatures and their prey in their aerial environment.

A new environment with some new species here.

This is the first look into this particular biome- hopefully with more to come. All creatures depicted have a photosynthetic component to them - least of all the large plodding walkers, who rely most heavily on grazing for their energy intake. The creatures that resemble flowers are motile, but move less frequently. The long rope-like organism grows at a rapid pace to stake its claim over as much ground area as possible. The large round textures semi-spheres are not phased by this tactic, as they employ an electro-chemical defense over their outer surface to keep the strident ropes at bay.

A Universe Below

Almost no sunlight penetrates the thick canopy of the glow forest. As a result, organisms in this ancient biome have evolved a massive array of survival strategies using bioluminescence. Some emit light to attract mates or warn against predators. And some, strangely, illuminate themselves in order to be eaten.

This was a colored-pencil rendering of the creatures involved in the ecosystem portrayed in the "Aglow" piece. The pancake creatures on the floor are mobile decomposers. The floating lanterns are semi-autotrophic creatures that travel in groups. They travel by spouting air directionally through their vents which are visible along the middle of their bodies.

Egg Chamber

In some environments, it's hard to tell the difference between genders and species. Organisms share genetic material more easily on this planet, and that leads to some complicated taxonomy. In this case, we see a group of aquatic creatures acting as nurses for a seemingly endless field of eggs. But the network of underwater chambers in which they reside is in fact another living creature. By some categorizations, it would be considered the female of the species - it produces and to some extent nourishes the field of eggs, some of which mature to be gigantic network-chambers themselves. Whether this is an extreme example of sexual dimorphism, or the result of some sort of horizontal gene transfer is a matter of conjecture at this point.

Full of Stars

The season's storms had taken their toll, opening up an organic cave in the otherwise sealed mountain canopy forest. Encouraged by the prospect of shelter from more incoming inclement weather, the dacia considers entering the dark, yet inviting refuge. The glittering biolights beckon, but this new environment is far stranger than anything it’s ever known.

Life in the Dark

In the murky blackness of the deep sea, creatures are spread out over immense distances. To find each other, many use biologically-generated light. But what appears to be a potential mate might instead be a lurking predator.

Sunworshipper

By our terrestrial standards, the coloration on this creature may seem vivacious or even gaudy, but in its native habitat it actually serves as cryptic camouflage. Its planet orbits a star with different color output than our own, and photosynthetic systems have adapted to reflect a different color than our earthly green plants. The sunworshipper, like many other mobile creatures here, receives a portion of its energy from photosynthesis - as evidenced by the specially-adapted appendages radiating from its body.

Life on the Seafloor

Some habitats are very consistent from planet to planet across the universe. The bottoms of deep oceans generally experience similar conditions—extremely high water pressure, zero sunlight, and a constant rain of organic debris known as marine snow. Thus, organisms on the deep sea floor of Veteris developed common traits in parallel to their counterparts on Earth. The darkness eliminates the need for most pigments, so most creatures are rather drab. In order to grab bits of food from the water column, many utilize grasping appendages covered in sticky setae. For every scrap of nourishment that can be found here, there is a creature that has evolved to exploit it. Far from being a desolate wasteland, this seemingly inhospitable environment is full of bizarre, perfectly-adapted inhabitants.

Desert creature