 
|
| WATER ANIMALS -
the survey team |
|
The water life on Osiris doesn't
consist primarily of plants. Animal life is also well represented in the oceans, rivers
and lakes. The varieties of animal life range from warm-blooded predators to tiny
scavenger creatures. The survey team has compiled a vast array of different species found
in the waters of Osiris. |
|
|
|
COONSHELSLUGS
Coonshelslugs are
sluggish marine animals with flattened bodies. Their distinctive feature is a shell
composed of ten separate, but overlapping plates. Their head is very small and well hidden
under the shell. They have no eyes or tentacles. Coonshelslugs inhabit the coral
reef zones. They feed on primitive plants and other small organisms
which they scrape off rocks and shells with their radula. The broad, flat foot not
only functions in locomotion but also helps the animal adhere firmly to rocks. |
|
|
|
| The picture above is an adult Coonshelslug. It is
the same size as an earth's pill bug. It can lay as many as a dozen eggs at one
time. |
|
|
|
|
|
| An interesting marine animal found on Osiris is a
photosynthetic fish known as a PHOTOFLUG.
The photoflug produces part of its energy from sunlight and the rest from filter
feeding. These large creatures extend long frilly tentacles to catch light from the sun.
Inside these tentacles are small cells of chlorophyll. |
|
 |
Photflugs are almost always found in the warm waters
around the tropical zone. They float near the surface of the water where there is little
or no current. One of the most striking things about the photoflug is its eyes. Some fifty
million years ago, the eyes were used to warn of predators, but today the eyes seem to
have no function. The long tentacles have evolved and are now responsible for sight. When
a predator brushes across these long "tails", the photophlug senses it and
disappears quickly into the depths of the ocean. |
|
|
|
|
|
| The blue striped flapjack
is a well-developed vertebrate, similar to earth’s bony fishes. It is a warm-blooded
animal and one of the most deadly predators in the ocean. The blue striped flapjack is
born in water and breathes air through eight small holes by its dorsal fin. It comes to
the surface to breath and always enjoys a few photoflugs on its way back down. Flapjacks
have been known to reach lengths of up to 50 feet and often weigh more than 1,000 pounds. |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
 |
The ALGOMITEIS is a species of an underwater mite found primarily in the waters of
the Greater Osiris Crater Lake. The mites are abundant on water rocks covered with lichen
and algae, which is the algomiteis primary source of food. The front two legs are larger
than the rest and are used to help smash the food particles into smaller pieces. This is
necessary since the mites have no teeth nor tongue. Food is slurped up by the
circular straw-like mouth located underneath the body's head. The algomiteis are
larger than mites on Earth and are about the same size as ants. |
|
|
|
|
|
| The SOBEK
is a cartilaginous fish with scales all over its body. It's a fast swimming predator that
ranges from 2 to 6 feet long with a diameter of about 8 inches. They live off the northern
coast where the water is cold. It eats small marine life in the area. |
 |
|
| During it's reproductive cycle the SOBEK migrates south to the warm and calm waters
of the Sargasso sea. The SOBEK lay their eggs in the sagemass plants. The eggs float on the surface
due to oil droplets on them. The eggs are red in color which allows them to hide within
the sagemass. The warm sun incubates the eggs. After being hatched the SOBEK gain nutrients from the sagemass
plants. After reaching an adolescent stage they migrate back to the cold northern
waters where they eventually mature into adults. |
|
|
GO
TO TOP |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
