| Zrrmzasha | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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| General Information | |||
| Universe | The Vuunega Chronicles Kyklos Mythos Amalgam Universe Urth Universe Long Story Universe | ||
| Classification | Zrrmzasha photostrippen | ||
| Homeworld | Vuunega | ||
| Environment | Pelagia, in tropical zones bands | ||
| Intelligence | Non-sapient | ||
| Biochemistry | Carbon-based lifeform | ||
| Biological Information | |||
| Reproduction | Sexual; lays eggs | ||
| Locomotion | Powered swimming via caudal fin | ||
| Feeding Behavior | Carnivorous | ||
| Distinctive Features | Whorl tooth, photosynthetic dorsal fin | ||
| Skin Color | Gray | ||
| Lineage Information | |||
| Ancestor(s) | Aurii, Eelix | ||
| Subspecies | Basal Zrrmzashas, Bosoncoshas, Makashas, Quazrrms | ||
| Descendant(s) | Zrrnigoth, Zrrnigor, Zrrmzarix | ||
| Cultural Information | |||
| Alignment | True Neutral | ||
| Sociocultral characteristics | |||
| Members | None | ||
| Scientific Taxonomy | |||
| Planet | Vuunega | ||
| Domain | Monocentralis (Single-nucleus complex organisms) | ||
| Kingdom | Neomalia (Aurosian Eon's faunal life) | ||
| Subkingdom | Zygodermata (Neomalids with 3 germ layers) | ||
| Superphylum | Omnicleofian (Cells during birth perform indeterminate cleavage) | ||
| Phylum | Endotricia (Zygoderms with toughened rope-like battery notochord) | ||
| Subphylum | Vertebratus (Zygoderms with vertebrae) | ||
| Infraphylum | Bipodomorpha (Bipods & their descendants) | ||
| Superclass | Praeripiopteryx (Fins develop into graspers) | ||
| Class | Schizognathus "Split Jaw" (Proboscis splits to form beak) | ||
| Subclass | Velonadonta "Needle Tooth" (develop needlelike teeth to supplement carnivorous diet) | ||
| Superorder | Prionignathus "Saw Jaw" (Lower jaw develops tooth whorl) | ||
| Other Information | |||
| Status | Least Concern | ||
| Creator | Somarinoa | ||
Zrrmzasha are a species of highly intelligent yet not quite non-sapient creatures indigenous to the ocean south of the continent of Zeeon on the planet Vuunega. They are distantly related to the planet's most recent sapient species, the Aurix.
Statistics[]
- Nicknames: Sawjaws
- Homeplanet: Vuunega
- Species Type: Cold-blooded Aquatic Organism
- Lifestyle: Social Predator
- Hunt/Forage Success Rate: 100% Hunt (40% success rate)
- Armor: Zrrmzasha do not possess any form of armoring.
- Defenses: Unspecified
- Weapons: The major weapon in a Zrrmzasha's arsenal is their powerful whorl tooth. At the end of their lower jaw, their teeth extend past their mouths and curl around their lip, suspended in low bone set in muscle. When the Zrrmzasha bites down upon prey or opponent, the muscle lining the whorl tooth will contract and relax, allowing it minimal flexing ability, and by that allowing it to actually saw through meat. This tool is devastating and cruel, leaving ragged wounds that are hard to stop bleeding. In the case of opponents such as predators that might have attacked them, this leaves them open to being discovered and subsequently consumed by their own predators, assuming that they don't bleed out first.
A Bosoncasha, referred to as the "Modern" Zrrmzasha lineage.
- Tools: Zrrmzasha have sacrificed their former reptilian feet for fins, and can no longer manipulate objects, except for with their mouth - and anything that enters their mouth is generally intended as food or foe, and likely won't remain there for long. However, Zrrmzasha have been witnessed playing games of Vuukelp tag on occasion, with the Vuukelp occasionally being grasped in their beaks.
- Method of Eating: Unspecified
- Reproductive Rate: Sexual maturity is reached after 5 years. Reproduce only during the warmer summer months, when the waters are less of a shock to birthed young.
- Gestation: 9 months then gives birth — calves may take up to 20 minutes to birth successfully (although they are usually born faster), and will be guided up to the surface for their first breath of air immediately afterwards.
- Number of Offspring: 1-2 per litter. While Zrrmzasha twins are somewhat uncommon, they can occur, and the body is in fact built to allow this to happen.
- Offspring Survival Rate (before age of maturity): 61% — While most young survive thanks to care from a pod of their elders (including their mother and father), some do die before adulthood. These deaths are typically caused by a prolonged birthing process (drowning), failure to breathe at the surface correctly (asphyxiation), or the occasional predation from some opportunistic predators, including the dreaded King of Swimmers.
- Singular/Plural: Zrrmzasha / Zrrmzasha
Lineages[]
There are considered to be four lineages within the Zrrmzasha namesake, with each of these then further splitting into smaller, related lineages that typically more closely define tooth whorl stylization and symbiote placement.
Basal Zrrmzasha[]
A Basal.
Basal Zrrmzasha, often simply shortened to "Basals", are the most primitive of all lineages. They evolved before any of the other lineages and the other three groups stem off of them or their close ancestors. As they are the oldest of the four lineages, the most amount of Zrrmzasha over the eons have been Basals.
They are defined by having a torpedo-shaped, streamlined body. While other smaller lineages within the Basals exist, the most common variety and holotype possess a tightly curled tooth whorl that aligns neatly along the lower jaw and acts almost like a forward stabilizer when not being used for prey consumption. The Chlorolomba symbiotes have come to straddle the dorsal section, appearing in a pair of stripes in front of and directly behind the solitary dorsal fin.
Bosoncosha[]
A Bosoncosha.
Bosoncosha, known colloquially as "Modern Zrrmzasha", are oftentimes considered the most advanced of the lineages, although this is a bit inaccurate. They are however the most recent lineage to evolve. They are most closely related to Basal Zrrmzasha, belonging to the same Order with both having adapted shorter eyestalks meant to reduce drag.
They are defined by having a caudal fin that has developed into a slapjack-like sapping weapon on its upper edge. They use this to stun their prey and in certain lineages to fight off predators or rival Bosoncosha. While other smaller lineages within the Bosoncosha exist, the most common variety and holotype possess a tooth whorl that is fully exposed. The Chlorolomba symbiotes have come to line up along the edge each of their dorsal fins.
Makasha[]
A Makasha.
Makasha, known colloquially as "Swift Zrrmzasha", Makasha are a species of pelagic Zrrmzasha that travel up and down between the water column layers throughout the day as they hunt their prey from below. They are notably some of the swiftest aquatic species on the planet.
They are defined by having a triangular body built for speed. While other smaller lineages within the Makasha exist, the most common variety and holotype possess a tooth whorl that has an arched housing area within the upper jaw to better streamline the body and somewhat reduce drag. They are one of only a select few known groups of organisms genetically descended from the Aurii to have completely eschewed their Chlorolomba symbiotes. They therefore are incapable of producing extra energy via photosynthesis. While this may seem strange considering that their greatly increased speed means they could use the extra energy, they spend much of their time in the twilight and midnight zones of the water column, thus making photosynthesis mostly pointless and more of a drain on their own resources than anything else.
Quazrrm[]
A Quazrrm.
Quazrrms, also sometimes referred to as "Quasi-Zrrmzasha", are the strangest of the four lineages of Zrrmzasha and the one that resembles the other lineages the least. Their evolutionary history is still debated amongst Aurixan scientists though morphological data does link them to the Zrrmzasha, with them being more closely related to the Makasha than the other two lineages.
They are defined by having a unique tail where the caudal fin has begun to reabsorb into the body while a fluke has grown out and become the main method of swimming. While other smaller lineages within the Quazrrms exist, the most common variety and holotype possess a small and insignificant tooth whorl that balances on the tip of their lower jaw. The Chlorolomba symbiotes are strongest in this lineage, to the point of forming pseudo-leaf structures that expand outside of the body.
Paleontologists such as Dr. Dvodia have suggested that the fluke perhaps developed as a method of stabilization and then simply leaned toward its usage more for some reason over the eons. Dr. Euvaris furthered this postulation by adding the possibility that the genetic markers for the fluke stabilizers also added some other unknown genetic adaptation as a side-effect that was such a boon for the species that it was those with larger stabilizers who survived to pass on their genes.
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