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Description
A couple of Shroomtongues hunt for their insect prey using their trapping tongues, while a rakatar sleeps for the night.

Over millions of years, Ao-Oni developed a wide range of post-human fauna, with the invertebrates and plants reacting in accordance with this changing ecosystem. After a staggering 400 million years of evolution, pretty much every terrestrial habitat has been colonised to some extent or another by these denizens. However, one of the most interesting and difficult to conquer were the various subterranean areas found across much of the northern hemisphere, and to a lesser extent the rest of the world. The winters, though relatively warm by Earth standards, can become quite cold in the long seasons, and so fauna often come here to shelter themselves from such relative extremes. Within the caverns, many animals will make use of this shelter to carry on their lives. Others however, have adapted more profoundly to these habitats, making the caves not just a part-time habitat, but a full way of life. In the northern areas of Triberia, such a cave system exists and flourishes without the need for sunlight from above the ground. These caverns can have openings tens of metres wide, which make good roosting spots for crats and draconians alike depending on the conditions. We shall descend into this ecosystem gradually to see the spectacular fauna that do well here.

On the caverns of the caves to the north of the Lonely Shore, several different species of crat will roost here, forming a menagerie of wonderful creatures to explore. One of the less common species is the flower-nose (Tubernasilis floraglossius), a specialised insectivore evolved to feed off insects such as butterflies and bees, with its lips having developed to resemble a particular form of flower found at these latitudes. They have a yellow colour to them, with an extended pointing tongue resembling the internal stalk of many flowers, thus being easy to mistake for a source of nectar. It can stand still waiting for hours in search of its prey, while rarely actively pursuing prey. it will even extend its wings in a way to resemble the leaves of a plant, while burying its feet in the soil to conceal. Once an insect does come about, the lips will seal, trapping the insect inside the mouth for it to be crushed and consumed. As a result of their lifestyle, flower-noses are relatively solitary animals, which only tend to come together during the mating season or to sleep in the caves. Their diurnal lifestyle means they can maximise the amount of prey they are able to find. While their eyesight is relatively poor, a feature they ironically share with more-cave orientated creatures, their hearing and touch senses are strong and allow them to effectively navigate their surroundings, as well as communicate during roosting. Proportionally, the flower-nose is relatively small by crat standards, measuring about 12cm in height, with a 15cm wingspan, weighing about 60 grams. The lips tend to be up to 2m in length beyond the base of the skull, which is comparatively short and compact, with relatively uniform teeth to deal with insects. When roosting to sleep and to mate, they will use their collective body heat to warm themselves up, while also posing a threat to any competitors, though not all.

In a similar situation to that of Earth, such a huge portion of flying animals that make use of the caves creates opportunity for a food source. In some South-American caves on Earth, gigantic centipedes and tarantulas could attack bats in their sleep or even snatch them out of the air. On Ao-Oni, another organism has taken that ecological position of exploitation, known as the snatcher (Spaelalestes horridus), and a form of centithere with unusually long legs. Resembling some relatives of centipedes that exist in Earth caves, there are no miriapods in Ao-Oni, with this creature functioning as an effective substitute. Its 14 legs give it a stable posture and excellent climbing ability to go after its prey, at the expense of speed. To make up for this, its arms are similar to those of a praying mantis, allowing it to grab prey in mid-air or across the rocks. Snatchers bodies are also proportionally long and with small, almost non-existent tails and necks. The head in contrast is proportionally large despite the arms and filled with sharp teeth that tear into the flesh of its small prey, chewing through skin, fur, muscle and bone quickly. Fortunately, they lack the ability to produce venom and therefore are not particularly dangerous to larger organisms. Nevertheless, they are fearsome creatures to content with and will defend themselves at all costs, either from hungry members of their own kind, draconians, or the horrors lurking further in the caves, beyond the reach of any light. Snatchers are found throughout not only the caves but also surrounding forests. In fact, the majority of their life takes place outside the caves as they find insect based prey, hunting them from hanging off of trees or rocks. Solitary animals, they are once again a fairly small category of size, measuring about 40cm in length, with the hands extending up to 15cm beyond the animal’s body. Its dark fur allows it to camouflage quite well with rocky surroundings, allowing it to be an excellent ambush predator for when it needs it.

Alongside scaghounds and other omnivores and herbivores, there are predators living in this northern land, with them often going into the caves to find shelter from their own kind or the colder winters, which can last for over 4-5 months this far north. One of the nastier predators that roams this habitat is the Rakatar (Hypotherium spaelaea), a form of feline-like scythebeast well adapted to the swinging weather conditions. It’s fur is patterned in a similar way to that of a snow leopard, changing to a brighter and thicker coat during the winters, shedding it in favour of a lighter and darker one during the summers. The tail is proportionally smaller than that of other sword-hands, and thinner as well, resembling a type of cat were it not for the prong at the end. The normal spines along the back are small and hardly noticeable under the fur. The head is proportionally compact, allowing for an effective bite to be delivered, with the ears being internal like a reptile’s, minimising surface area. Its eyes and ears are very sensitive, which help during the darkness of night and winter for hunting. Rakatars bear a profound resemblance to the Pleistocene cave lions that once inhabited Earth many millions of years ago. They are primarily solitary, though occasionally collaborate to hunt larger prey. Its scythes are curved and make effective killing weapons, similar to those of the dinosaur Megaraptor. The third eye is more developed than usual, and also serves effectively when hunting in the dark, as even in such conditions, animals will still give off heat signatures in most cases. They get their scientific name from the fact that they will often move into caves at night to stay warm and cosy, while usually safe from competitors. This often means however, that multiple rakatars will share a cave, resulting in conflict over territory. In the coldest winters though, this can be overcome, as individuals may group together in droves to provide extra body warmth for all of them. They are fairly large predators, measuring about 2.8m long including the tail and weighing up to 200kg or so. They are used to smaller cave systems where competition is less intense, though they will often settle for these larger ones when necessary. This isn’t the strangest that the ecosystem can get however.

Much deeper down, where rakatars only occasionally dare to go, there is an ecosystem where daylight never reaches, where the only light is provided by artificial sources, such as glowing mats of bacteria, insects using communication, or another type of predator entirely. Sometimes, green glowing objects appear and disappear relatively rapidly, appearing to move in an out in the darkness. One could mistake these for some kind of bizarre plant, but the truth is considerably scarier. This is instead a weaponised form of tongue for a creature living permanently in the dark. A similar strategy to that used by angler fish, it lures sighted prey towards it, until they are stuck on it due to mucus and are thus sucked back into the gaping maw. This is a shroomtongue (Trogolotherium vrisketaglossius), a form of saurodont that has adapted to a troglodyte lifestyle. No amniote on Earth had adapted to such a role in the time of man, while there were various amphibians and fish that managed to live in such areas. Some of this may be due to the increased resources and space of bodies of water, while others to a lower metabolism. Regardless, some of the onis were eventually able to conquer even this habitat as time moved on, with the shroomtongue being just one example of troglodyte fauna here. Despite relatively normal saurodont anatomy overall, with 8 simple semi-sprawling legs, 2 pincered arms that function like antennae in the dark, split lower jaws with their own functional sets of teeth, a simplified mammalian dentition and a pronged tail, it has a number of unusual features as well. It is mostly naked, with only hair in between the joints on its back and on the ends of its antennae behind the single claw. It has no visible normal eyes either, under a layer of skin similar to those of some cave fish- a feature of its intense specialisation. However, it retains control of its infrared eye, meaning it is capable of detecting the thermal output of its own trap. Its body goes beyond a normal posture into a full sprawl similar to that of a lizard, a sign of its much lower metabolism and requirement to feed. And of course, there is its tongue, which has a glowing end filled with bacteria. Like other bioluminescent vertebrates, the shroomtongue does not produce its own light, but instead relies on the help of bacteria living in a cavity at the tip of the tongue, like how certain deep sea fish would have on Earth. Small insects such as midges, flies or cave dwelling roaches are often attracted to this light and become the shroomtongue’s next meal. In terms of size, they measure about 35cm in length including the tail, being quite compact, and are slightly smaller than a bearded dragon in terms of mass. Despite a generally inactive lifestyle, they are capable of running at surprising speed- a useful tactic when escaping from more ruthless members of their own kind, or collapsing rocks. This and their spines in their armour make sure that they are not too tempting a meal for predators like the rakatar to exploit. Shroomtongues are easily some of the strangest post-human creatures out there, almost impossible to recognise from their ancestor.

And so, this is the unusual cave ecosystem of northern Triberia. A fascinating place, with relatively little biodiversity, it is merely a taster for the rest of the Triberian landscape and its wide variety of organisms.

Description
A couple of Shroomtongues hunt for their insect prey using their trapping tongues, while a rakatar sleeps for the night.

Over millions of years, Ao-Oni developed a wide range of post-human fauna, with the invertebrates and plants reacting in accordance with this changing ecosystem. After a staggering 400 million years of evolution, pretty much every terrestrial habitat has been colonised to some extent or another by these denizens. However, one of the most interesting and difficult to conquer were the various subterranean areas found across much of the northern hemisphere, and to a lesser extent the rest of the world. The winters, though relatively warm by Earth standards, can become quite cold in the long seasons, and so fauna often come here to shelter themselves from such relative extremes. Within the caverns, many animals will make use of this shelter to carry on their lives. Others however, have adapted more profoundly to these habitats, making the caves not just a part-time habitat, but a full way of life. In the northern areas of Triberia, such a cave system exists and flourishes without the need for sunlight from above the ground. These caverns can have openings tens of metres wide, which make good roosting spots for crats and draconians alike depending on the conditions. We shall descend into this ecosystem gradually to see the spectacular fauna that do well here.

On the caverns of the caves to the north of the Lonely Shore, several different species of crat will roost here, forming a menagerie of wonderful creatures to explore. One of the less common species is the flower-nose (Tubernasilis floraglossius), a specialised insectivore evolved to feed off insects such as butterflies and bees, with its lips having developed to resemble a particular form of flower found at these latitudes. They have a yellow colour to them, with an extended pointing tongue resembling the internal stalk of many flowers, thus being easy to mistake for a source of nectar. It can stand still waiting for hours in search of its prey, while rarely actively pursuing prey. it will even extend its wings in a way to resemble the leaves of a plant, while burying its feet in the soil to conceal. Once an insect does come about, the lips will seal, trapping the insect inside the mouth for it to be crushed and consumed. As a result of their lifestyle, flower-noses are relatively solitary animals, which only tend to come together during the mating season or to sleep in the caves. Their diurnal lifestyle means they can maximise the amount of prey they are able to find. While their eyesight is relatively poor, a feature they ironically share with more-cave orientated creatures, their hearing and touch senses are strong and allow them to effectively navigate their surroundings, as well as communicate during roosting. Proportionally, the flower-nose is relatively small by crat standards, measuring about 12cm in height, with a 15cm wingspan, weighing about 60 grams. The lips tend to be up to 2m in length beyond the base of the skull, which is comparatively short and compact, with relatively uniform teeth to deal with insects. When roosting to sleep and to mate, they will use their collective body heat to warm themselves up, while also posing a threat to any competitors, though not all.

In a similar situation to that of Earth, such a huge portion of flying animals that make use of the caves creates opportunity for a food source. In some South-American caves on Earth, gigantic centipedes and tarantulas could attack bats in their sleep or even snatch them out of the air. On Ao-Oni, another organism has taken that ecological position of exploitation, known as the snatcher (Spaelalestes horridus), and a form of centithere with unusually long legs. Resembling some relatives of centipedes that exist in Earth caves, there are no miriapods in Ao-Oni, with this creature functioning as an effective substitute. Its 14 legs give it a stable posture and excellent climbing ability to go after its prey, at the expense of speed. To make up for this, its arms are similar to those of a praying mantis, allowing it to grab prey in mid-air or across the rocks. Snatchers bodies are also proportionally long and with small, almost non-existent tails and necks. The head in contrast is proportionally large despite the arms and filled with sharp teeth that tear into the flesh of its small prey, chewing through skin, fur, muscle and bone quickly. Fortunately, they lack the ability to produce venom and therefore are not particularly dangerous to larger organisms. Nevertheless, they are fearsome creatures to content with and will defend themselves at all costs, either from hungry members of their own kind, draconians, or the horrors lurking further in the caves, beyond the reach of any light. Snatchers are found throughout not only the caves but also surrounding forests. In fact, the majority of their life takes place outside the caves as they find insect based prey, hunting them from hanging off of trees or rocks. Solitary animals, they are once again a fairly small category of size, measuring about 40cm in length, with the hands extending up to 15cm beyond the animal’s body. Its dark fur allows it to camouflage quite well with rocky surroundings, allowing it to be an excellent ambush predator for when it needs it.

Alongside scaghounds and other omnivores and herbivores, there are predators living in this northern land, with them often going into the caves to find shelter from their own kind or the colder winters, which can last for over 4-5 months this far north. One of the nastier predators that roams this habitat is the Rakatar (Hypotherium spaelaea), a form of feline-like scythebeast well adapted to the swinging weather conditions. It’s fur is patterned in a similar way to that of a snow leopard, changing to a brighter and thicker coat during the winters, shedding it in favour of a lighter and darker one during the summers. The tail is proportionally smaller than that of other sword-hands, and thinner as well, resembling a type of cat were it not for the prong at the end. The normal spines along the back are small and hardly noticeable under the fur. The head is proportionally compact, allowing for an effective bite to be delivered, with the ears being internal like a reptile’s, minimising surface area. Its eyes and ears are very sensitive, which help during the darkness of night and winter for hunting. Rakatars bear a profound resemblance to the Pleistocene cave lions that once inhabited Earth many millions of years ago. They are primarily solitary, though occasionally collaborate to hunt larger prey. Its scythes are curved and make effective killing weapons, similar to those of the dinosaur Megaraptor. The third eye is more developed than usual, and also serves effectively when hunting in the dark, as even in such conditions, animals will still give off heat signatures in most cases. They get their scientific name from the fact that they will often move into caves at night to stay warm and cosy, while usually safe from competitors. This often means however, that multiple rakatars will share a cave, resulting in conflict over territory. In the coldest winters though, this can be overcome, as individuals may group together in droves to provide extra body warmth for all of them. They are fairly large predators, measuring about 2.8m long including the tail and weighing up to 200kg or so. They are used to smaller cave systems where competition is less intense, though they will often settle for these larger ones when necessary. This isn’t the strangest that the ecosystem can get however.

Much deeper down, where rakatars only occasionally dare to go, there is an ecosystem where daylight never reaches, where the only light is provided by artificial sources, such as glowing mats of bacteria, insects using communication, or another type of predator entirely. Sometimes, green glowing objects appear and disappear relatively rapidly, appearing to move in an out in the darkness. One could mistake these for some kind of bizarre plant, but the truth is considerably scarier. This is instead a weaponised form of tongue for a creature living permanently in the dark. A similar strategy to that used by angler fish, it lures sighted prey towards it, until they are stuck on it due to mucus and are thus sucked back into the gaping maw. This is a shroomtongue (Trogolotherium vrisketaglossius), a form of saurodont that has adapted to a troglodyte lifestyle. No amniote on Earth had adapted to such a role in the time of man, while there were various amphibians and fish that managed to live in such areas. Some of this may be due to the increased resources and space of bodies of water, while others to a lower metabolism. Regardless, some of the onis were eventually able to conquer even this habitat as time moved on, with the shroomtongue being just one example of troglodyte fauna here. Despite relatively normal saurodont anatomy overall, with 8 simple semi-sprawling legs, 2 pincered arms that function like antennae in the dark, split lower jaws with their own functional sets of teeth, a simplified mammalian dentition and a pronged tail, it has a number of unusual features as well. It is mostly naked, with only hair in between the joints on its back and on the ends of its antennae behind the single claw. It has no visible normal eyes either, under a layer of skin similar to those of some cave fish- a feature of its intense specialisation. However, it retains control of its infrared eye, meaning it is capable of detecting the thermal output of its own trap. Its body goes beyond a normal posture into a full sprawl similar to that of a lizard, a sign of its much lower metabolism and requirement to feed. And of course, there is its tongue, which has a glowing end filled with bacteria. Like other bioluminescent vertebrates, the shroomtongue does not produce its own light, but instead relies on the help of bacteria living in a cavity at the tip of the tongue, like how certain deep sea fish would have on Earth. Small insects such as midges, flies or cave dwelling roaches are often attracted to this light and become the shroomtongue’s next meal. In terms of size, they measure about 35cm in length including the tail, being quite compact, and are slightly smaller than a bearded dragon in terms of mass. Despite a generally inactive lifestyle, they are capable of running at surprising speed- a useful tactic when escaping from more ruthless members of their own kind, or collapsing rocks. This and their spines in their armour make sure that they are not too tempting a meal for predators like the rakatar to exploit. Shroomtongues are easily some of the strangest post-human creatures out there, almost impossible to recognise from their ancestor.

And so, this is the unusual cave ecosystem of northern Triberia. A fascinating place, with relatively little biodiversity, it is merely a taster for the rest of the Triberian landscape and its wide variety of organisms.