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Description
The Hamakeke, or Raftbug, is a species of eusocial, aquatic mesofauna that inhabits the gulf region of the Southlands. They were brought to this world from the home planet of the Lizard Folk. These strange, ichthyoid invertebrates are named after their nests of floating seaweed.

Raftbugs share a symbiotic relationship with a colonial species of lower kokkinophyte the Mayic people refer to as 'hanhama' (i.e., 'red boat'). Hanhama gather together to form large, free-floating colonies that drift across the ocean waters and use collections of gas-filled bladders to prevent themselves from sinking below the waves. As mentioned before, the hamakeke use these plants as mobile nests. In return for providing these creatures with a place to rear their young, the raftbugs will viciously attack any hungry herbivore that tries to eat the colony. The raftbugs also provide for some of the nutritional needs of the colony as well. The ocean's surface has abundant access to sunlight for photosynthesis, but it can be difficult to acquire other key nutrients. Rather than develop predatory tendencies themselves, the hanhama uses its resident raftbugs instead. Hamakeke bring their kills back to their nest for the benefit of the whole hive, but they also passively feed the hanhama colony too by allowing it to absorb nutrients from the prey's decaying body and the hamakeke's droppings. Isn't nature just grand? Suffice it to say, one cannot survive long without the other, so they have essentially become inseparable.

As evidenced from the illustration above, it is pretty obvious that this creature's adult form differs quite considerably from that of its larval stage. The reason for this is actually quite fascinating. The early ancestors of the raftbugs were completely sessile, and radially symmetrical. These primeval relatives of the hamakeke had ten limbs arranged around its mouth for feeding, as well as five spiracles, and three cloaca. Overtime, some members of this clade evolved to retain their mobility from the larval stage of their lifecycle. Some of these creatures went on to adopt forms similar to cephalopods and medusiform organisms like jellyfish, while still others further derived their body plan for even greater mobility. These offshoots of the original motile clade adapted their feeding limbs into eyes, fins, and pseudo-jaws for grinding up food, all while their bodies slowly transitioned into a more stream-lined, fish-like form. The larva appear as they do due to being underdeveloped. Just like many vertebrates appear quite similar during early prenatal development, their larva of the raftbugs and their wildly different looking relatives appear similar due to all sharing an important common ancestor. As the larva matures, it adopts a bilaterally symmetric body plan and its limbs and organs rearrange accordingly. The process is very similar to how young flounders have their eye migrate as they mature until both are on one side of their head. Curiously, the adult's body is somewhat asymmetrical. Due to having five spiracles, two are on its left side, and three are on its right.

Like ants and bees, the hamakeke have several 'castes' that each serve a function in sustaining the group as a whole. The workers tend to the young, gather food, and process the food hunted by the soldiers. The soldiers are larger than the workers, with longer, serrated pseudo-jaws and a pair of stingers that can deliver a venom that can produce a sharp, aching pain. All hamakeke possess this venom, however, it is far more concentrated in the soldier than it is among other castes. The soldier defends the nest from assault from outside threat and hunts prey in roving packs to haul back home. The queen lays the eggs needed to sustain the hive's population and uses a complex array of pheromones to command her subjects. She can be easily identified from other castes by her great size and her vibrantly colored dorsal fin. Queens are not born into their station, but are rather an evolution of the soldier caste. Under the right circumstances, a dominant soldier will slowly adopt the features of a queen and challenge them over rulership of the nest. The winner gets the nest, while the loser is sent off to die in exile.

The Mai regard these creatures as a nuisance, but they also have been known to treat them with a grudging respect. According to Mayic legends, the Wind Spirit Tonehi Tamayuge used these humble, if belligerent creatures, as inspiration for inventing the boat. He used this knowledge to instruct the Spirit God of the East, Hulbasshi to create the sun-boat and the moon-boat that the Heavenly Twins pilot through the heavens to this day. He would later pass this wisdom onto First Man and First Woman (i.e., Ulowe Maku and Ulowo Marin) when they arose out of the caverns of the Earth.

Description
The Hamakeke, or Raftbug, is a species of eusocial, aquatic mesofauna that inhabits the gulf region of the Southlands. They were brought to this world from the home planet of the Lizard Folk. These strange, ichthyoid invertebrates are named after their nests of floating seaweed.

Raftbugs share a symbiotic relationship with a colonial species of lower kokkinophyte the Mayic people refer to as 'hanhama' (i.e., 'red boat'). Hanhama gather together to form large, free-floating colonies that drift across the ocean waters and use collections of gas-filled bladders to prevent themselves from sinking below the waves. As mentioned before, the hamakeke use these plants as mobile nests. In return for providing these creatures with a place to rear their young, the raftbugs will viciously attack any hungry herbivore that tries to eat the colony. The raftbugs also provide for some of the nutritional needs of the colony as well. The ocean's surface has abundant access to sunlight for photosynthesis, but it can be difficult to acquire other key nutrients. Rather than develop predatory tendencies themselves, the hanhama uses its resident raftbugs instead. Hamakeke bring their kills back to their nest for the benefit of the whole hive, but they also passively feed the hanhama colony too by allowing it to absorb nutrients from the prey's decaying body and the hamakeke's droppings. Isn't nature just grand? Suffice it to say, one cannot survive long without the other, so they have essentially become inseparable.

As evidenced from the illustration above, it is pretty obvious that this creature's adult form differs quite considerably from that of its larval stage. The reason for this is actually quite fascinating. The early ancestors of the raftbugs were completely sessile, and radially symmetrical. These primeval relatives of the hamakeke had ten limbs arranged around its mouth for feeding, as well as five spiracles, and three cloaca. Overtime, some members of this clade evolved to retain their mobility from the larval stage of their lifecycle. Some of these creatures went on to adopt forms similar to cephalopods and medusiform organisms like jellyfish, while still others further derived their body plan for even greater mobility. These offshoots of the original motile clade adapted their feeding limbs into eyes, fins, and pseudo-jaws for grinding up food, all while their bodies slowly transitioned into a more stream-lined, fish-like form. The larva appear as they do due to being underdeveloped. Just like many vertebrates appear quite similar during early prenatal development, their larva of the raftbugs and their wildly different looking relatives appear similar due to all sharing an important common ancestor. As the larva matures, it adopts a bilaterally symmetric body plan and its limbs and organs rearrange accordingly. The process is very similar to how young flounders have their eye migrate as they mature until both are on one side of their head. Curiously, the adult's body is somewhat asymmetrical. Due to having five spiracles, two are on its left side, and three are on its right.

Like ants and bees, the hamakeke have several 'castes' that each serve a function in sustaining the group as a whole. The workers tend to the young, gather food, and process the food hunted by the soldiers. The soldiers are larger than the workers, with longer, serrated pseudo-jaws and a pair of stingers that can deliver a venom that can produce a sharp, aching pain. All hamakeke possess this venom, however, it is far more concentrated in the soldier than it is among other castes. The soldier defends the nest from assault from outside threat and hunts prey in roving packs to haul back home. The queen lays the eggs needed to sustain the hive's population and uses a complex array of pheromones to command her subjects. She can be easily identified from other castes by her great size and her vibrantly colored dorsal fin. Queens are not born into their station, but are rather an evolution of the soldier caste. Under the right circumstances, a dominant soldier will slowly adopt the features of a queen and challenge them over rulership of the nest. The winner gets the nest, while the loser is sent off to die in exile.

The Mai regard these creatures as a nuisance, but they also have been known to treat them with a grudging respect. According to Mayic legends, the Wind Spirit Tonehi Tamayuge used these humble, if belligerent creatures, as inspiration for inventing the boat. He used this knowledge to instruct the Spirit God of the East, Hulbasshi to create the sun-boat and the moon-boat that the Heavenly Twins pilot through the heavens to this day. He would later pass this wisdom onto First Man and First Woman (i.e., Ulowe Maku and Ulowo Marin) when they arose out of the caverns of the Earth.