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The Novacene Project
Topic Started: Nov 24 2013, 03:44 AM (993 Views)
Sheather
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Flamethrowing Walrus
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I'd rather it not be added to it now, actually. Maybe later when it's all been finalized.
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JaggerTheDog
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Sheather
Nov 25 2013, 01:13 AM
UNFINISHED: But critique welcomed.

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The Pseudopterids

The Volant "Lemurs"



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-Kingdom Animalia
---Phylum Chordata
-----Class Mammalia
--------Order Simiaptera
-----------Family Pterosciurdae
------------------Passersimius (sparrowmice)
------------------Volamys (pygmy flutterfoxes)
-----------Family Pseudopteridae
------------------Vulpepteryx (Lesser flutterfoxes)
-----------Family Pterosciurdae
------------------Pseudopteryx (Sugar lemurs)
-----------Family Tenuinaridae
------------------Prosimiavolans (Twigrunners)
-----------Family Azhdarchomimidae
------------------Velociverox (Gleaners)
------------------Brontovolamus (Greater flutterfoxes)

The pseudopterids are a truly unusual line unlike anything alive in human-era Earth. At first glance, these often large, colorfully-crested flyers have an eerie resemblance to the extinct flying reptiles of ages past - the pterosaurs. Indeed, this resemblance goes so far as the animal's wing design, which through convergent evolution has developed almost identically to that of the pterosaur line, equipped with a single extremely oversized flight finger which supports the wing membrane entirely by itself. But don't be fooled; despite their superficial resemblances, a close examination of the animals would reveal a body covered in fine fur, a jaw with varied dentition, external ears, and most importantly, mammary glands. These creatures are mammals - like dogs, cats, or man - and are in fact the very highly derived ancestors of galagos; small African primates also known as "bush babies".

Small and nocturnal, galagos were active, omnivorous, nocturnal primates abundant throughout the forests of Africa. In the time of humans these creatures were already very agile, skilled jumpers, and due to their small size, ability to adapt to suburbia, and unintrusive nocturnal habits, experienced no real difficulty surviving alongside, and past, humanity. Over time, compelled by the same need for easier locomotion that elsewhere produced gliding possums, squirrels, and colugos, gliding forms of these primates developed, over time developing increasingly wide patagiums of skin, increasing their surface area and loft time during leaps. Able to negotiate their environment more easily, these individuals with these traits more frequently passed on their genes. These first primitive gliders closely resembled flying squirrels. Over time the animal's outermost phalanges (their "pinkie fingers") increased in length and stature, increasing their surface area and therefore their flight potential. Within 20 million years the first small, primitive but volant forms had appeared in the forests of Southeast Africa. Capable of a weak but entirely self-propelled flight, the animals found themselves suddenly much more able to use their environments efficiently; capable of flight, food was far easier to obtain.

Once the initial hurdle of flight was accomplished, the pseudopterids truly were able to diversify; and diversify they did. The forests and rainforests of the region proved incredibly fertile habitats with seemingly limitless niches, ripe for filling. Nocturnal, these early forms largely avoided competition with other small omnivores like many birds and monkeys. From these basal rainforest forms there later evolved the narrow-winged, soaring species which diversified over the grasslands. Already considerably more opportunistic and carnivorous than their ancestral species even these basal forms exhibited elongated jaws and markedly enlarged canines adapted to a diet of slow, easily subdued insects; particularly large crickets and locusts found near ground level. In some of these open country species, carnivorous habits refined still further as these animals fed with increasing frequency upon larger prey; rodents, and upon carrion, relying initially upon gulls and other scavengers to locate it. With extremely keen eyesight as well as an increasingly powerful sense of smell, these initially small creatures diversified rapidly into several rather large forums that were soon more than capable of actively competing with the scavenging birds, day or night.

Species continued to spread, going down separate evolutionary paths which would result in almost wholly herbivorous creatures no bigger than a robin to eagle-sized carnivores of the open savannah. Volant, and with a particularly energy-efficient wing design suited to travel over long distances, little could stop the creature's spread as they established themselves throughout Asia, these populations probably originating as isolated vagrants, which finding little competition, managed to find a place for themselves.

Why the crests?



The first thing anyone notices on a pseudopterid is the pair of conspicuous crests upon their snouts which in some species are quite large and often very brightly colored with blues and greens (the blue is entirely structural, for mammals cannot produce blue pigments. Similar patches of color are found on many species' faces, wings, testes, and tails as well). These crests, present only on males, are the result of intense sexual selection and are actually a fairly recent evolutionary development in the line, appearing only about 30 million years after humans - but still early enough on to be present in all but one pseudopterid family. Pseudopterids are extremely social and highly intelligent animals and most species live in very closely-knit family groups; generally a male and his harem as well as the dependent of offspring of several years. These crests are put to use both to attract mates as a handicap device (look at me! I'm so healthy I can survive even with this heavy rainbow flag on my face!), as well as to intimidate other males without actual physical contact.

Pseudopterid Skulls


Pseudopterid crests are composed almost wholly of cartilage, as these graphics reveal, and only a few species exhibit any skeletal support at all. As a result they are quite lightweight and do not substantially affect the animals in flight, although they do reduce the animal's line of sight and make them more vulnerable to predation.

Unique Aspects of Biology and Behavior



In their 40 million year evolution, the pseudopterids have adopted a number of unique traits to further assist them in flight including a cartilaginous, roughly diamond-shaped disk at the tip of their long tails, improving their aerodynamics in flight, and in several genera, a unique backwards-pointing spur on the radius bone of their wings, functioning similarly to the pteroid bone in the pterosaurs to further support the propagatium. The wings themselves, these membranes, are not merely skin; while quite thin they are heavily reinforced with miniscule, stretchy, flexible yet durable protein-based "braces", arranged in a roughly honey-comb-like pattern throughout the membrane, leaving it in fact quite sturdy and durable, able to put up with the creatures' rigorous flapping and strong enough to remain intact even when negotiating through dense canopies in the forests many species call home.

Pseudopterids also exhibit many adaptations unrelated to flight; much like their ancestors, pseudopterids retain thumbs, which in all species have become entirely opposable and quite dexterous, especially in highly arboreal species. Unlike birds but much like pterosaurs, pseudopterids are quadrupedal and very effective at terrestrial and arboreal locomotion, folding up their extended wing bones alongside them to free the hands to grasp. The legs of the animal are only halfway attached the pagatium, which attaches at their knees. All species of this group save for the genera Brontovolamus and Velociverox also lack claws; on every digit except for the thumb (where a crude "grooming claw" is generally present), they are reduced to mere nails, no longer particularly needed for the animal's lifestyles. In the Brontovolamids and Velociveroxids, claws have redeveloped upon the forelimbs, an adaptation to these groups' highly carnivorous habits.

P. coeruleus Skeleton


Another very unique aspect of pseudopterid biology, and one which can undoubtedly be attributed to their incredible success as a lineage, is the fact that within a social group, both genders of the animal lactate to feed the offspring. While in almost all modern mammals the mother, and rarely an aunt or sister, is the sole provider of milk, in a pseudopterid clan all adult individuals can conceivably lactate, and following the birth of young into the clan even males are stimulated into milk production. This enables the animals to feed their surprisingly large litters (in some species, up to eight pups) despite each individual animal carrying only two nipples, and also practically negates the risk of orphaning. In the event a pup's mother dies, it can count on its father, aunts, and cousins to feed and care for it. In fact, the maternal instinct among females of many species is so strong during the breeding season that they will adopt and mother even quite unusual animals including kittens, young antelope, and even nestling birds - animals they'd quite normally be more inclined to eat than nurture.

Pseudopterids generally raise their offspring for long periods of at least a year and in some species up to three, for these animals are heavily dependent on learning rather than instinct for survival and thus require long childhoods much like modern apes. Females typically remain with their home colonies for life, unless they bond with a lone male and dispatch to start their own colonies, but males almost always leave around sexual maturity ( 3 - 5 years of age), although in some species some may stick around as non-breeding "uncles", helping to raise the other's offspring.

Pseudopterids retain a very primate-like brain and are highly intelligent animals, more so than their ancestors although perhaps not quite as much as some modern monkeys. They are highly crafty and able to make use of simple tools in their environments, some smaller species being very proficient using twigs to spear grubs in rotting trees or to obtain termites from their mounds much like chimpanzees today.

Posted Image

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Not all or even most pseudopterids are carnivores and not all have the long jaws; these species are the largest, however.
You copied this from the Metazoic!

Also, did you use a program to build this picture?
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martiitram
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Metazoica dosn't have flying primates.Also , did you see the river elephant picture I made in deviantart?
Edited by martiitram, Feb 16 2014, 11:42 PM.
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JaggerTheDog
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martiitram
Feb 16 2014, 11:41 PM
Metazoica dosn't have flying primates.Also , did you see the river elephant picture I made in deviantart?
Metalzoica does have something similar except it is not a primate. Also, aren't you surprised I'm back into the forums? Also, I didn't see, my account in spec evo wiki is now JaggerButtermilk.
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JaggerTheDog
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My project also has a lot in common, but ungulates and carnivorans are much more common. Also primates. In my projects humans aren't extinct.

Also, cetaceans, horses, great apes also exists. (Though cetaceans declined greatly and the last great ape died out around 5 myf).
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martiitram
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Well , I must say that I'm a little surprised to see you here!Also , I had a feeling JaggerButtermilk was you.I've also made a forum for Carbocene.Would you like to join (Carbocene now is more realistic *check my deviantart page*)?
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JaggerTheDog
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martiitram
Feb 18 2014, 12:58 AM
Well , I must say that I'm a little surprised to see you here!Also , I had a feeling JaggerButtermilk was you.I've also made a forum for Carbocene.Would you like to join (Carbocene now is more realistic *check my deviantart page*)?
I know!
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martiitram
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So...Would you like to join?
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Sheather
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This is a long abandoned project.
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JaggerTheDog
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Sheather
Feb 18 2014, 04:21 PM
This is a long abandoned project.
Okay. But did you used a program to make the photograph, my laptop is damaged for awhile, so I cant scan any photos.
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