Posts tagged evolution
Continuing in the theme of bringing creatures from video games into the Anatomically Correct series is the Chocobo of Final Fantasy lore. Put simply, a Chocobo is a large bird. It is unclear whe...
This is a submission for the Anatomically Correct Series How would you evolve a harpy? A harpy is defined by Wikipedia as a flying creature with: Long, human hair Human faces Feathered bodies C...
The muroids are a superfamily of rodents consisting today of mice, rats, voles, hamsters, lemmings and gerbils. There are at least 1750 different species of them, proof apparent of their environme...
Here a laser raptor Pew Pew'ing in its natural habitat and timeline. (From the Kung Fury movie) So I want to know how a biological organism can develop to spew laser beams through their eyes. W...
I'm creating a fictional world which includes tree dwelling octopuses that thrives in swamps and tropical rainforests. I'm wondering what evolutionary pressures could lead to the rise of such crea...
bucking the trend of mermaids I've decided to take a different approach with my mermaids. A long time ago a group of Australopithecus diverged from us taking to the sea. some characteristics of the...
I searched the site and found answers saying hard light can't exist. Apparently in the three years since the last question was asked, scientists started making inroads on making solid light a reali...
This is a submission for the Anatomically Correct Series Residing in South Africa, the Grootslang is a creature of African folklore being depicted commonly as: Being 37 to 40 ft long having a co...
While reading this question about how non-primate mammals could develop a bipedal stance, I became curious about the broader reasons why animals could evolve to walk on two legs. I found some insi...
Sea Wyverns (name not final) nest on small, rocky islands scattered throughout the sea and primarily catch fish going somewhat below the water. Basically, wyverns ingest a piezoelectric crystal whi...
A long time ago, Yi Qi diverged into three main groups: Cockatrices, Drakes, and Wyverns. Some characteristics of Wyverns include: They are tetrapods/quadrupeds They are covered with feathers The...
Phoenixes are a unique type of wyvern not only due to their colorful feathers (which resemble flames) but also how they reproduce. Phoenixes lay 7 eggs which require a lot of heat to hatch. Unfortu...
This is a submission towards the Anatomically Correct Series The leviathan, (in biblical terms), is describes as being a colossal serpentine like creature, it's back is covered in scales that are...
I'm writing a fictional story where non-primate mammals (and marsupials) evolved into different species of humanoids which roamed the earth. In my world humanoids have evolved from animals such as...
In my story, there is a planet that experiences near constant sunlight. Since sunlight so plentiful and reliable most organisms are, at least in part, photosynthetic. The only intelligent life on ...
The setting is in a region of a planet comparable to Earth's California in regards to location. The soil is extremely rich in nutrients and subsurface water. But for the past three million years th...
I remember reading this thing somewhere about how humans born in zero gravity environments would likely be taller than Earth-bound humans but also more fragile and unable to handle Earth's gravity ...
Is it possible for there to be a planet where no animals, only plants existed? What evolutionary reasons would cause this, if possible?
Contrary to popular belief, Unicorns are not related to horses but instead are descended from the Siberian Unicorn. Over time: their fur became whiter they became slightly smaller they have an...
I am attempting to devise a mechanism whereby a species may reproduce in a communal manner. A number of individuals, ranging from two to arbitrarily high, may contribute gametes to a mass spawning ...
Consider this a remake of my Why might a group of insects evolve to resemble humans? post. Fairies are a common trope in fantasy works some characteristics of fairies and their associates are: Fa...
Contrary to popular belief serpentine dragons are not in fact magical or related to the European wyvern but instead are descended from the Chrysopelea. some common characteristics of serpentine dra...
Next to angels, various types of bird people are among some of the most common depictions of flying humanoids. Revali from BOTW comes to mind. Could birds (or any other flying animal for that ...
I want to write a science-based story which includes grey aliens. To clarify, grey aliens are seen to be either shorter or taller than the average humans, and sport a bulbous like head. their hea...
here what Xing Tian look like and the description in the wikipedia. Xingtian appears in chapter 7 of the Shanhaijing (Classic of Mountains and Seas), which states that he fought and lost agai...
Prosimians on average are not as intelligent as their simian counter parts with the notable exception being lemurs which live in semi large groups. what I want to know is could a group of prosimian...
My father (who is a biologist) thinks that a sapient species must be a true omnivore because if it were an obligate herbivore (like a koala or a sloth), it would not have enough nutrients to develo...
In many fantasy stories humans are capable of inter-breeding with different fantasy races. There is a precedent for this happening with neanderthal and Denisovan DNA being found in people of Eurasi...
A long time ago homo floresiensis split off into two main groups Goblins and Halflings. Now Goblins are an odd little bunch (here's a rough mock up of what a goblin might look like) and I was wonde...
I wanted to include a spider-like race in my book (not a typical drider, but more like a hairy hominid covered in tarantula-like hair and thinner and longer limbs and fingers). However, I wanted th...
Our universe is incredibly young, relative to its total life span. How young? Well, it contains stars. Giant balls of readily fusing hydrogen and helium that give off a pleasant glow, suitable for ...
Would it be possible for life to develop on a planet with a highly elliptical orbit? (Similar to a comet, but possibly less extreme.) If so, what conditions would be necessary and what would the li...
I am wondering if a species might evolve to deceive human technology - in particular, a set of night vision goggles. I imagine it is either cold blooded or it has thick fur - which doesn't trap air...
The dominant religion on my world (created by a race of dragon-like humanoids) believes that their species originates from an ancient being that sacrificed itself to defeat a great evil at the cen...
I'm working on a novel that takes place in a fictional universe which involves creatures with long forelimbs and short hind limbs. Some of these creatures includes amphibians , reptilians and mamma...
Hypothetically, if an animal such as a cephalopod were to become terrestrial, and walking gradually evolved from crawling, would hardened muscle be likely to evolve as support, with articulation to...
I'm writing about a fictional world where reptiles evolved and became the dominant species on a planet. on this planet an extinction event never occurred and reptiles still remained the dominant sp...
In a distant future, humanity has colonized and catalogued countless worlds in their home galaxy. However one day humanity has discovered a few habitable words in the Andromeda galaxy. After a wh...
I want to make an alien species evolve without fear, or atleast not fear as we know it. Intelligent life, as I understand it, requires fear to encourage an organism to keep itself alive. What emo...
Disclaimer: This question uses some liberal wording to get key ideas across. It's not meant to be academically rigorous, so please try to focus on the ideas and not the exact definitions of the ter...
what would happen if 50,000 humans were sent to a planet that has 3 times gravity, in a arid like environment.Through unknown means. The planet has a similar atmosphere to our own and the air is ...
In the distant future, humanity has encountered, made peace and wars with countless advanced civilizations, but one civilization that still baffles them, is the race of intelligent centipedes. The...
Coming from an earlier asked question, I was wondering how long it would take (potentially a range) for two human populations that are separated from each other to speciate enough that they would n...
Many of the intelligent species on Earth, including us humans, are predatory. One of the reasons for this is the nutrient content of meat; a pound of meat is very calorie and nutrient rich especial...
This is a follow up question to: How realistic is the Swampus? What adaptations would current octopus have to evolve, to become land based, meaning that they spend at least 1/3 of their time on la...
In a specialised organ, the Vesica Spirite, which in function and makeup resembles a cross between the Ventriculus and the Vesica Biliaris, the animal creates and stores potent spirits by the me...
We all know how rabbits and hares escape ending up being a meal to a fox or a hawk, with long ears to hear danger coming, burrowing, long and powerful hind legs for speed and also living a social l...
Within my setting, insects, due to a rather long (millions of years) and convoluted (gods suffering from empty nest syndrome) series of events, have evolved their exoskeletons into an endoskeleton ...
Question: Are there are any serious biological or evolutionary plausibility issues with separating the energy storage/production function from the production of structural/regulatory biomass? Back...
In the 2002 documentary the future is wild, numerous biologists and other scientists speculated about the future evolution of various species. In the '100 million years in the future' segment, the...
