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Tethys Shallows

A warm, shallow inland sea under a yellow sun and Earth-like gravity. Tidal mudflats meet brackish lagoons; oxygen is plentiful in the water, scarce in the thick muck.

Symbiotic Gulpfish

Evo 4FishEats anythingShallows / ShoreResilient

Shaped by 🤝 symbiosis

This Gulpfish variant has developed subtle bilateral asymmetries and enhanced chemosensory organs, facilitating coordination with a potential symbiotic partner.

bilateral symmetry for cooperative movementenhanced sensory organs for partner detectionmodified mouthparts for food sharingreduced individual foraging drive15 cm
Size
15 cm
Diet
generalist
Habitat
warm, brackish lagoons and tidal mudflats
Moves by
robust swimming, often in pairs

Why it evolved

The pressure to form a mutualistic relationship has driven the evolution of traits that enhance partner detection and coordination. Enhanced chemosensory organs, sensitive to specific partner pheromones, allow for easier identification and aggregation in the nutrient-rich, yet turbid, Tethys Shallows. Modifications to mouthparts and a slightly reduced foraging drive allow for efficient resource sharing. The trade-off is a reduced ability to forage effectively alone, making this species more reliant on its partner for survival and increasing its vulnerability to predators like the Famine Fins if its partner is lost.

What changed from Storm-Tide Gulpfish

Gained:+ bilateral symmetry for cooperative movement+ enhanced sensory organs for partner detection+ modified mouthparts for food sharing+ reduced individual foraging drive+ 15 cm
Lost:flattened bodystabilizing dorsal finstronger pectoral finsreduced pelagic stage16 cm
  • Size: 16 cm 15 cm
  • Habitat: storm-swept tidal flats and lagoons warm, brackish lagoons and tidal mudflats
  • Moves by: robust swimming with stabilization robust swimming, often in pairs

Lineage

🐟MudfishEvo 1🐟Tidewallow …Evo 2🐟Gasping Mud…Evo 2🐟Storm-Tide …Evo 3🐟Lagoon-Boun…Evo 3🐟Brackish Gl…Evo 6🧬🐟Famine FinsEvo 3🐟Symbiotic G…Evo 4🐟Resilient G…Evo 4🐟Tethys Bloo…Evo 4🐟Tidal Shift…Evo 7🐟GulpfinEvo 4🧬🐟Spiny Symbi…Evo 5🐟Cooperative…Evo 5🐟Tethys Glim…Evo 5🐟Verdant Tid…Evo 5🐟Osmotic Gul…Evo 6🐟Detox Gulpf…Evo 7
  • resilient
  • strained
  • fragile
  • ★ canon
  • 🧬 hybrid
  • 💀 extinct
Drag or scroll to move · Tab + Enter for keyboard · click to select, double-click to openView as list18 species

Apply a pressure

You choose the situation, not the result. Selection acts on Symbiotic Gulpfish; the descendant appears above.

Climate

Resources & space

Predators & life

Habitat & extremes

Cross-breed

Mate Symbiotic Gulpfish with another branch of the same lineage to make a hybrid.