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SftD 7c: Eurycephalus and Trichostomus

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Two river dwellers from my project Settlers from the Deep: a manatee-like typhlotherian and an ambush hunting malacosuchian.


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VII. Between Land and Water (part 3)

Typhlotherians are also found in the downstream swamps, and not only at the coasts but under water as well. The brushlip ghlob (Trichostomus obesus) is a relative of kalaharoo-like browsers that took to aquatic life. It lost the skin wrinkles - useless for insulation without air - and replaced them with a layer of blubber. The blunt head has thick clumps of whiskers that are used to explore the river bottom, as a sort of mammalian catfish. Frontlimbs are highly reduced, while hindlimbs are very strong and provide most of the thrust. The whole body is about 3 m long.
Like all ghlobs, the brushlip is herbivorous, and feeds mostly on the clumps of eelgrass. Because of the smooth, thick skin, it often carries external parasites (mostly crustaceans), which it can remove by scratching against the floor. Shoals of centimeter-sized sparkfish follow the ghlob to feed on the unremoved parasites, or on the mud-dwelling worms disturbed by the scratching.
Ghlobs live in matriarchal groups, and give birth collectively: the calf is born under water, and within few seconds young "midwives" push it upwards with their muzzles to allow it to breathe. Calves spend one or two years with their mother, first sucking milk and then browsing on softer eelgrass. Adult males wander around the marshes, looking for females with which to mate.
Eftcrocs are found here as well. Since there's less oxygen, these creatures bereft of lungs cannot afford the active lifestyle of their upstream relatives. The hellmaw (Eurycephalus polydontus) is a perfect ambush predator. Vaguely toad-like and 1-2 meters in length, it lies half-buried in the mud with the breathing appendages swaying in the water. When a mid-sized prey such as a young ghlob or a diving raywing is perceived by its sensitive olfaction, the enormous mouth­ swings open. The upper jaw is not entirely fused to the braincase and is actually more mobile than the lower jaw. All surfaces of its mouth, including the palate, the tongue and the cheeks, are lined with keratinous teeth pointing backwards; the prey is dragged inside the throat by the rushing water, and every movement can only make it sink deeper.
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ForbiddenParadise64's avatar
Very good stuff here. I wonder what lives in the oceans, either fish, tetrapod or arthropod.