Science Flourishing Wild Artificial Echo Systems.

[KilroywasNOTHere]

So I saw this video on youtube about a guy that made a miniature artificial rainforest in his basement and I found it utterly fascinating.


I posted the following comment.

"I wonder what it will be like 6 months from now. It also makes me wonder if it'd be possible to create artificial wilds to help repopulate endangered species and or harvest materials without stripping massive swaths of natural environments (I don't mean a zoo as zoos still have workers handling and bathing the animals and such) I'm talking creating an artificial environment where humans only get involved in the initial set up. the occasional upkeep and maybe the occasional hunt in the case of overpopulation but for the most part keeping things as natural and off hand as possible."

feel free to post your thoughts about the tank, about my question, or just nature and science overall.

 

[Bassoe]

It also makes me wonder if it'd be possible to create artificial wilds...

RaksharAlpha was doing a whole speculative evolution project on this.

Spoiler: lifeforms from the terrestrial jar

These organisms come from a fictional scenario, in which creatures and plants that are common in terrestrial jar ecospheres (such as soil mites, nematodes, pseudoscorpions, snails and so on) are seeded in a massive jar environment. These organisms evolved in this surreal ecosystem over millions of years producing multiple bizarre descendants.
In this drawing, you can see...

1. Three Dustbunnies hopping and scurrying around. These fuzzy critters are descendants of the soil mites. They use their second pair of legs to detect vibrations and last pair of legs for jumping.
2. A Trapjaw Tigerleech trying to hunt a plump hammerhead flatworm. This bizarre terrestrial leech developed it's suction pad into grasping structures that fold like a bear trap. It was the top predator during a time when most of the animals in the Jar were earthworms, leeches, nematodes, and flatworms.
3. Herd of Sleipnirs running through the fungus fields. Named after the eight-legged mythological horse, the Sleipnirs are fast, swift descendants of the centipede. The number of legs decreased and only eight are used for locomotion.
4. A Neoscorpion hunting a Fishopod near the riverside. Neoscorpions are descendants of the humble pseudoscorpion that grew in size and strength. They take the niche of hypercarnivores and utilize their pincers often. Fishopods evolved from terrestrial isopods and are now semi-aquatic.
5. A Cthulhuslug preying on a group of Monovalves. Cthulhuslugs are slugs that developed sensory tentacles around their mouthparts. They have better vision and are voracious predators. Monovalves are sessile snails that feeds on aerial plankton that derived from gnats or have symbiotic relationship with certain fungi and lichen.

These organisms in the drawing are from multiple time periods in the Jar. Some creatures originate from former seeding eras while others are descendants of the more late arrived organisms.


These organisms come from a fictional scenario, in which creatures and plants that are common in terrestrial jar ecospheres (such as soil mites, nematodes, pseudoscorpions, snails and so on) are seeded in a massive jar environment. These organisms evolved in this surreal ecosystem over millions of years producing multiple bizarre descendants.
In this drawing, you can see...

1. Three different types of Scrabs on a wooden mountain. Scrabs are carcinized descendants of the pseudoscorpion. Scrabs are diverse and occupy nearly all ecosystems in the Jar.
2. A Headcrab attached to a carnivorous beetle host. Headcrabs are parasitic descendant of the common red mite. This horrific pest stick onto the host's head and start tricking the host's senses to benefit itself. It secretes a blinding fluid and uses it's antenna-like pair of limbs to puppeteer the host. They even eat before the host can. Once the host gets weak, the Headcrab kills the host by decapitating and feeds on the remains.
3. Two Hawkrickets and one gigagrub held by the female. Hawkrickets are macropredatory descendant of the humble cricket. With their developed massive wings, these flying beasts now rule the skies like azdharchids and birds of prey. The females tend to be bulkier while the males are more swift with a wider wingspan. The gigagrub is a descendant of the earthworm and is a common prey for many hungry predators.
4. A swimming Long Dragon. Dragons are one of the most noticeable descendants of centipedes. Among these majestic beasts, the Long Dragon is the one that developed an efficient swimming method and amphibious lifestyle. Due to their paddle-like legs that undulate like a wave, they can swim swiftly with elegance. And with their massive size and powerful jaws, they rule as the apex predators of the rivers and lakes.
5. Diverse Megastropods. Several million years after the snails were introduced into the Jar, some of them started to develop a more tough, leathery skin, internalized their huge, bulbous shell as a skeleton, and better circulatory system alongside with stronger muscles. Eventually, these features allowed them to grow bigger and diversify. These are the Megastropods, one of the dominant megafaunal herbivores of the Jar.

These organisms in the drawing are from multiple time periods in the Jar. Some creatures originate from former seeding eras while others are descendants of the more late arrived organisms.


These organisms come from a fictional scenario, in which creatures and plants that are common in terrestrial jar ecospheres (such as soil mites, nematodes, pseudoscorpions, snails and so on) are seeded in a massive jar environment. These organisms evolved in this surreal ecosystem over millions of years producing multiple bizarre descendants.
In this drawing, you can see...

1. Diverse group of Flyders hunting Macrognats. Flyders are derived jumping spiders that developed the ability to glide/parachute and later to powered flight. The ancestors of the flyder utilized their jumping ability to ambush hunt by jumping from trees. Some started leaping to capture the swarm of gnats in the colder regions. Eventually, some developed more integument that functions like feathers, others wove stronger webs between their legs, and couple completely altered their leg shapes into wings. Now these new predators rule the skies of the colder region with to their higher metabolism and thick fur. Macrognats are derived gnats that express a wide diversity. Compared to the aeroplanktonic gnats, macrognats are huge (flying bird sized) and have relatively lower numbers.
2. A Jester Hunter Bug eating a Toadslug it hunted. Hunter bugs are large and more active descendants of the assassin bug. Now the silent assassins have become agile hunters. Their common hunting method is stalking and ambushing alone, but many species developed original techniques to survive in the bizarre world of the Jar. For each unique hunting tactic, these hunter bugs species are named after certain jobs or warrior positions. The Jester hunter bugs harass and taunt to distract large prey and often play with smaller ones.
   Toadslugs are plump and round slug descendants. Despite their chunky appearance, their body is packed with muscles that allows long distance jumping. They don’t have long eyestalks their ancestors possessed but have better eyesight instead. They are medium sized predators and mostly feed on springtails and crickets with their barbed radula that shoots out from their mouths.
3. A juvenile Bisopod being hunted by a pack of Pouncerhounds. Bisopods are huge isopods that developed a more herbivorous diet and nearly water free respiratory organs. Their thick armor allows them to thrive among diverse predators. Some of them developed bumps or spikes on their shell to fend off predators. Also, the pleon and the cephalothorax of bisopods are usually modified to have horns, clubbed tails, or thorns for both protection and territorial battle. The size usually range between that of a small boar to a huge bison depending on the species, hence the name bisopod. Nymphs have softer shells and therefore are a relatively easy target to predators.Pouncerhounds are nimble, clever, and lethal predatory descendants of cockroaches. Their swift movement and semi-social abilities allowed them to thrive even around many omnivorous organisms. Some of these roaches diversified and used their speed to hunt down small critters. Then they developed pack hunting behavior to take down huge prey.
   Pouncerhounds are the pinnacle of this evolutionary route. Their middle and hind legs are capable of jumping, which allows them to literally "pounce" towards their prey. Being close relatives to mantids, these roaches evolved their front limbs into claw-like structures. However, unlike the long, spindly legs of mantis, the front limbs of the pouncerhounds are more short, thick, and powerful like the jaws of a wolf. Like wolves, pouncerhounds have strong social bonds and group between five to dozen individuals.
4. A school of Silverswimmers trying to avoid the Sharkleeches. Silverswimmers are aquatic descendants of the silverfish. They have more thicker exoskeleton and paddling legs. Primitive gills are used to keep them underwater. In the wide rivers and lakes of the Jar, these organisms are a common sight. Many aquatic predators hunt these fish-like organisms by forming a bait ball.Sharkleeches are descendants of terrestrial leeches that altered their stick pad into a wide fin. They aren't really pack hunters, but occasionally, few of them join and hunt together while going after the same prey.

These organisms in the drawing are from multiple time periods in the Jar. Some creatures originate from former seeding eras while others are descendants of the more late arrived organisms.


These organisms come from a fictional scenario, in which creatures and plants that are common in terrestrial jar ecospheres (such as annelids, beetles, jumping spiders, tardigrades and so on) are seeded in a massive jar environment. These organisms evolved in this surreal ecosystem over millions of years producing multiple bizarre descendants.
In this drawing, you can see...

1. A Deathworm ambushing a slizard that is resting on a log. Deathworms are carnivorous descendants of the humble earthworm. Over the course of several millions of years of evolution, some of the earthworms started to develop sharp chitin mandibles and thicker skin. Due to the abundance of soil minerals, they were able to support their bodies with cartilage that has high amounts of calcium infused. This tough structure allowed the worms to grow in massive sizes, reaching several meters long and girth thick like a huge snake. The result of this process is the deathworm, a monster that superficially resembles polychaetes, but much stronger and active. Slizards are slug descendants that developed a scaly skin and six muscular legs supported with inner cartilage. Unlike their ancestors, they can handle dry conditions much better and are more mobile. Size varies a lot depending on the species: some being the size of a gecko while some reaching the size of varanids.
2. A Huntsman Hunter Bug cooperating with a Houndgrub in search for prey. Hunter bugs are large and more active descendants of the assassin bug. Now the silent assassins have become agile hunters. Their common hunting method is stalking and ambushing alone, but many species developed original techniques to survive in the bizarre world of the Jar. For each unique hunting tactic, these hunter bugs species are named after certain jobs or warrior positions. The Huntsman hunter bug have a symbiotic relationship with certain neobeetles (neotenic beetles) like houndgrubs. The huntsman has a more keen eyesight while the houndgrub is better at sensing smell and vibrations. These two work together to find and hunt down burrowing social prey species like dust bunnies, burrowing clickets, or ratroaches. One hunts the prey above ground, while the other hunts the prey hiding in the burrows.
3. A Tyrantula eating a Grasschopper it hunted. Tyrantulas are huge descendants of the jumping spider. They developed a much more efficient respiratory and circulatory system over millions of years. This resulted in high metabolism almost making them slightly endothermic. The heat gets trapped in the thick fur of the tyrantula, allowing this giant spider to roam the colder regions in the Jar in search for food to settle its voracious appetite. Unlike its ancestor, the tyrantula can no longer jump due to its size and weight. However, it can charge with immense strength and bite the prey with oversized fangs. Its derived front legs and pedipalps are used to pin down struggling victims.
   Grasschoppers are massive herbivores that descend from the common cricket. Similar to tyrantulas, they also lost their ancestor's ability to jump as increasing in size. With more stronger mandibles, they can chop down even the toughest vegetation and plow through the mosslands and fern forests. They form large herds like bison or wildebeests and often have large horns and spikes formed on their thoraxes for additional protection. Despite not being used for jumping anymore, their hind limbs can still deliver a pretty strong kick. Of course, this doesn't mean they are safe from predators.
4. The complex underground cavern ecosystem full of carnivorous fungi, derived nematodes, soil bears, and gigaprotists. Beneath the layers of thick soil, lies massive dirt caves made by huge annelids like deathworms, burrowing arthropods, diverse fungal growths, or just by natural causes. These deep caves are where the earliest seeded organisms in this Jar persist and evolve. (Relatively) huge protists that are the size of insects, rodent-size tardigrades named soil bears, and ravenous carnivorous fungi can be found in these caverns.
   Carnivorous fungi are one of the main predators in this bizarre underworld. Unlike most fungi, these specialize in hunting other organisms as a source of nutrients, creating a very medieval torture chamber-like scenery in the dark. Utilizing many different strategies to hunt and secure their prey - such as hanging nooses, barbed wires, sticky mats, spiky pits, or chemical hypnosis - they'll eat any organism they come in contact with; that being a nematode, tardigrade, paramecium, mite, or unlucky surface dwellers that ended up in the deep underground. Competition for survival is intense, especially in a place that's away from light.

These organisms in the drawing are from multiple time periods in the Jar. Some creatures originate from former seeding eras while others are descendants of the more late arrived organisms.


These organisms come from a fictional scenario, in which creatures and plants that are common in terrestrial jar ecospheres (such as snails, springtails, centipedes, fungi and so on) are seeded in a massive jar environment. These organisms evolved in this surreal ecosystem over millions of years producing multiple bizarre descendants.
In this drawing, you can see...

1. Three different types of Chainsnails. Chainsnails are the next big step of gastropod evolution. These snails developed segmented shells along with a long, strong muscular mantle that allows them to distort and bend their shell, giving a very arthropod-like impression. They can twist this chain shell into surreal shapes that reminds heteromorph ammonites. With this unique method, they can easily alter their body to avoid predators, float on water, or slide through narrow valleys.
   Chainsnails evolved in an isolated wetland region in the Jar and later spread through by using their unique coiled shell as a buoy. Some chainsnails now have spikes on their shells for protection, others have wide fin-like structures for each segment that are used like legs, and some tree climbing species have jagged blades on the shell for clinging. These snails are omnivorous and use their foot as a grabbing appendage since they can use the articulated snake-like shell for support. Compared to other gastropods other than slitherslugs, chainsnails are quite agile.
2. A swarm of Piranha Spiketails hunting a massive omnivorous Landleech. Before small arthropods like mites, springtails, and pseudoscorpions were added in the Jar, worms like earthworms, flatworms, terrestrial leeches, and nematodes were ruling the ecosystem. However, after an extinction event, the reign of worms were dwindling while soil mesofauna began to thrive. Some of these tiny arthropods figured out that the worms weren’t used to small hunters and started preying on the hulking sausages on the ground.
   Piranha Spiketails are one of those arthropods. They are descendants of the modest springtail that now preys on huge annelids. The furcula of the springtail (jumping appendage) has developed hooks in the end so that the spiketail can pierce into the flesh of prey. With this weapon, swarms of spiketails pouch towards the worm, hook themselves on, and start devouring the helpless prey alive. If the worm tries to roll over to avoid them, the spiketails pull out their furcula and jump away from the worm, only to come back and attack once again.
3. A voracious Tiamat hunting a frightened juvenile Snailephant. Named after the grand monster/goddess from Babylonian mythology, the Tiamat is a massive, bulky centipede descendant that rules the wooden mountains. Compared to their ancestors, Tiamats have relatively short body length in ratio but instead have a much thicker and muscular build. The overall number of legs of these myriapods have significantly decreased but more legs became specialized. Tiamats are brute force predators that crush their prey with their forcipules and strong, thick legs tipped with claws. They have much bigger, jagged forcipules and extra jaw-like legs that aid in biting. A pair of legs in the end, other than the pair that is already used for sensory purposes, developed into pincers that are used in mating rituals and territorial battles. The Tiamat's exoskeleton is tough and spiky due to sexual selection and to handle the brutal mating rituals that involve biting, wrestling, and sometimes even death.
   Snailephants are one of the most numerous type of megastropod. Unlike other megastropods that developed multiple limbs, the snailephants kept the whole foot structure as one and added broad pillar legs at the bottom to distribute their weight efficiently without collapsing. This gives them an impression to look like organic statues with a wide, fleshy pedestal. Snailephants continuously browse using their long proboscis mouth and also groom each other with these trunks to get rid of the many parasites on their bumpy skin. They also have display flaps that can change color which are used for communication and warning. Unlike their ancestors and other basal megastropods, Snailephants aren't hermaphrodites. The males develop a long blade-like radula tusk that sticks out from their mouth. This tool is used to slice through tough vegetation, protect the herd, and for mating battles. Females also have a blade radula but it is shorter. Due to their massive size and tough hide, no adult Snailephant is hunted by predators usually. However, juveniles are small and soft, being an easy prey. Therefore, Snailephants often pick up their juveniles and carry them on their backs except when they are all eating around.
4. Fungusnails crawling around and Funguslugs hiding among the mushrooms on a log. Due to the over abundance of fungi, many of the organisms in the Jar use these for survival strategies. Among those, Fungusnails are the most iconic, whimsical beings. These are mollusks that raise fungi on their porous shells for camouflage and food. Fungusnail is not a word for certain species, but is rather a polyphyletic term since many different mollusks use this effective strategy. Even including few species of megastropods. These moving, living gardens are also gardeners themselves. Fungusnails usually extend their bodies to reach to their shells and tend their cultivation. Some are social and tend each other's fungal farms by getting rid of the agricultural parasites that try to eat their fungi. Some species of fungusnails farm poisonous noxious fungi to avoid predators while others use it to attract their potential prey.
   Unlike fungusnails that farm fungi, funguslugs are mollusks that mimic certain fungi to either ambush hunt, avoid predation, or to sneak into other organisms' mushroom farms to eat the crops. Like fungusnails, funguslug is also a polyphyletic term since mimicry is a great strategy for survival that many species perform. Most funguslugs display great mimicry skills that makes them often undistinguishable to the naked eye until they start moving. Couple species even use chromatophores and skin texture alteration to hide among the dense mushroom forests, able to mimic multiple different types of fungi. Some species instead mimic the chemical scent that the fungi produces to take advantage of the fungi's symbiotic partners (including fungusnails) or to trick predators. At least half of the species are ambush hunters that pretend to be a mushroom until the prey approaches.

These organisms in the drawing are from multiple time periods in the Jar. Some creatures originate from former seeding eras while others are descendants of the more late arrived organisms.

 

[Bassoe]

RaksharAlpha was doing a whole speculative evolution project on this.

...and lifeforms from the aquatic jar in a separate post because more than five pieces of media.

Spoiler: lifeforms from the aquatic (freshwater) jar

These organisms come from a fictional scenario, in which creatures and plants that are common in aquatic jar ecospheres (such as bladder snails, copepods, hydroids, duckweed and so on) are seeded in a massive jar environment. These organisms evolved in this surreal ecosystem over millions of years producing multiple bizarre descendants.
In this drawing, you can see...

1. Diverse of eelworms which are descendants of nematodes
2. Carnivorous slime mold that is attracting a swarm of flying insects.
3. A water mantis that is camouflaging on the water rod to hunt a water boatman
4. Trapeze snails on ropeweed avoiding the evergliders that are cheerfully harassing their smaller relatives
5. Sailing paramecia and swimmerleaves which both originate from protists
6. A whale-like branchiopod being hunted by piranha copepod frenzy
7. A rodentardigrade resting on a lily jelly with an amphibious snakeworm in its mouth.

These organisms in the drawing are from multiple time periods in the Jar. Some creatures originate from former seeding eras while others are descendants of the more late arrived organisms.


These organisms come from a fictional scenario, in which creatures and plants that are common in aquatic jar ecospheres (such as bladder snails, water fleas, moss, amphipods and so on) are seeded in a massive jar environment. These organisms evolved in this surreal ecosystem over millions of years producing multiple bizarre descendants.
In this drawing, you can see...

1. A gigantic Whalemite swimming with a few bloodsucker water fleas attatched. The Whalemite originates from common water mites.
2. Two Mantaslugs hunting pelagic bivalves. The Mantaslugs are descendants of the bladder snail and the pelagic bivalves are the descendant of pea clams.
3. Beavershrimps swimming around the dam built out of algae, moss, and secretion of the shrimps themselves. These social crustaceans build dams to nest their young together.
4. The wallside forest attached around the sideway waterfall on the glass walls with couple Dracoflies flying near. These are huge dragonfly descendants that never come down from the air except for breeding period.
5. A Quadraken and a Leviathan fighting next to a school of swimming amphipods. The Quadraken is a descendant of the ramshorn snail and the Leviathan is a neotonic descendant of the dragonfly.

These organisms in the drawing are from multiple time periods in the Jar. Some creatures originate from former seeding eras while others are descendants of the more late arrived organisms.


These organisms come from a fictional scenario, in which creatures and plants that are common in aquatic jar ecospheres (such as bladder snails, water fleas, moss, amphipods and so on) are seeded in a massive jar environment. These organisms evolved in this surreal ecosystem over millions of years producing multiple bizarre descendants.
In this drawing, you can see...

1. Diverse group of flounderworms and sessile flatworms. Flounderworms are descendants of flatworms that developed a coelom and became more complex. The pharynx still remains as the feeding appendage. Some flounderworms evolved a pharynx that has a shovel tip to dig through dirt, others developed a spear at the end to pierce prey, and couple of them evolved a filter feeding mouth.
   Sessile flatworms either filter feed or have a symbiotic relationship with algae. A lot of them function like tunicates on Earth. This group is very diverse and a lot of flatworms individually evolved sessile lifestyle. In the drawing, all the plant-like structures are sessile flatworms. Groups of sessile flatworms are a common scene in the Jar.
2. Rocketflies shooting out from the water surface. Rocketflies are descendants of dragonflies that became more neotenic. They use their small wings and jet propulsion to leap out from the water like a flying fish to either escape predators, hunt flying prey, or travel long distances. Behind the rocketflies, there is a lone dracofly.
3. Snipers holding onto water reeds. Snipers are another neotenic dragonfly. However, unlike rocketflies, these use their jet propulsion to sharpshoot their prey and stun them. Snipers have keen eyesight and flexible abdomens. Their water jet can also be used against predators.
4. A group of Snufflers resting on the shore while opportunistic Dracocarids attempt in raiding. Snuffler means any amphibious/terrestrial molluschordate (gastropods that evolved a skeleton out of their shells). They are very diverse and it is a polyphyletic term. The closest word on Earth to snuffler would be "beast".
   Dracocarids are terrestrial shrimp descendants that skip around with four long legs while using the other legs to pin down prey and carry things. Most dracocarids are carnivorous and some of them are pack hunters.

These organisms in the drawing are from multiple time periods in the Jar. Some creatures originate from former seeding eras while others are descendants of the more late arrived organisms.


These organisms come from a fictional scenario, in which creatures and plants that are common in aquatic jar ecospheres (such as ramshorn snails, dwarf amphipods, cherry shrimps, water mites, and so on) are seeded in a massive jar environment. These organisms evolved in this surreal ecosystem over millions of years producing multiple bizarre descendants.
In this drawing, you can see...

1. Diversity of the Dracocarids, which are terrestrial shrimps. Most dracocarids use their pincers like jaws and use four legs to skitter around the huge islands and the edgelands. Some of the dracocarids have a morphology that slightly resembles mantids. The biggest species of dracocarid can reach up to a size of a small bear.
2. A pack of Skimmer Mantises gathering to eat a drowning dragonfly. Skimmer mantis are descendants of water stick insects which can navigate on top of the water like water striders. They still kept their ancestor's long front legs that resembles those of a real mantis. These social insects are dangerous predators for any organism that falls onto the water surface, even for a dragonfly.
3. Diversity of Pseudocephalopods. Pseudocephalopods are mainly divided into two groups: the Snatiluses and the Cuttleslugs. Both originate from ramshorn snails and have four tentacles. The snautilus has an exterior shell while the cuttleslugs internalized it. These two groups of pseudocephalopods show a wide range of diversity.
4. A vast bubble web structure made by a group of Waterweavers. Waterweavers are descendants of water mites. Similar to diving bell spiders, these mites construct water bubbles out of silk and mucus. Being social, these mites create huge bubble webs that protects them from drowning and predators. Sometimes, these bubble webs can even support a whole enclosed ecosystem full of simbiotic organisms and accidental passengers as well.
5. An Abhorrent being hunted by a Rorschach. Both these organisms are far descendants of freshwater hydras. Abhorrents are radially symmetrical organisms that occupy the niche similar to jellyfish and sea anemones. Rorschachs are biradially symmetrical organisms that are more mobile. They usually resemble starfish or brittle stars on Earth but are more agile and have some terrestrial/amphibious species.
6. Antipod hives with many Antipods swimming around. Antipods are eusocial amphipods that build massive hive structures out of mud, vegetation, and secretion under water vines and floating islands. These bizarre crustaceans have multiple polymorphic castes such as simple workers, farmers, soldiers, carriers, and queens. Antipods swim in swarms in search for food and building material to enlarge their colony. Some farm algae, waterborne fungi, and even sessile planarians for food. In these hives, there are dozens of symbiotic species living inside.

These organisms in the drawing are from multiple time periods in the Jar. Some creatures originate from former seeding eras while others are descendants of the more late arrived organisms.


These organisms come from a fictional scenario, in which creatures and plants that are common in aquatic jar ecospheres (such as dragonfly nymphs, fingernail clams, cherry shrimps, rotifers, and so on) are seeded in a massive jar environment. These organisms evolved in this surreal ecosystem over millions of years producing multiple bizarre descendants.
In this drawing, you can see...

1. Dracoflies hunting variety of swimmers including descendants of water boatmen, mayfly larvae, and eelworms. The vast waterscape of the Jar allows a huge diversity in aquatic organisms. Insects, crustaceans, annelids, nematodes, flatworms all are part of the wide complicated food web even during this time where the arthropods and gastropods are the most dominant megafauna. Dracoflies, massive descendants of dragonflies that soar over the never ending water surface, feed on this bountiful feast prepared by nature of this world.
2. Sessile bivalve reef with Shell fish (nektonic clams) and Slams (crawling clams) around. Small clams like pea clams and fingernail clams were seeded in the Jar and diversified along with snails. Most of these became various sessile filter feeding reef builders, but some incorporated algae in their membranes while others became predatory.
   Thanks to the wide open spaces and niches in this world, some of these clams had a chance to evolve into swimming creatures. Shell fish use their ancestral foot as a paddle tail and one of the siphons as a jet propulsion organ, allowing both usual swimming and quick escapes from predators. Other clams became like snails, using their foot to crawl on the sediment and shores.
3. Diversity of Macrotifers on both land and underwater. Rotifers were seeded way before insects, crustaceans, snails, and even worms. This gave them time to diversify into a myriad of bizarre fauna. Some of the rotifers grew into relatively massive sizes over millennia eventually becoming macrotifers. Some of these rotifers developed cilia and spikes into membraned fins or supporting legs. Couple macrotifer species became amphibious/terrestrial as well, resembling small bugs. During the early periods in the Jar, it was their heyday.
4. A Lobstergator hunting a snuffler that came too close. Lobstergators are descendants of small freshwater shrimps that use their front limbs and pointed rostrums to hunt amphibious/terrestrial organisms like how crocodiles do. They are diverse in shapes and sizes. Some have more developed spear-like rostrums while others have thick crushing claws depending on their main prey being either softer snufflers or hardy crustaceans.
5. Glass reefs (diatom colonies) with gastrotrich and tardigrade descendants wandering around. Diatoms-like other algae, protists, and microscopic multicellular organisms-were seeded in the early times of the Jar and had chance to diversify and form huge colonies. Glass reefs are the most popular ones among those. These yellow-green prisms are composed with both alive and dead diatoms. The dead ones loose the pigment and becomes a channel made out of silicate that allows light to enter into the deeper vital regions in the colony. Among these glass castles, diverse macroscopic nektonic gastrotrich and tardigrade descendants swim along.

These organisms in the drawing are from multiple time periods in the Jar. Some creatures originate from former seeding eras while others are descendants of the more late arrived organisms.

 

[Bassoe]

RaksharAlpha was doing a whole speculative evolution project on this.

...and lifeforms from the aquatic jar in a separate post because more than five pieces of media.

...and finally, lifeforms from the marine jar.

Spoiler: lifeforms from the marine (saltwater) jar

Whew! Long time no see everyone! I've been busy for last few months. But now I got some time. So here is a new batch of concept art for a new Jar world made!
These organisms come from a fictional scenario, in which creatures and plants that are common in marine jar ecospheres (such as seahorses, small coleoids, shrimps, sea stars and so on) are seeded in a massive jar environment. These organisms evolved in this surreal ecosystem over millions of years producing multiple bizarre descendants.
In this drawing, you can see diverse descendants of cephalopods such as...

1. A Hypnohunter trying to catch a crab. Hypnohunters are descendants of flamboyant cuttlefish. They use one pair of their arms as legs and another pair of arms as a display structure that confuses the vision of their prey like what broadclub cuttlefish do nowadays. This technique resembles a hypnotic screen catching the mind of someone hence the name Hypnohunter.
2. Kelpsquid luring some fishstars. Kelpsquids are descendants of bobtail squids. Like their ancestors, the kelpsquid also buries itself under sand. However, unlike bobtails that hide under for safety, the kelpsquid hides for ambush. By wiggling their arms like kelps, the kelpsquid lures in fishstars, which are neotenic and nektonic sea star larva, to hunt them all at once.
3. Raider scuttles hunting a buffalo sea snail. Scuttlefish (a.k.a scuttles) are a large group of benthic cuttlefish that walk on the bottom of the ocean with their arms and muscular mantle legs. Raider scuttles use their intelligence and social behavior to take down huge gastropods like buffalo sea snails.
4. Two male Flashorn scuttlefish showing off their tantlers for the mating battle. Flashorns are also one of scuttles. Tantler is the word for the antler-like tentacles that the flashorn scuttlefish posses. By showing off how vibrant and clear the patterns and colors are, flashorns warn the intruder or compete against other males during mating season.
5. A Cuttlepouncer hunting a Tully bobtail next to a school of them. Cuttlepouncers merged the two ancestral mantle legs of the flamboyant cuttlefish into one powerful jumping leg. With this, the cuttlepouncer leaps up in the water and snatches fishstars or bobtails that are swimming above. Tully bobtails are descendants of the bobtail squids which utilize their feeding tentacles like a pincer. They use their wide fins on the side to swim steadfastly.
6. An illusion of Psychidelipuses. Psychidelipus is the descendant of Star sucker pygmy octopus. They altered one pair of their arms into wide fins that allow them to swim without using the jet propulsion. Psychidelipus use a lot of visual tactics like mimicry, color flashing, and cloaking, which makes them look like the embodiment of psychedelic trip. Illusion is a collective term for the psychidelipus like how a group of crows are called as a murder.

These organisms in the drawing are from multiple time periods in the Jar. Some creatures originate from former seeding eras while others are descendants of the more late arrived organisms.


Sorry for the long hiatus again. Have some busy stuff going on with life. However, here is a new post finally since it has been a year since I joined this subreddit. Enjoy!
These organisms come from a fictional scenario, in which creatures and plants that are common in marine jar ecospheres (such as shrimps, hermit crabs, crabs, amphipods and so on) are seeded in a massive jar environment. These organisms evolved in this surreal ecosystem over millions of years producing multiple bizarre descendants.
In this drawing, you can see diverse descendants of organisms such as...

1. Wide diversity of terrestrial crustaceans. Shrimps, crabs, and hermit crabs were highly successful in the jar and many of them colonized the island in the middle. Some resemble coconut crabs or sally lightfoot crabs. Others developed huge sizes that rivals a small pig due to lack of competition.
2. A Snatchshrimp trying to hunt Skyshrimps flying around. Snatchshrimps are ambush predators that dwell in the algal jungles and swamps nearby the shore. They hang onto algal vines and stalks waiting for prey like skyshrimps, squirds, crabbits, or scuttles to show up. If they find one, they launch their body to the bottom and snatch it up in lightning speed. Skyshrimps are shrimps that developed flight by utilizing their lower pereiopods as wings and pleopods as rudders.
3. A Sidestalker pouncing towards a crabbit. Sidestalker is a macropredatory crab that developed a weird asymmetry due to focusing on moving quick sideways. Although it might seem they can’t see their behind (or the other side), they can stretch their eyestalk like a periscope to do so. Sidestalkers are very nimble and can chase down prey easily. Crabbits are omnivorous crabs that focused on moving forward. Now their body shape resembles more of a rabbit than a crab due to this.
4. Cephalorillas probing around at the mudflat in search for food. Cephalorillas are far descendants of the flamboyant cuttlefish. They no longer have the poison of their ancestors and rather rely on their body size and social lifestyle for protection. They are amphibious and can walk on land using their arms and derived mantle-legs. They feed on pretty much any animal smaller than them except for its own kind.
5. An Arachrab hunting a skyshrimp. Arachrabs are another type of terrestrial crabs that are much smaller. They are like the arachnids or scorpions of this world. The use their long arms and legs to catch prey like small land shrimps that resemble insects. Though they don’t build webs, they can form nests out of mucus secretion.
6. Two male Extravagant crabs dancing in front of the females near Peeper shrimps. Extravagant crabs have a clear sexual dimorphism driven by sexual selection. The males developed a large pincer decorated with flashy colors and reflective parts made out of their mouth appendages. By waving their pincers and appendages in a complex manner, they attract the females. Such method also attracts a lot of predators so the males have to be careful. Peeper shrimps are shrimp descendants similar to mole crabs. They are very shy and wary of surrounding situations.
   These organisms in the drawing are from multiple time periods in the Jar. Some creatures originate from former seeding eras while others are descendants of the more late arrived organisms.

 

[Bear Ribs]

RaksharAlpha's listing bugs me because it's 90% predatory megafauna. That's not a successful ecosystem by any means.

The largest jar experiment I'm aware of was Biosphere 2. It was quite lauded and a big deal when it first came out and I was very excited for it, then it promptly vanished from the public eye. Years later I'd learn that it fell apart and turned into a trainwreck almost instantly. Ants and Cockroaches took over all available biomes. Morning Glories spread like Kudzu and ate the rain forest section. They had to secretly cheat their "sealed environment" rules and add oxygen because their plans didn't work. And the scientists inside? Split into factions and started fighting with each other for control.

 

[KilroywasNOTHere]

RaksharAlpha's listing bugs me because it's 90% predatory megafauna. That's not a successful ecosystem by any means.

The largest jar experiment I'm aware of was Biosphere 2. It was quite lauded and a big deal when it first came out and I was very excited for it, then it promptly vanished from the public eye. Years later I'd learn that it fell apart and turned into a trainwreck almost instantly. Ants and Cockroaches took over all available biomes. Morning Glories spread like Kudzu and ate the rain forest section. They had to secretly cheat their "sealed environment" rules and add oxygen because their plans didn't work. And the scientists inside? Split into factions and started fighting with each other for control.

So it seems to work on a small scale as we see in the YouTube video but larger scales are less certain?

 

[Bear Ribs]

So it seems to work on a small scale as we see in the YouTube video but larger scales are less certain?

Eh, typically with these kinds of setups bigger ones are more stable and successful than smaller. The one in the YouTube video isn't an actual sealed system and not actually very stable., you'll notice he's constantly introducing new species and adding food to keep it going, and I don't think it's airtight.

The oldest known sealed system I know of is a bottle garden that went 53 years without being opened. But it doesn't have those tons of animals in it, just spiderwort.

World's Oldest Terrarium / Sealed Bottle Ecosystem by David Latimer

Checkout one of the oldest terrarium gardens in the world! Read the story of David Latimer's sealed bottle ecosystem from the 1960's.

biologicperformance.com

The one in the YouTube Video would have to be far vaster to have that much animal life and still be self-sustaining. That's not to pooh-pooh it because it's a very cool piece and the dude deserves some nice props for maintaining such a terrarium. Just that it's a whole different class from actual bottle gardens.