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In the shallow waters of an ocean full of life, a unique environment has formed, one similar in many ways to the reefs of earth. Aside from the polar regions the tropikelt reefs of the equator make up the most productive regions of Aether, with some of the highest speciation rates. While the rest of Aether's oceans are in no way barren, the tropikelt reefs might make them seem so in comparison. Squims feed readily on a variety of food sources, ranging from pliaceps larvae to xelp spores, and of course, other squims. Kelts come in many distinct forms, some kelts have anthoceps so small they blanket their symbiont so densely that no single individual symbiont can be made out, others have larger anthoceps that more closely resemble their ancestors. While the tropikelt reefs may seem to describe a paradise, this couldn't be farther from the truth.
Tropikelt Verms
Tropikelt Verms
In a tropical kelt reef a squat-bodied lapis squim is caught unawares by a fiery tropikelt verm.
Verms are squims that have become full carnivores preying primarily on squims of all shapes and sizes. Most verms are poor swimmers and could easily be out swam by their prey, their lateral fins have completely reduced giving them a much narrower frame more suited to navigating between the tight spaces that are so common to the reefs they inhabit, in some species even the pectoral fins are reduced. Instead of chasing their prey through pursuit, verms adopt a different strategy, they lie in wait motionless just peaking out of whatever cave or crevasse they call home. Their flamboyant colors make it impossible for their prey to spot them amongst the colorful kelts, lying in ambush all it takes is one unsuspecting squim to get just a little bit too close before they risk a strike. These adaptations have made the verm a very successful predator however they have come at a cost; For all squims respiration is passive, their gill rings support a network of highly vascularized tissue that facilitates the gas transfer necessary for life, this functions in tandem with the constant undulation of their lateral fins to create a current of water to rush into their gills. Because the verm doesn't have lateral fins it needed an alternative solution to generate a flow of water for its gills, thus it has evolved a method of active respiration in which a flexible extension of its gill rings is contracted and relaxed to pump water in and out of its gills, allowing it to lie motionless without suffocating. Similar to certain other squims, the kelt has independently evolved a reduction in its dorsal jaw, an adaptation to help it better grip its prey when approaching from below, this is a feature that is common for predatory squims, the dorsal jaw typically doesn't interfere with consuming smaller prey thus making it less common the larger the squim is.
The closely packed population conditions found in the tropics has had an effect on its inhabitants, unlike the less productive environments of the past, where squims reproduced via broadcast spawning, squims now have the opportunity to seek out mates and live in schools without fear of competing too heavily for resources. Sexual selection has its own influence on evolution as well and can even cause adaptations that are seemingly counterintuitive to survival
A mature outskirt verm sports its impressive iridescent flourish. A marbled broke beak perishes.
The outskirt verm lives just on the edge of reefs where colorful kelts are less common, and as a result, has adapted to lurking in the shadows with a subdued color scheme to better hide from view. However, after maturity at times of extreme bounty, a patch of skin gains an iridescent scheme to display its prowess as a mate. This display is certainly a handicap to verm as its hunting is now more difficult being easier for prey to spot it, and thus its ability to survive even with this handicap shows how fit is as a mate. Individuals with brighter iridescence are seen as more attractive, overtime this can lead to an exaggeration of these characteristics. For the outskirt verm it is very fortunate that its display is temporary, and that its color quickly fades as conditions worsen, allowing this predator to return to the shadows to live another day.
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