Sand seas

Certain biomes of Welt are known as sand seas and sabuletic oceans, biospheres where specially adapted sabuletic (sand dwelling) organisms live on top of and inside the sands, much like marine organisms in an ocean. 
== Life underneath the sands ==
The extent of life still undiscovered in deserts is unknown, much like real world oceans. Sabuletic oceans are rich in various animals who have adapted to their environment. 
=== Airflow ===
The most common interrogation of how these animals survive without air. This effect is achieved by various methods, the most common being air pockets deep underneath the sands releasing their contents periodically into the desert, fluidizing and giving the sand the properties of water. This property is extremely dangerous as when the air flow ceases, the sand becomes stationary and organisms can end up buried within, although some organisms can still dig up to the surface or have adapted to remain in stasis until the airflow resumes.
=== Sand swimming ===
As it is well known by the travelers who wish to cross the deserts of welt, not all creatures are equal when it comes to desert travel. Certain animals have adapted a unique ability to travel across the sands. As the growling seal, Sand whales and groupers, Saburasaurus, Borids and certain Lizardanths prove, sand swimming is not a new physical feat in the Hyrulean animal kingdom. 
One can conjecture that since these are all air breathing animals, analogous to sea creatures, some animals of the desert swim under the sands and do not need to return to the surface to breathe. Sabuletic mammals show a natural ability to swim through the sand, along with lumbricida and all of these animals have been shown to have the ability to dive into the sand. 
The fact that some animals evolved the ability to swim in the sand of the deserts proves that life existing underneath the surface of the sand and that this biome has the necessary resources for creatures to be able to live independently of the surface. 
=== Sound in the desert biosphere ===
In sabuletic oceans, sound seems to carry great significance for hunter/prey relations. Animals that feed under the sand seem to be attuned to using sound as a hunting tool and to avoid predators. This supposes a form of echolocation or finely tuned hearing used by these creatures. The usage of these tactics supposes that there are other life forms these creatures must avoid while in the desert. 
=== Territorialism, feeding and nesting ===
The endemic creatures to sand seas seem to correspond to certain ecological niches. 
The fact that certain animals display territorial behaviors towards certain areas of the desert could prove that these areas have strategic value either for feeding or for nesting. This information is important for determining that certain areas are attractive enough that predators will defend them as their hunting grounds (sand grouper, necessary giant sand worm) or as nesting grounds (Borids) despite having no particular surface level resources that could warrant such behaviors. Other creatures that are not as territorial, such as the growling seal and the desert lizardanth still spend time under the sand which could mean that some ressource they require is found under the sands, in their respective cases prey or plant matter essential for their diet. 
This goes to show that there is in reality a larger undiscovered biosphere under the surface sands of desert waiting to be discovered. The animals endemic to the biome have evolved a new method of locomotion designed specifically for a sandy environment, acquired a heightened sensibility to sounds and vibration for hunting and developed territorial behaviors to specific areas of the desert. These different elements indicate a clear possibility that there is life underneath the sands, still waiting to be discovered.
== Sabuletic wildlife ==
Deserts are areas home to some of the more interesting endemic creatures of Welt, the most famous of which are cetasabulei (sand whales) growling seals and saburasaurus. 
=== Cetasabulei ===
Sand whales display swimming capacities analogous to marine mammals, specifically whales. Their ability to breach and dive in and out of the sand could mean that they dive into the sands to feed, and come to the surface to breathe. 
=== Growling Seals ===
Main article: Growling Seals
Growling seals are mammals endemic to deserts that can swim in sand as if it were water. They are used as transportation in the desert sands. These creatures are sensitive to sound and quick to flee approaching creatures but can be tamed for desert transportation. 
They are known for their musical growls which resemble heavy metal singing. Some bands incorporate these animals as singers for their music.
Display swimming capacities analogous to marine mammals, specifically seals. Their ability to breach and dive in and out of the sand could mean that they dive into the sands to feed, and come to the surface to breathe. 
Growling Seals are very sensitive to sound and are adept at avoiding sand grouper territory. Similarly to grouper hunters, anyone wishing to use growling seals as personal transportation know that the creatures must be approached quietly, otherwise they will attempt to flee the perceived danger. This relation to sound could suggest that these creatures rely on sound rather than sight or smell when swimming in the sand. These hair trigger reactions to loud sounds suggest that sudden sounds are a danger while under the sand. This supposition could suggest fast predators they must deal with under the sand. These predators are probably sand groupers or borids but also perhaps other, still unknown creatures. The fact that the seals are so skittish despite the knowledge that sand groupers are territorial hints at the possibility of other, non territorial predators under the sands.
Growling seals, display no territorial leanings. 
In terms of territorialism, growling seals are interesting as they do not seem to be territorial at all compared to other desert dwellers. This is possibly due to their diet of desert fruit (many are native to the region and can grow in the sand) which are found in sufficient quantities all over the desert to forgo the need for growling seals to defend fruit rich areas of the desert. Despite growling seals having only been seen eating desert fruits and vegetables, this does not rule out supplementing their diet with creatures found under the sands. 
=== Saburasaurus ===
Main article: Saburasaurus
Saburasaurus are enormous marine dinosaurs, these creatures breach the surface to feed similarly to real world cetaceans such as killer whales. Dissection of these massive animals reveals that they aren’t picky eaters, as they will give chase to any prey that walks the sands and often swallow debris and inorganic matter has been found among their spoils. This behavior led to these creatures being hunted for the contents of their stomachs.
For example, the saburasaurus’s stomach contents point to it being a bottom feeder of sorts for the desert. 
these creatures due to their sizes require plenty of resources to keep alive and would need to inhabit the most resource rich areas they can find because of it. 
Conversely, saburasaurus are thought to be bottom feeders given their heteroclite stomach contents, but given their active ambush predator tactics in the wild this is questionable. Saburasaurus are naturally curious about surface creatures they don’t recognize, similarly to how sharks will bite but not eat swimmers out of curiosity, and will attack whatever they see encroaching on their territory. 
=== Bohemian Eurypterid ===
Main article: Bohemian Eurypterid
Bohemian Eurypterids, or borids are colossal arachnids resembling scorpions that dwell in deserts. These creatures are noted for having an extended 1000 year infancy period (during which they are known as arana) during which they inhabit the "shores" at the edges of deserts.
Borids have palmed hind legs designed for swimming in desert environments and use their claws to immobilize prey before stinging them with their tails.
Borids are unique in terms of desert transportation. As research shows they are ill equipped to defend themselves against being unearthed from the sands. This could be interpreted as the fact that this species doesn’t usually come out of the sands once it reaches adulthood. It also posits that there could be other creatures that walk on the bottom of the desert sands, rather than swim. 
Borids seem to use sound to hunt as well, as when hunting the arachnid will walk underneath the surface of the sand to position itself underneath its prey and attack it with its pincers and stinger. 
Borids seem to keep to the shallow sands on the borders of deserts and within ruins. 
The study of Borids shows that these creatures are territorial for reproductive reasons. 
Borids, are commonly found in shallow stretches of sand. Borids have long infantile periods of before maturing into their colossal adult form. Given their vulnerability during this period and tendency to remain in swarms of young it can be assumed that they remain close to where they are laid as eggs. They are unable or unwilling to swim far from their nest it stands to reason they would remain in the shallower parts of the sand seas. The fact that adult specimens of Borid can be found in sand filled shipyards and mining facilities and that their young can be found in similarly sand filled areas such as harbors and sunken ships seems to confirm this theory. However, given the large numbers of juvenile and low numbers of adult Borids observed, it can be assumed that adults spend their lives roaming the sand sea floor, only returning to the shallows to give birth to their young. 
Based on combat data, Borids have few defenses against being unearthed, hinting that these are deep diving animals but stay near the surface when birthing young. This is coherent with its growth stages, a larval borid would stay near “safe shallows” in the desert in its youth to avoid predators in the deeper sands. 
=== Sand groupers ===
Main article: Sand Groupers
Sand groupers are large territorial sabuletic fish found in sand seas.
=== Desert Lizardanths ===
Desert lizardanths are very different from their mainland cousins and are considered creatures as they remain in the desert without seeking to establish societies or relations. It is thought that desert lizardanths, or sabulizards are entirely separate from the rest of the species.
Desert lizardanths have been observed to burrow and move through the sand to hunt prey. Their reliance on ambush tactics posits a general wariness of making noise, possibly because of the threat of sand groupers, or other predators in the sand. Despite this, they are considerably more relaxed in their behavior in the desert. This is perhaps because they are not preyed upon by other desert predators (as demonstrated by the fact that groupers do not hunt them or other surface endemic creatures) or perhaps their camouflage also works while under the sand.
The adaptation of lizardanth to the desert life could also prove that there are sufficient resources in the desert sands for them to feed themselves and thrive. The lizardanth capacity for adaptability having been established, it is important to note one specificity of the lizardanth as a whole. The lizardanth are noted ambush predators and voracious carnivores, as such their presence in the desert shows that there is most likely abundant prey suitable to their diet under the sands. This adaptation to desert life could also mean that the lizardanth were there when the sea transitioned into a sand sea. 
==== Sand swimming ====
Lizardanths display a similar need to return to the surface at some point when in the search for food. The existence of so many adaptations of lizardanths (10 known subspecies at the time of writing) show the extreme adaptability of the species to a wide variety of biomes. In the case of deserts, perhaps the lizardanths were there when the sea became the sand sea and simply adapted to the desert conditions. 
=== Necesse magnum harenae vermis ===
The Necesse magnum harenae vermis or necessary giant sand worm, is a lumbricida of truly enormous size that filter feeds in deserts.
Finally, the necessary sand worm is capable of sand swimming and flight.
Category:Biomes
Category:Deserts
Category:Sand seas
Category:Unfinished articles
Category:Pages with red links
Category:Sabuletic Organisms