Macropanoplus transitus

Background  Feel free to use or alter any of this information to better fit the narrative of Wallace II.  If you’d like to credit me for any of it, please refer to me as James D.  For my design, I wanted to create a creature that was simultaneously highly derived and physiologically conservative.  I adapted the color scheme and general shape of the original panoplovitan to meet this end.  Its genus is self-explanatory: it’s a panoplovitan as large as a Terrestrial blue whale.  The species name is a reference to the creature’s migratory patterns, crossing the sea ringed by islands and the Eastern continent.

Description  The most derived feature of Macropanoplus is its highly specialized proboscises.  Among adults, the second and third “filamented” proboscises grow to about 5 meters in length, while the central “feeding” proboscis can grow as long as 7 meters; although, the feeding proboscis can be retracted under the main bony plate when not in use.  As in Terrestrial dinosaurs, the filaments that originally developed in early panoplovitans evolved branching structures, improving their ability to capture food through increased surface area.  Befitting the creature’s size, Macropanoplus filaments grow to about 2 meters long.  While the “feathers” still grow around the entire circumference of the filamented proboscises, as in their ancient ancestors, they tend to wrap around the proboscis due to their length, forming a matted, net-like structure behind and slightly below each proboscis.  To support the weight and drag of these nets, the filamented proboscises are lined by a series of internal plates, leaving the proboscises quite rigid and mostly fixed in position.  Extending from the tip of the two filamented proboscises is a single spike.  A series of spikes also wrap around each of these proboscises for added protection against predators.  The central, feeding proboscis is supported by ring-shaped bones.  Two prehensile finger-like projections flank the “mouth” at the end of the proboscis.  Macropanoplus has evolved a more varied diet, consuming just about anything a foot or smaller in length, essentially anything that can fit in its mouth opening.  It has been observed that Macropanoplus will gingerly pick out and release any larger animals that become caught in their nets; however, this apparent gentleness is done more so out of protection for the fragile fibers than the freed life form.   Atop the creature are a series of overlapping display plates.  By clapping and snapping these plates against each other, Macropanoplus create pressure waves which can be detected by hollow bone structures ringing the creature’s eyes.  This feature is used to communicate over long distances.  Working towards the tail, Macropanoplus has oxygen exchange ports on its flanks.  As the creature (in its adult form) is no longer armored on its underside, these ports grow directly in its scaly skin.  Externally, there is no sexual dimorphism; however, female Macropanoplus have internal egg chambers—linked to their “cloacas”—where fertilized eggs are stored until they hatch and are birthed “live,” similar to shark reproduction.  To fertilize the eggs, males have developed a penis-like organ that extends from the cloaca to interface with the females and deposit genetic material.  The final notable feature is a series of external bone rings which become larger and farther apart towards the end of the tail.  These serve primarily as muscle

attachment points, indicating the majority of the tail’s power comes from its base.  The final four rings also include dorsal and ventral spikes for increased protection, which also serve a display function.  As the creature swims, its tail makes large sweeping motions.  Far from agile, the creature’s “steering” is done by twisting its bony covering to act as a rudder.  Macropanoplus also has limited mobility at the base of the filamented proboscises, which can be used to further direct the creature.   Life Cycle  Young Macropanoplus are actually born with a second bone plate covering their undersides, forming a sort of bone-creature sandwich.  In this way, they more closely resemble ancestral panoplovitans.  As younglings, they take shelter in their mother’s filament nets.  There they can feed off their mother’s filaments until their own fibers have grown large enough to fully support the young creature.  Macropanoplus live in “pods,” containing a roughly equal mix of males and females.  Although the youngling’s biological father might live in close proximity to the mother, he shows no immediate interest in his offspring.  Communal duties, such as protection, are shared equally among all members of the pod, regardless of direct genetic relationships; however, creatures which are perceived as sick, genetically inferior, or otherwise undesirable can be ejected from the group.  (Likewise, errant Macropanoplus can be accepted into a pod.). Much like Terrestrial whales and elephants, cultural knowledge is passed on from adults to offspring.  Such knowledge includes how to properly preen filament nets using the fingers on the feeding proboscis; how to interact with other members of the species, such as courtship or intraspecific competition; and the yearly migrational paths of the species.  Upon reaching subadult status, the lower plate sheds from the body, creating more room for the rapidly growing creature.  During this stage, display structures and defensive spikes also become more prominent.  In time for the wet season on the Eastern continent, the Macropanoplus pods travel to the edge of the sea near the mouth of the continent’s main river system.  Thanks to increased nutrient flow spilling forth from the flooding river, the Macropanoplus are particularly well fed.  During this time, pods come into contact with each other, members are potentially swapped, and breeding occurs.  However, the abundance of prey attracts predators.  After a few weeks of the aforementioned activities, there is no need for further risk, so the Macropanoplus depart back across the sea to the chain of islands opposite the continent.  Their ability to communicate over long distances is particularly useful as pods migrate, allowing groups to indicate food supplies in the rather barren open waters.  The rest of the year is spent in the relative shelter provided by the islands.  Food exchange between the ocean and the sea feeds the creatures well.  Protected from storms, hatchlings are birthed and raised here until it is time for the pod to travel back to the continental side of the sea.  Macropanoplus’ primary defense against predation is its size, with particularly vulnerable areas protected by spikes and bony armor.  That said, the young are especially prime targets for predators, despite their additional armor.  Of the 5 to 6 hatchlings produced by a mother per breeding season, it is not uncommon that only 1 or 2 survive into adulthood, if any at all.  However, once an adult has reached the average fully grown size of around 30 meters, they are nearly-unchallenged, gentle kings of the Eastern continental sea.