Questions tagged [creature-design]
For questions regarding the viability of a life-form design. These questions should focus on biologically plausible creatures.
1,348
questions
11
votes
3answers
442 views
Mutually beneficial digestive system symbiotes
On an Earth-like planet, an intelligent species evolved in symbiosis with another species that lives in their digestive system and act as the microbial gut flora in humans do. What implementations of ...
6
votes
6answers
344 views
In what sort of environment might a species with biological wheels evolve, and what would they look like?
So for a thought experiment I came up with the idea of a species that uses wheels for locomotion, sort of inspired by a species shown in His Dark Materials. Under what circumstances would such a ...
29
votes
8answers
2k views
Plausibility of Floating Whales
Ignoring the plausibility of their evolution and sources of food, could a whale-like creature which internally consists largely of hydrogen bladders/gasbags realistically stay aloft?
If these ...
4
votes
1answer
114 views
Could an entirely (or mostly) hydraulic muscular system work in terrestrial vertebrates?
In Invertebrates, Muscular Hydrostat, which is a form of biological hydraulic, is used for locomotion. On Earth, (as far as I'm aware) no system exists where hydraulics perform in conjunction with a ...
10
votes
5answers
751 views
Anatomically Correct Mesopelagic Aves
Recently I had a vision of a colossal underwater bird-like figure.
I would describe it as follows:
Roughly the wingspan of the length of a blue whale
Snow-white
Typical shape and feathering of a ...
9
votes
2answers
161 views
Anatomy of a walking octopoid
I have some alien creatures which are essentially land-going octopoids somewhat larger than humans. Tentacles not being a good form of propulsion on land, they have rudimentary 'legs' with one bone ...
4
votes
2answers
1k views
How much force would your fist need to strike with to punch through a human body?
Okay so, this is kind of a disgusting question... sorry about that in advance, guys. Say you are super strong, super fast, and super durable. There is a not so strong, fast, or durable normal human ...
5
votes
2answers
189 views
Creating a scientifically semi-valid super-soldier, addendum: Metabolism
A while back Demigan had a running series of posts about various aspects biological enhancement for the purpose of designing super-soldiers with an element of (pseudo) science behind them.
You can ...
12
votes
5answers
3k views
Plausibility of squid whales
I am considering the possibility of having massive cephalopods evolving on my world and having them fill the niche of whales.
I've heard about how whales have evolved to increase in size for the ...
20
votes
5answers
13k views
Humanoids with digitigrade legs?
I've designed an alien race of bipedal humanoids with digitigrade legs.
This race's advanced scientific progress means that they use traditionally human-associated technology, or similar (such as ...
4
votes
2answers
366 views
Anatomically Correct Pikachu
We all know Pikachu, fuzzy, small rodent, with the ability to discharge electrical energy as an attack. But could Pikachu ever evolve in our world, and how would it do so?
What's required:
Rodent-...
12
votes
3answers
321 views
Would biological hydraulics be worth evolving in tetrapods?
I am working on an extraterrestrial class of tetrapod-like organisms. To give them an evolutionary advantage, I am considering biological hydraulics to supplement the muscles in the hind legs. ...
2
votes
2answers
191 views
How would a creature fly without wings? [duplicate]
I am sorry if this is not the right place to ask, but I have tried to ask this question everywhere and the only answer I’ve gotten are examples of animals like the flying squirrel and such, which does ...
2
votes
3answers
169 views
Other Mouthparts For Aliens?
What other kind of mouthparts might an alien (intelligent or non-intelligent) have besides the typical jaw with teeth or mandibles?
To avoid being too broad a subject, let's assume the aliens need to ...
22
votes
10answers
1k views
Fixed-Wing Biological Flying Creatures?
How plausible are naturally-evolved, biological, fixed-wing flying creatures? Could such a creature plausibly evolve in Earth-like conditions? If so, what method would it be most likely to use for ...
2
votes
0answers
64 views
how would the osmoregulatory and excretory systems would be for a flying human [closed]
How would the excretory and osmoregulatory systems be for a flying human?
9
votes
6answers
450 views
Radiation shielding in the blood?
I wanted a creature that produces something in its blood to protect itself from SEP (solar energetic particles) and GCR (galactic cosmic rays). The skin of the creature is normally sufficient ...
7
votes
4answers
972 views
Could a creature like the brethren moons exist in reality?
I recently came across a game called dead space and a certain main antagonist species inside of the game. In this game you play as the main character who is trying to protect humanity from sentient ...
10
votes
4answers
709 views
What is the plausibility of a sentient starfish-like creature?
You all probably know what a starfish is. When a starfish is ripped in half, if each half has part of the central disk, then it can regrow into two starfish. Worms can do something similar, if they ...
8
votes
4answers
215 views
Retractable Tusks?
Is there a way to make retractable tusks anatomically plausible in a creature design without relying on an articulated bone structure? Basically, relying fully on musculature instead of articulation ...
23
votes
3answers
4k views
What sort of beak would a bone marrow eating bird have?
My world is very earthlike and I am looking to create a bird that primarily eats bone marrow. I wanted my bird to crack the bones of the carcasses to eat the marrow inside. What would the ideal beak ...
6
votes
2answers
255 views
What is the science of fairy flight?
Assume these homo super-dwarf aka fairy and homo sapiens come from a common ancestor, and somehow they evolved a pair of wings and can do vertical takeoff.
The average adult is approximately the ...
23
votes
7answers
4k views
Physical correctness of trolls with high regeneration ability
In my fantasy world there's the race of trolls, vastly inspired by the ones one encounters in Baldur's Gate 2 (see here).
Millennia ago, they've been driven underground by orcs and elves, as well as ...
2
votes
1answer
183 views
Anatomically correct Triceraton
The Triceratons are a imperialistic race of, well, space triceratops' from TMNT (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles). From what I can gather they breathe nitrogen and judging by their build come from a high ...
0
votes
2answers
260 views
Can my Alien species be possible with real science?
They are blue to gray skinned with four eyes, two of which can see in infrared, three fingers and toes on each appendage, and reptilian-like ears (eardrums are external), as well as a hair color range ...
8
votes
6answers
569 views
How to design an organic heat-shield?
When they started dropping from the skies.. or no, they landed. They were so similar to us, yet so different. Like nothing we would've ever designed or created - but so much like everything
...
13
votes
2answers
609 views
Life without Nitrogen
On Earth life has six fundamental building blocks for life with them being Hydrogen, Carbon, Nitrogen, Oxygen, Phosphorus, and Sulfur. (1) Those elements of help make up more complex life through ...
0
votes
2answers
151 views
What armor for my giant slug species to do battle at sea?
Set in the medieval period around 1400AD, the atlantean set flipper on the land of the giant slug and destroyed many acres of crops, this provocative action angered the giant slugs. These giant slugs ...
1
vote
2answers
164 views
Are 4 arms better than 2 underground? [closed]
Are creatures with 4 arms viable underground?
Creatures have to be able to climb and eventually dig!
Those creatures are not intelligent.
They hunt and feed on dwarfs.
They were nearly extinct (100 ...
1
vote
4answers
3k views
How could a human be corrupted into a demon?
In many stories, the transformation of human to demon has been interesting to think about. This of course extends to mythology: In multiple folklore, it's said that Lilith became a demon of her own ...
10
votes
4answers
258 views
How could dragons produce the energy needed to sustain themselves from gold
I'm currently contemplating ways to make dragons have a sustainable energy source in a medieval world, while still acting like the traditional soaring, adventurer grabbing, gold hoarding dragons (not ...
12
votes
3answers
350 views
Symbiotic Assassin Vines
I have an idea for an encounter in my world that goes like this...
A weary group of adventurers are trekking through a great ancient forest. This forest is avoided by most due to strange tales of ...
7
votes
2answers
244 views
What circumstances would ensure that hybrid species of frankencats are produced in the wild naturally?
I am a mad scientist with an intelligence matching Albert Einstein and Steven Hawking, and plan to create a new species of animal. After watching Napeoleon Dynanite, widely considered by critics to be ...
7
votes
4answers
867 views
What kind of places would goblins live in a fantasy setting with strong states? [closed]
So I got a fantasy setting that left the Medieval era and entered the Renaissance with strong states that can maintain both order and infrastructure across their territories. While there are 'wild ...
30
votes
13answers
6k views
Plausible reason for gold-digging ant
Medieval bestiaries describe a creature, a type of desert-dwelling ant that digs for gold. It was also said to be the size of a fox, but I'll ignore that in this question.
Why would ants unearth ...
6
votes
3answers
298 views
How do marine dragons evolve flight without any feathers and no hollow bones?
These dragons spend most of their lives in the ocean, however during the mating season they will migrate inland and gather together on a mountain top. Throughout the journey they will cease feeding ...
1
vote
1answer
86 views
Genetically engineered Moray Eel?
Is it conceivable to genetically engineer a moray eel large enough to hunt and eat humans in its cave like habitat?
It needs to have:
armored skin that can withstand gunfire
good all around swimming ...
3
votes
1answer
253 views
Is this humanoid dragon realistic the way I’ve imagined it?
In this world I’m dabbling with, the dominant species is a race of six limbed humanoid with two wings on its back slightly below the shoulder blades. They are very slender (“BMI” is between 17 & ...
7
votes
2answers
243 views
Brain Tick, how could it take over a host's brain?
There was once 12 kingdoms in the ancient days until the kingdom of Eo was devoured by the very forests it called home. The people of Eo have been turned into beasts wandering the woods and preying ...
35
votes
4answers
8k views
How to make a realistic 'giant'
Imagine a race of what we would call 'giants', each of them possibly around 8 to 10 feet (2.40-3.00 meters) tall. What differences would they need compared to us regular humans in order to function? I ...
3
votes
3answers
236 views
What weapons would nanomachines use? [closed]
So, the strongest of my current characters is a happy little cloud, that's composed of nanomachines (well, not exactly nano, it's well in the micro prefix, but individual parts obviously require ...
5
votes
1answer
181 views
How do humans with electric organs prevent self-electrocution?
In my world, a small population on an isolated island were bitten by radioactive electric eels while fishing. I read that the eels can send out carefully timed signals through their nervous systems ...
4
votes
0answers
883 views
Anatomically Correct Centaur [duplicate]
I am honestly surprised no one's done this one yet.
The centaur is a creature from Greek myth with the head, arms, and torso of a human replacing the neck and head of a horse.
Standard Anatomically ...
14
votes
1answer
3k views
Anatomically Correct: 4-legged sapient creatures (“centaurs” etc.)
This is a part of the Anatomically Correct series.
If a magic-free fantasy/SF world were to have naturally evolved hexapods as humanoid as possible, living among bipedal humanoids, how would they ...
3
votes
2answers
190 views
How strong is a centaur's upper half?
I know I won't be able to get a solid answer and I could always just change this detail depending on the setting etc., but in a realistic scenario, I have no idea if they'd be significantly stronger ...
3
votes
2answers
237 views
Draconic Centaurs
And you thought I was finally done with centaur questions.
I have a centaur race called the Draconitaurs. They're essentially centaurs, but with western dragons instead of horses.
The dragon tropes ...
5
votes
2answers
280 views
Building structures underwater: What could a giant crab do?
Okay, so I was working on making a sapient creature that lives underwater ended up with what was basically a two-hundred pound crab.
They have human level language skills, and I decided to justify ...
1
vote
2answers
142 views
Gnolls and their cooperative abilities [closed]
Gnolls are aggressive hyena like humanoids, they aren't very fun to have around for the fact that they fight for really anything and have almost no attentions span. Actually Gnolls are really ...
12
votes
1answer
3k views
Centaur anatomy help
If a centaur were to have one set of organs, how would they be placed and what sizes would they be?
What limits would there be on the centaur's body?
10
votes
7answers
5k views
Could a humanoid species exist with vastly different heights?
Many mythological humans vary in depictions. Let's use Trolls from Scandinavia as an example. Some are said to be giants compared to humans (I'd imagine twice the height), and some, like Danish Trolls,...
