Ballooner (Cephalobulla plokamistoma)

The Ballooner is a descendant of the group in which the Teyukai belongs. It adapted to spend more and more time in the waters of periodically flooded forests, until it became permantly aquatic and moved to rivers, streams, lakes and coasts.

The Ballooner’s bodyis mostly contained within a translucent membrane where it stores oxygen. Like a diving spider, it rises to the surface every few hours to swallow air and goes back down to feed. The oxygen is used both for respiration and buoyancy an can be released at will.



The Ballooner’s dorsal and ventral scutes offer some protection against predators, especially when the body is deflated and it rests at the surface. They also offer attachment support for internal fibers that control the expansion and deflation of the oxygen sac.



Its mouth is surrounded by sensitive tendrils derived from its ancestor’s oral manipulators. They can help find and trap prey that’s hiding in the substrate, as well as filtering plankton from the currents. The animal produces a brief vaccuum by opening its mouth and then grasps anything that gets too close.



Ballooners still rely mostly on vision for hunting. With big eyes, they can see their tiny prey in murky waters and identify predators both above and below the surface.



—————————————————————————————————–

This is the fifth organism out of six that I created for a very cool ongoing project created by Tyler Rhodes! It’s based around teaching evolution to kids in a very creative way, and I was one of the artists tasked with bringing some children doodles to life. Stay tuned for the others throughout this week! My Patreons got to see these creatures before anyone else! If you enjoy my work and would like to see sketches, step-by-step process, exclusive content and even earn a print or commission, consider supporting me on Patreon!