Thalassolania, also mainly known as Sea serpents is a group within the order Dracomorpha that take a very different evolutionary path from the other dracomorphs. They had taken to aquatic lifestyle, leaving land behind to their dragon and wyvern relatives, completely abandoning their fire expelling ability and radiates into many forms and lineage that inhabit different aquatic ecosystem, from river to coast, to open sea.



Sea serpents are characterized by their long, usually serpentine body. The group is shown to have adaptation for aquatic lifestyle such as raised nostrils, streamline body and short limps that becomes fin-liked in shape. They also completely lack the ability to expel fire, which is an ancestral trait to all dracomorphs and all that remains in Thalassolanians is vestigial gas crop that is no longer functional. However, they also develop unique feature not being found in any other dracomorphs, such as whisker-liked sensory organ called "feelers" and a few species are even known to develop venomous bite.



Despite their common name, Thalassolanians are not restricted to marine ecosystem. Some are also found in freshwater habitat as well. A few lineages even become secondarily terrestrial, however they still remains the aquatic body type of their ancestors. Thalassolanians mostly inhabit equatorial region, with a few lineages manage to spread into temperate zone. Diversify in many types of habitats, varies in size and niches, here are the examples of Thalassolanians' species.



Giant Lindworm (Arenasaurus giganteus)



Lindworms are a very basal and unique Thalassolanian group known. They are secondarily terrestrial, evolved from aquatic or semi-aquatic ancestor that returned to live on land. Lindworms are fossorial and all species, which are included in a single genus Arenasaurus, are well adapted to life underground. Their streamline body shape once used for swimming now allows them to move easily through burrow underground. Their head is long and covered in tough skin, assisting in digging through the ground and their eyes are usually small and play little part in navigation, leaving most work to other sense such as smell and touch. Their front feet are large and flat, faintly resembled appendages of aquatic animals, however they now bear 4 large claws that are used to dig and plow through soil. The numbers of visible fingers of lindworms isn't shared on any other lineages of Thalassolanians and may indicate that they split from other group long before the lineages of advance aquatic forms with flippers showed up. The hind limps become vestigial, remain only as small stub at each side of their hips. The tail is long and round in diameter, ordinary to many fossorial squamates.



However, the most prominent trait found specifically in Lindworms of all Thalassolanian is venom. They are the only known Dracomorph that possess venom of their own. The venom gland locates at the front end of their lower jaw. The venom worked in similar manner to their distinct relative like gila monster and monitor lizards, with the venom oozing from the gland to mix with saliva and delivered through bite wound rather than injecting with hollow fangs as in snakes. The severity of venom differs between each species, from mild venom used mainly against invertebrates of smaller species to the highly lethal one of the bigger species.



The biggest species of Lindworm is the Giant Lindworm from Western Eurasia. It dwelled mainly in the sandy plain and dunes of the desert but can also be found in the oasis near water holes. Growing up to 6 metres long, this species of Lindworms is a ferocious predator. It mainly hunt small animals such as rodents, birds and lizards. Its sharp, shovel-liked snout is used to dig into the loose sand and "swim" through it, making it also known as the biggest sand swimming animals. Travelling long distance in search of prey in their unforgiving habitat, the Lindworm set up an ambush by burrowing itself into the sand, leaving only the top of its head and its nostrils to reach out of the sand. As a potential prey passes by, it would lunge from its station and grab a hold on the prey with its long jaws, which is notched at the tip of its upper jaws, helping in gripping on struggling prey. The venom of Giant Lindworm is the most potent of all Lindworms species. It's comprised with cytotoxin that is as potent as those of puff adder in similar quantities. Unlike vipers, Giant Lindworm doesn't release and track prey down after the bite due to its poor venom delivering system, instead it firmly takes a grip on the prey and continuously snapping its jaws together to release more venom into the prey. Its tough skin on the head helps protecting it from retaliation while it is holding on to the prey. As the prey dies from internal bleeding and organ failure, the Lindworm pull its food under the sand to be torn up and eaten. Surprisingly, Giant Lindworm is capable of tearing and eating carcass under loose sand and is one of a few vetebrate known to be able to do so. It could consume large amount of sand along with its food which then would passed on along with its feces.



The Giant Lindworm is considered dangerous to people and livestock, as they sometimes mistake them as prey, leading to accidental bite and envenomation, which could be lethal for smaller target like children. Adult human and other large animals are usually not as at risk but could still be left gravely injured from the venom. However, they aren't very common and usually prefer area devoid of human's settlement, thus making them less of a threat comparing to other Dracomorphs like dragons.



Common Kelpie (Kelpia hippocampos)



Kelpie is a group of small to medium size sea serpent that inhabit freshwater and brackish water throughout Eurasia. They are believed to be the most basal lineage of all aquatic Thalassolanian and possess features that have been lost in the marine lineage, such as limps that can move independently from eachother, enabling them to crawl on land in the same manner of traditional squamate, while marine Thalassolanians have to move each set of limps together, hurling themselves forward as in large sea turtles. Kelpies' body are also covered in large, rough scales similar to those of their lizard ancestor, meanwhile scales are decreased in size and much smoother in the marine lineages.



Contrary to most Thalassolanians, kelpies are found mostly in temperate area with a few species living in hot tropical climate. Kelpies' habitats are consisted of large wetland, swamp, bog and river. Some species may occasionally venture into the coastal area, but still predominantly prefer freshwater habitat. They are generally opportunistic predator, preying on wide varieties of prey.



Common Kelpie is the most commonly found species and also has the widest range of any kelpies. It's a large species, capable of reaching up to 4 metres, second in size to its much rarer, close relative, the Coastal Kelpie (Kelpia marinus). However, it also has the most varied size difference in each localities, with population inhabiting river or estuary getting much larger than populations that live in a more inland habitat such as swamp and lake.



Stalking through dense vegetation of Eurasian water edge, the Common Kelpie is a generalist predator that preys on many type of prey, from fish to large land mammal that they manage to overpower. They fill similar niche to crocodilians which are rare or absent in temperate region. Kelpie often ambush prey by hiding in thick vegetation near river edge, waiting for potential preys to come by. It has powerful jaws fill with thick, conical-shaped teeth allow it to subdue preys, while its front flippers which feature a sharp, powerful claw on each side can also assist in holding prey down. Smaller individuals may prefer hunting fish and other aquatic preys more so by using similar tactic of sit and wait underwater. It’s long feelers at the bottom of its lower jaws that are sensitive to vibration and movement, enabling the kelpie to snatch its prey accurately even in murky water.



Kelpies are afraid by any inhabitants that live near where they thrive. They aren't generally fear humanoids and will prey on them if opportunity arises. A few individuals had been documented as renowned man-eater. One case was a female kelpie that absorbed leaked arcane energy, giving her ability to shape shift into other animals. She was reported to use this newly gained ability to trick her prey, for example turning into injured stag, lying by the river edge and luring in foraging hunter and hounds closer, before revealing her true form and attacked them. But her favorite trick was to shape shift into pony, a very tame and gorgeous one. She would gain attention of village's children, luring them closer, until any of them getting up on her back or getting close to her head, she would then snatch them and dragged the victim down the river into their demise. She was also know to keep changing her location, avoiding her prey to catch up with her trick and to avoid being hunted down by furious villagers. Her terror came to an end when a bounty hunter managed to track her down and successfully slay her.



Fucan Luung/Fucan Pilot Serpent (Delphinophis fucanensis)



The Pilot Serpent is a large group of small, pelagic Thalassolanian that are widely spread across all tropical seas. They are the tuna of all sea serpent, adapting for swimming with great speed and agility as pursuit predator of small pelagic fish. They have streamline body with stiffened tail, which end in large crescent-shaped fluke. Large tail muscles attached from their back to the base of the tail provide a huge burst of speed as the sea serpent swim forward. Their narrow and long front flippers also enable them to change direction quickly, rolling and twisting as they chase after their highly mobile prey.



While most pilot serpent species are migratory, open sea forager. One exception is the Fucan Pilot Serpent (Delphinophis fucanensis), also known as Fucan Luung. It’s an endemic species of pilot serpent that can be found only in the crater lake of Fucan Island, a small volcanic island locates in the archipelago of the Seven Seas. The Fucan Luung is an average-sized pilot serpent, around 3 metres in length. It mainly has similar features as its open sea cousins, however being locked up in isolated lake had altered their appearance to some degrees. Fucan Luung has red brown coloration with very little counter shading normally found in oceanic pilot serpents. They are also much more colorful, with ornamental orange stripe on the back and at the tip of tail and flippers and their crescent-shaped tail fluke is much smaller than the oceanic species. Another feature that differs Fucan Luung from its relative is the feelers, which are very small in size and plays little role in other pilot serpents. However in this species, the feelers are very long and prominent with some individuals have feelers that are as long as their own skull. This led to it being called a “Luung” which is the common name normally used to call large oceanic sea serpents that possess long feelers, especially those in genus Thalassophianax and Thalassophinopsis.



The Fucan Island is a small island that once was a massive volcano. After it become dormant, the volcano’s crater was filled with water, which once connected to the ocean outside. The ancestral pilot serpent could freely swim in and out the crater lake, which they probably used for breeding ground. However, another leaked of magma surround the island during the recent ice age had caused another erosion of rock, which cut of the entrance in and out of the crater lake, trapping a population of pilot serpents inside. Here, in a very different environment, they had evolved into a new species that can’t be found elsewhere.



Fucan Luung lived in a much shallower environment that barely had any natural predators such as sharks and killer whale. Thus, they do not need counter shading coloration as do their relatives in open sea. Their coloration is adapted to be used in communication, especially in mating display which are much more complicate than other pilot serpents. Lacking of large shoaling fish to feed, the Fucan Luung adapted from pursuit predator into bottom feeder. The longer feelers are used to seek out hiding flat fish and cuttlefish as the Fucan Luung plow through substrate with its snout. Its tail fluke decreased in size and became thicker to stabilizing its body as it slowly forages along the bottom of the lake. It also spends much more time on land than other pilot serpent, often being seen bathing in the sunlight on the beach surrounding the lake.



Another important feature of this sea serpent is its infrequent breeding habit. Females are only known to breed once every 3 years, unlike other pilot serpents which breed annually. This may be due to the limited preys in Fucan’s crater lake, thus making females unable to collect enough nutrient to breed frequently. However once they do, female lay 2 extraordinary large eggs, almost twice the size of other pilot serpents of similar size. The egg shell is golden in color and has metallic sheen over the shell. It’s believed to cause by the high concentration of volcanic mineral that found in the lake’s water, which is ingested along with preys by the mother. These golden eggs are regarded as rare item that its shell can be crafted into priceless jewelry, thus the demands for the Fucan Luung’s egg shell are high. However, Fucan Island locates in the middle of the place known to have the most treacherous and unpredictable seas on earth. Many egg hunters had tried their luck but only a few had managed to return with their prize. Rumors of terrible things that surround the Fucan Island have saved the extraordinary Fucan Luung from being overhunted, at least for now.



Greater Luung (Thalassophianax regius)



The Greater Luung is a very large species of sea serpent inhabiting open sea and abyssal zone. It’s the largest and heaviest sea serpent known, as well as the largest of the entire Dracomorpha. Despite being quite rare, it’s a very well known sea creature that fascinates both researchers and seafarers alike.



The Greater Luung roams the furthest and most isolated part of the ocean. This great sea serpent is a member of the “True Luung” a group of sea serpent characterized by their large size, long feelers and their adaptation for living in deep sea. These sea serpents have much thicker blubber layer under their skin to combat the cool temperature of deep water. They have one of the most concentrated red blood cells in animal kingdom which allows them to store a lot of oxygen as they dive into the depth. Their powerful tail and flippers help propelling the animal forward, though not as agile as the distantly related pilot serpents, they are a much faster swimmer in straight line.



Most luungs forage on sea bed from below the reef to the twilight zone. Their long feelers play very important part in locating prey hiding in substrate or swimming in the darkness. However, the Greater Luung takes this evolutionary path even further. It hunts mainly in the vast open water down to the midnight zone, up to 3,000 metres from the surface, holding the record as one of the deepest diving, air-breathing animals. Greater Luung’s feelers are extraordinary among sea serpents for they are electroreceptor, capable of sensing the electric field produced by preys and pinpoint them for the attack which come in the form of strong suction as the sea serpent rapidly opens its mouth. The prey is consisted of squids of many types, mostly species that are smaller enough to be swallowed whole, however carcass of rather large preys like vampire squids and juvenile krakens had been recorded from the stomach of breaching Greater Luung carcass suggested that they are capable of swallow larger prey item as well.



Highly adapted for life in the depth, Greater Luungs almost never come ashore. Only females return to land to nest and spawn. Fully grown males may reach up to 15 metres long and 5 tonnes in weight, too massive to hurl themselves on land, meanwhile females are usually only one-third of males’ size, making them one of the reptiles with the most distinctive size between sexes.



Due to their size and their habit of foraging in deep water, Greater Luungs barely have any natural predators. Only krakens and orcas are only known to hunt fully grown Greater Luung, with the latter normally consider the sea serpent as a challenging prey and usually leave them alone as the luung can effectively protect itself against a pod by its flexible body and long neck that allow it to quickly turn to face the attacker with its sharp teeth. The luung can also out-dive its attacker, escaping into deeper water where orcas can’t possibly follow. Krakens are much more effective at ambushing the sea serpent, especially females that venture into shallower water. However, they seem to prefer preying on whales more than the sea reptile. Humans usually leave Greater Luungs alone, as they have tough, undesirable meat and also provide worse quality of blubber than whales. Their bones are known to be used in magic art and necromancy, however there are usually substitutes that are easier to find and give similar result, thus overhunting are not quite yet a threat to this species.



Netherserpent (Styxosalutor paradoxum)



Of all sea serpents, none is as rare, elusive and less known than the bizarre-looking Netherserpent (Styxosalutor paradoxum). This large sea serpent spends most of its time in deep water, barely ever be seen surfacing and to this day still leave most of its information in the realm of unknown.



Netherserpent is a very large and elongated sea serpent. The eel-liked body of a large male could be up to 22 metres in length and weight up to 4 tonnes. While it is much lighter than the massive Greater Luung, it’s indeed the world’s longest sea serpent and also possibly the longest sea reptile ever lived. Unlike most Thalassolanians, Netherserpent’s skull isn’t elongated and narrow. Instead, its skull is compact and box-liked, reminding of a turtle’s skull. It’s upper jaw even ends with a curved tip that resembles beak. Like any deep sea dwelling sea serpent, it has very long feelers lining the lower jaws. The feelers are extraordinary long and antenna-liked. It’s unknown if Netherserpent possesses electroreceptor on these feelers or not, but it definitely depends a lot on its feelers to guide its way through darkness as its eyes are less developed than other sea serpents. The flippers are short and don’t provide much support in locomotion. It relies solely on its elongated body to swim, adapting anguilliform locomotion as it moves through the water.



Although it isn’t the only deep sea dwelling Thalassolanian. Netherserpents seem to be the most adapted for this lifestyle. They mysteriously spend most of their time in the darkness of the deep sea. Unlike the luungs that regularly visit the surface to rest and bask in the sunlight, Netherserpents only come up to breath and they take only a little time before heading back into the darkness again. When taking a breath, they only reach out to the surface using their long neck, which means that only its nostrils would leave the water in the process, thus making them very difficult to be spotted.



Like any Thalassolanian, Netherserpent is carnivorous. However, its main diet is consisted of only soft body invertebrates like jellyfish, tunicates and pelagic sea slugs. Its peg-liked teeth help in taking a good grip on these slippery preys as the sea serpent swallow them whole. The serpent is not affected by the sting of jellyfish and is reported to be able to consume even the highly toxic cubozoa. Netherserpent collects the toxins produced by preys within its body, especially in its muscle and blood. While the animal itself is unaffected, it is extremely dangerous for any predators trying to eat its flesh. Fully grown Netherserpent collect enough poison in its body that it has no natural predators. Orcas and krakens which normally prey on many kinds of sea serpent always steer clear from adult Netherserpents. Juveniles may be preyed upon as they haven’t yet collected enough toxins to be lethal.



There’s almost no information of how these sea serpent breed. Gravid female carcass had shown to have calcified eggs inside which means that they are oviparous just like any sea serpents. The size and morphology difference between male and female also points to the habit of spawning on land like other Thalassolanians as well. However, there is no sighting of female coming ashore to spawn at all, thus making it impossible to know where or when Netherserpent breed and spawn or how they do it. The carcass of the gravid female showed large amount of smaller eggs than other sea serpents of similar size, which a single clutch may contain up to 40 eggs. The number of eggs may suggest the lack of post-laying parental care in this species which if it’s true, would be very unique among Thalassolanians, as most species normally look after their eggs and their young.



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Fucan Luung originally designed by , as part of Dracomorph Contest.





