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Sagan 4
Sagan 4 is an alien planet ecosystem project originally started by Hydromancerx inspired by Carl Sagan's video. Life on this alien planet started from a single-celled organism. It is now populated with many species of flora and fauna all created by artists who love drawing and xenobiology. Submissions take place on the Sagan 4 subforum of the Speculative Evolution forum.

Introduction

Sagan 4 is a planet with conditions similar to Earth. All of its life derives from a single cell, Protosagania. Its major kingdoms are Binucleida, an incredibly diverse group in which each cell has two or more nuclei, ranging from microbes to the tallest trees, Carpozoa, which tend to be fairly animal-like but include some single-celled and colonial species, and Photosagnia, purple photosynthesizers that include clouds of microbes in the oceans and some of the first flora on land.

Binucleida's two largest lineages originated from a symbiosis. One organism produced a chitinous outer shell, and another provided a soft inner core. One of these lines is the crystal flora, in which the outer shell is usually photosynthetic and crystal-shaped; these dominate many of Sagan 4's photosynthetic niches.

The other line of symbiotic Binucleida is the binucleid worms, in which the outer shell forms a segmented exoskeleton. The biggest group of binucleid worms is the knightworms (descendants of the common knightworm), which often resemble Earth's arthropods. They range from tiny crawlers to large creatures with legs, and they include two of the first fauna on land. They are mostly found around and on the western continent, Glicker. The next-biggest binucleid worm group is Heliovermis (descendants of wormstem), which are able to photosynthesize. They tend to have an animal-like juvenile phase and a plant-like adult phase. Heliovermes are mostly found on and around the eastern continent, Wright.

Carpozoa's biggest lineages are Luceremundaria, which often have colorful bioluminescence and range from fish-like to cup-shaped, and Asterzoa, a diverse group whose original body plan was shaped like a four-armed star.

The biggest Luceremundarian group is Geletaventria, superficially similar to fish, but with a four-tentacled mouth. Some Geletaventrians are soft-bodied, while others have armor. Luceremundaria also includes Carpolantaia, which are generally cup-shaped and gelatinous, mostly floating, though some are sessile or crawl.

Asterzoa is split into Asterzalia, many of which have become bilateral swimmers and crawlers, including species with skeletons and formidable jaws, Asterstreidia, radial species, mostly filter-feeders and mostly sessile, many of them shelled, and Asterfolia, which have developed photosynthesis through symbiosis, some of which have become more plant-like and some with more active lifestyles.

There are several additional smaller kingdoms. One is Mancerxia, which currently mostly consists of virus-like microbes. Another, Goliathpseudopodia, consists of large single-celled organisms, some of which are over a centimeter in size. Lituswushia, Skarlixia, and Ferrumcarceria all metabolize various metals in different ways. The Taxonomy page contains a full list of Sagan 4's kingdoms.

Fun facts:

The largest floral organism currently is the Darwinian Shadow Fortress at 48m wide and 24m tall!

Flora has spread over the land. Pioneering fauna follows it.

The largest marine fauna currently is the Filterclad at 3 m long.

The largest land fauna currently is the Gigantaurok, at 5.6 m tall.

The Vailnoff ocean is beginning to fill with life, whereas the LadyM ocean, particularly in the deeper regions, is teeming with organisms. Early reef-builders are developing.

Quick Category Links:

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Species - Living Species - Extinct Species - Generations