Minifee

For untold millions upon millions of years, foi have existed relatively unchanged - save for the occasional lineage or two - in the waters of Sagan IV, endlessly consuming and dividing as they went, nigh oblivious to the greater world around them. As such, it was of little surprise when this genus formed. Having split from its ancestor, the first Minifee shrunk somewhat in size, even if it did remain somewhat large for a single cell, so that it might better exploit its surrounding food sources. It was not long after, as one might expect of a cell, that it quite rapidly diversified in species and grew nigh exponentially in numbers. Now they have established themselves within the Sagan IV food chain, becoming the bane of smaller cells, from biofilm to algae, but in turn being prey for larger organisms. Internally, the various Minifee are near identical to their ancient Foi ancestors. Like them, their bodies are supported by a complex cytoskeletal structure. These structures, sometimes referred to as "muscles" in past Foi do to their similarity in function, are composed of innumerable chains of actin and myosin. Intertwined throughout their bodies, they serve to provide vital support for their gelatinous bodies, and allow for the "quick" movements that nearly all of the various single-celled Foi have been known for. As for externally, Minifee have not changed all that drastically there as well. They still resemble the original Foi very closely, save for a loss of the wings utilized by their distant ancestor for the purpose of swimming about in the water column. Other than that, they retain such features as their trio of eyespots - often referred to as eyes due to their size and sheer complexity - which, like similar such structures found in such species as Warnowiid and the Xenophyphores of Earth, are composed internally of several highly specialized, light-sensitive organelles. Capable of being rotated and even migrated slightly along the surface of their bodies, they allow the Minifee to sense potential threats as well as the time of day, especially when combined with their capability to detect vibrations in the water. Minifee are found in nearly all aquatic environments close to the surface, from fast flowing rivers and stagnant swamps, to tropical shallows and the dark murk of the twilight floor. Few, if any, though, are found below those depths, which are instead dominated by other species as well as even several related Fee species. Reproduction often involves an individual fragmenting into numerous smaller ones, typically when certain conditions - such as an overabundance of food, warmth, etc... - are met. While some species do produce toxins within their bodies in order to defend themselves, most rely on instead on reproducing rapidly in order to produce enough offspring so that at least some will survive to adulthood.