Methanovores

The methanovores are a collection of anaerobic methanotroph species found in all of the deep sea environments of Sagan 4. Unlike their distant ancestor the methanophagus they are free living, collecting methane from the water. They are no longer generally stationary, but are atrichous and lack any defining surface cillia. To compensate, they rely instead on gliding across the surfaces of the substrate or other objects in their ecosystem. They do so by using motor proteins on the surface of their cells to propel themselves forward in an undulating movement.

Though found in all marine environments, they are at their most diverse in benthic environments, acting in conjunction with methanotrophic and sulfate-reducing species to form the basis of the energy pyramids of their environments. They use sulfates as a driving force for the reaction, typically in the following method:

CH4 + SO42− → HCO3− + HS− + H2O

This reaction is facilitated in a mitochondria-analog referred to as a "methanochondria" which shares its shape with that of their immediate ancestor, suggesting they are the result of an endosymbiosis event between two or more methanophagus.

Integrated specie

 * Methanovore