Great Tregon

Trigons in the depths of the Jujubee Ocean were an immensely successful species, their oddly-shaped bodies adapting perfectly to their niche as a small carnivore. Unchanged for millions of years, these creatures thrived in plenty. When the biosphere of Sagan 4 was traumatized in a mass extinction, the already numerous trigons prospered even further at the vast amounts of food now available. As evolution forged on a new chapter in evolutionary history, the trigons diversified, evolving to fill newly available niches. Tregons are in an evolutionary stage between vertebrates and invertebrates. Although they have a thin exoskeleton, it is a vestigial means of defense and support, an evolutionary left-over from their invertebrate ancestors. The tregons differ in the fact that they have a collagen notochord running down the length of their main body, allowing them more flexibility than a rigid exoskeleton. Cartilage plates placed routinely around their body protect their primitive organs. The great tregon is a vicious apex predator, a massive hunter that will eat just about anything it can catch, from the miniscule swarmers to the predatory snarks. It has a massive crushing beak, surrounded by five heavily muscled arms, each of which have an array of grasping suckers. Once it has its arms around a prey, the ensuing melee is fatal for at least one of the two combatants. Thanks to the heavily muscled body and seemingly everlasting endurance of the great tregon, it is usually its prey that is the loser. Utilizing hardened clumps of sensitive hair on its back, it is able to sense minute vibrations in the water. Since the great tregon has evolved to occupy a different niche then that of its ancestor, it has branched off instead of replacing it directly.