The leecher swarmer split from its ancestor, the utalue swamer. It no longer filter-feeds but feeds on the blood of larger plents, mainly the nailfins or pipents that come into the water. Its mouth faces down and has strong suction. Within the mouth are primitive wooden teeth which it uses to penetrate the skin. Its 4 tentacles now have suction cups on the end to grip the skin of its hosts. It can still photosynthesize if they latch on the sunny side of their host. If their host starts to leave the water they will drop off since they cannot breathe out of the water. Their gills have improved however to more efficiently process oxygen.
Living Relatives (click to show/hide)
These are randomly selected, and organized from lowest to highest shared taxon. (This may correspond to similarity more than actual relation)
