Evolution: Building Beasts - Essay

Leo Nocturno, a beast that was randomly created from rolling dice to determine its
features, is named after its characteristics. The creature lives in a dark cave where the
creature must be able to have a vision strong enough to outgrow the darkness and see
through it. The ground of the cave consists of slippery and slimy mud created from the
moisture in the air that mixes with the thin dirt. The ground is hard to walk on due to the
unpleasant mixture. To have the ability to move around in the cave, the creature must
have feet that make the slippery soil not a problem. Lastly, one aspect that can create
mutations in the vegetation around. In the cave grows short plants with thick succulent
leaves to retain water. For this creature to be able to feed off of this type of plant, it must
have certain physical characteristics. The environment that the creature lives in can
determine how and what characteristics the creature will develop.

My creature has many features that may be beneficial, non-beneficial, or neutral traits.
Leo Nocturno is an amphibian. It can camouflage into the surroundings although there is
not much need for it. The reason behind that is because it is dark in the caves and many
predators will have a hard time spotting this creature even if it couldn’t camouflage into
its surroundings. Also, this creature has large front teeth which are perfect for clipping
the short plant leaves. That may have been a mutation that was based on the vegetation in
the cave. Although this creature does not eat much meat, it does eat small insects such as
aphids that destroy the plants that grow in the cave. When the creature eats the insects it
helps the plants by letting them grow and not be destroyed by the aphids. This creature
also has predators. One of its predators is the vomitous spiders. The vomitous spiders eat
the Leo Nocturno by vomiting on it and melting it with digestive fluid. But to eat this
creature, the vomitous spiders must find Leo Nocturno because the creature can
camouflage itself. So, the vomitous spidereus have developed a characteristic that allows
them to sense even the tiniest motion. As anyone can see, the environment can allow for a
new characteristic to be developed. The Leo Nocturno developed many other traits due to
its surroundings.
One of its characteristics is its nocturnal vision. That allows it to see predators in the dark
cave. Another trait that the Leo Nocturno has is its feet with a good grip. This makes sure
that it is easy to move around in the cave and that it does not fall from the slippery mud
on the ground. Another one of its traits is its humps that allow it to store water from the
plants for later. This trait allows this creature to endure the humid climate in the cave.