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Music theme 'Natare' thanks to Hunter Rogers

Two headed long neck turtle

Say thanks to the river and the lake Mepovaris (the lake you can never step in twice), for it brings the wonder of Levis to you my child.
Across the waterways and brackish lands of Levis waddles the two headed long neck turtle. Not a mutation from foliad bioscience, nor evolution from human despoiling, not even an evolution of something coming from the demon lands. This creature is one of the softer creations of the old gods, made to watch over the lands and thrive when they found their relaxed niche.   Subsisting off a diet of flying insects and mud worms, the turtles carry a whole world upon their backs. Their shells grow in irregular patterns that encourage plants and fungi to grow into the spaces, and for insects and symbiotic mites to form small ecosystems upon their backs.  
They reproduce through eggs that are tended within a nest on the banks of the waterway they inhabit. The parents make a mud nest, shedding part of their ecosystem to reinforce and camoflage the nest fr the elements and predators.   Adolescent turtles travel from their childhood grounds in search of new territories and mates, spreading the aquatic habitats of their youth into the water systems of Levis.  
Two heads, one goal
The two headed turtle staves off acts of competitive behaviour by having one conscienceless over the two brains. This is achieved through a mix of strong body signals sent to both minds, and a large nerve wired between the necks taking uncounted high number of signals a second between the brains.
If you think of a local name, slide it into the comments below.

The turtle mite is an arachnid no larger than 2mm whose diet subsists off dead turtle scute. Their secretions encourage shell growth and act as fertiliser to the plants and fungi that grow upon the turtle shells.   If other types of turtles are infected with the turtle mite, they too start to grow with local fungi, though most species are not used to the growth this brings.
Thank you for reading, feel free to give feedback.


Cover image: Swamp Ghoul by Vormoranox

Comments

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Jun 25, 2025 14:41 by Dr Emily Vair-Turnbull

I love them. I always enjoy the idea of turtles with an ecosystem on their shells.

Emy x
Explore Etrea | Summer Camp 2025