Ecology of Minefish

Nairit

Greeting everyone, first post and… well just started on Subnautica so naturally very excited – please forgive me if in the next few weeks I’ll be flooding the board with questions, ideas, and suggestions.
I have to say I am operating under the assumption Subnautica is intended to be “hardish” science fiction (sci-fi settings, plausible ecological systems, plausible crafting). If I am wrong in this assumption I apologize and please ignore, otherwise…

***

I don’t like Minefish. I just can’t imagine evolutionary chain that would produce a fish which explodes as the method of hunting (or even when threatened), it’s just not a good survival strategy.
I was trying to rationalize minefish as protector variant of some hive species which sacrifices itself in the explosion to protect the hive, but even that is very very unlikely. Simply put it’s hard to come up with environmental conditions which would make this a valid and efficient evolutionary path.

So may I offer an alternative? Don’t think much changes will be required visually just an entry in player "research notes/subnautica-pedia".

Let’s say the “rocky nest” of the minefish is the actual creature, possibly a plant but more likely an animal somewhat similar to Earth anemones. Basically predatory but stationary. When the creature senses (heat, shift in water currents, tendrils) a passing prey it releases a gas filled pod (note the pod itself isn’t a fish nor is it in any sense a living creature) which explodes wounding or killing the prey. The rocky outer surface of the creature protects it from its own explosive pod. After the explosion the creature is able to absorb nutrients from the water, if lucky – the whole decomposing body of the prey, more likely the blood and chunks of flesh from the wounded one. Nutrients could be absorbed with the help of nearly invisible tendrils/tentacles or more likely the creature would have ability to suck in the water filtering and absorbing food (a muscular tube in the body that acts like a pump)

moultano

Right now they feel like something from super mario, not from a fully realized world.

Confused

I think they are more like bees but with exploding instead of disemboweling themselves for the greater good.

Dunno if that just that I have spent too much time around ironhorse though...

Nairit

Yeap that's what I meant by protector variant of hive species, unfortunately there is still a number of problems with that scenario.

Sir_zino

The devs have given a reason why they explode. They do it to protect the rest of there family. So just a smaller version of hive species idea really.

Castle

Mine fish lol

I'll keep this in mind, its a valid point that it may be immersion breaking to see a creature behave so strangely. Its possible that the Crash can cause an explosion, but what if they do not sacrifice themselves? What if they are just super tough and can handle the explosion that they create?

Anyway ill keep this in mind for future discussions on these guys.

Nairit

Super tough will work, but the general principle for evolution is efficiency, minimal effort for maximum gain.

Which begs the question - why explode at all? In what environment would this be the most efficient way? Why not release cloud of venom for which fish itself would have immunity but which would effect predators (or prey)? Or perhaps electric discharge?

P.S. Found the name minefish in game guide on steam today. Before that I nick named those "boomfish" personally like boomfish better

Sir_zino

Correct me if i'm wrong but i thought the exploding fish where called crashers?

Nairit

Hard to see but I think creature chart says "Crash"

Castle

I'm enjoying the names you guys are coming up with too much to correct anyone.

Squiddapult

My thoughts on the....boom boxfish.. When I first saw them in game were along these lines as well. Im not a huge fan of them exploding in general, and had 2 ideas for changing them right off the bat. My first idea was, as was said before, closer to a bees nest; lots of them together in clumped areas, and they would shoot themselves out the same way they do, but kind of pester you, biting or stinging the way a bee would, but then quickly going BACK into where they came. My other idea, was just to change the thing that came out of the pod to something less "developed" as an animal, something that wasnt a big risk for an organism to sacrifice so easily. This idea kinda sucks because it would mean changing the model (which I love).

Neither are super feasible, but just my 2 cents. Nothing stood out to me in a way I didnt really like the way the massacre minnows did.