Reproductive biology

SilkSpiderSilkSpider Join Date: 2016-10-22 Member: 223305Members
edited January 2019 in Subnautica General Discussion
So, are the game's fauna asexual? Hermaphrodites of some kind? Or do they work like many real world fish, where females lay eggs that are fertilized by males after the fact? Why are there no Reaper eggs? Are Reapers ovoviviparous, the eggs hatching while still inside the mother, who then gives birth to live young, as is often the seen with sharks and rays?

Also, why do reefback eggs still not naturally spawn in the game world despite the presence of plenty of juveniles?
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  • subnauticambriansubnauticambrian U.S. Join Date: 2016-01-19 Member: 211679Members
    There's a PDA entry under "Advanced Theories" stating that every(?) animal on 4546B is a simultaneous hermaphrodite, meaning it takes any two individuals of the species to produce a fertile egg. This probably works by each individual having eggs and sperm, and in any given mating each one chooses a different "side," as it were. The data bank also says that even if there is only one parent, genetically viable offspring can be produced because their DNA mutates enough due to... background mutation rate? The PDA isn't very specific.

    (story spoiler)
    It's likely this was added to explain the hatching of the sea emperor eggs with only one parent, but hey, canon material is canon

    As for reefbacks and reaper leviathans, reefback eggs were originally supposed to be implemented, having the same texture as the spadefish egg. However, they didn't make it into the final game. If you want a real theory though, maybe their eggs are incredibly tiny, and reefbacks grow from very small size (sort of like ammonites)? Maybe they undergo some kind of juvenile phase before a metamorphosis into actual reefback form? I don't know. For Reaper Leviathans, I'm inclined to say that they gave live birth- however I don't really have any evidence to back this up. What I do know is that many large sea-dwelling vertebrates in the same niche typically give live young, and this pattern can be observed over many time periods (and many different families of animals). Examples include modern sharks and whales, as well as ichthyosaurs, mosasaurs, and plesiosaurs. Seeing as the reaper leviathan superficially resembles this body plan, and there's a conspicuous lack of eggs, I think it's possible(?) that they give live birth.

    I also don't know much about reproductive biology, I just have a basic grasp of bio as well as an interest in paleontology. If anyone of higher credentials has some better theories, feel free.
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