Day 10 | Natural Predators Of Rkespiwa

I will focus on the unique creatures that inhabit the world of Rkespiwa. As Trevena mentions, this would mean that the humans would have to interact in such a way as to adapt to a particular surrounding where such predators might cause problems.

Mirkosev

As evidenced by the cover image, it is meant to be a pachyderm creature with tentacled legs. It would have been well-adapted to swim the Rkespiwa rivers in order to catch prey, whether on the surface or underwater.

The Rkespiwa would interact with the Mirkosev in terms of which ones are domesticated and which ones aren\’t. Considering how Rkespiwa rely on artificial rivers as a form of transportation, it would mean that they would rely on beasts-of-transportation. This is where the domesticated Mirkosev come into play. They claim direct descent from a handful of individual wild Mirkosev who were domesticated hundreds of years before Mesvris\’ conquests.

As for the wild Mirkosevs, the Rkespiwa try to avoid Mirkosev breeding grounds–or swamps–when diverting water to the artificial river-roads. Not only would they be dangerous to the humans, but also would come into conflict with the domesticated Mirkosevs.

This was inspired by a creature that would have been featured in a previous world-building project of mine called Tonasn.

As you can see, this was illustrated more than a decade ago. Like many other world-building projects, I abandoned it. The ol-Ulchevl was supposed to have some Dalian influence. However, I have changed the long legs to the octopi tentacles to avoid any copyright conflict with the Dali estate.

Opadinia

Otherwise known among the Rkespiwa as the riezev–or \”long nose,\” this creature is also a natural predator within the Rkespiwa oceans and rivers. It would come into conflict with the mirkosevs.

As for the balance between predator and prey, during the process of artificial river creation, the small fish, crustacean, urchins, and kelp migrate and thrive within them. Then, the Opadinia are settled there to provide the balance by relying on those smaller marine life for sustenance.

Sources

• Trevena, Angelina. “30 Days Of Worldbuilding: An Author’s Step-By-Step Guide To Building.” Angelina Trevena. 2019.