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Terryl Whitlatch Creature Course #2 - Plethios

This weeks assignment was to focus more on the earlier stages of evolutionary life so I could grasp how anatomy developed over time. I was tasked with sketching some studies, and combining a fish with either an amphibian or a reptile.

Fish/Amphibian Hybrid


Fish Studies

Reptile/Amphibian Studies

After I'd gotten the basics of these creatures sketched down I decided to try going more in-depth on their anatomy. This wasn't required but I felt it would help me really make better decisions on the final piece.

Fish/Amphibian Anatomy

What made this especially interesting for me was the fact that I knew most creatures followed the same basic plan when it came to their anatomy. But fish and amphibians turned out to be wildly different to what I expected.

Amphibians (Salamanders specifically) lacked a ribcage, and fish had their pelvis right near the front of their bodies when I was expecting it to be near the end. With this though I knew I could tackle the final design more capably though.

In the end I decided to mix a Red-Cheeked Salamander with a Blackmoor Goldfish:

Plethios

I'm still a bit unsure about the ribs, but this was definitely a fun creature to design and I learnt a lot doing it.
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