Pulverizing Fruit

Pulverizing Fruit
Creator	OviraptorFan
Information
Status	Extant
Common Name(s)	Pulverizing Fruit, Crushamaw
Zones	5
Roles	Predator
Classification
Genus	Fructohelix
Species	Fructohelix deinokavouras
Evolution
Date	January 30th, 2022
Ancestor	Viciousfruit
Descendants	No results

As the Helicates of the Helivarius Sea adapted to predation this put pressure on Viciousfruit (Fructohelix malificus) populations to become better at hunting shelled prey. This would lead to the Pulverizing Fruit (Fructohelix deinokavouras).

25-30 cm long
Originated in Zone 5

The Crushamaw is specialized predator, only eating other helicates. Their four facial tentacles have become shorter and more robust with the claw on the tip of the tentacles being thick and stout to apply more pressure on a single point. The Pulverizing Fruit has a row of chitinous plates on the inner sides of each tentacle to aid in crushing shells. The beak is larger, being shorter and taller to deliver a more powerful bite. Their tentacles can apply pressure to splinter their prey's shells and the beak can apply extra pressure on a tough shell and tear the flesh of its prey. The pinhole-eyes help the Crushamaw spot prey and crawl towards it with their sensory tentacles at greater speeds than their prey.

The Pulverizing Fruit is not capable of fully retracting into their shell. When threatened they instead fight the aggressor. The beak is able to severely injure most threats.

The Pulverizing Fruit breeds in the winter and places their eggs into a pouch that coils around its body and opens near its cloaca. The Crushamaw's pouch is not visible while it is in a relaxed position, but its opening may be exposed if it were to stretch out.

When the young hatch and exit the pouch they hunt other helicates, going after young individuals and gradually hunting larger prey as they grow. Unlike the adults, young Pulverizing Fruit are hunted by several kinds of creatures, mainly Vicious Fruit and adult Crushamaws, causing a low juvenile survival rate.