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Description
Many popular depictions of aliens have features of insects and other invertebrates. Although this is no less terracentric than alien wolves and alien men, these portrayals get a free pass because invertebrates already look alien to the human eye. This is why hive people so often look like ants, and hardly any extraterrestrials in popular culture have fur.

Ilion's early explorers were surprised to find that the life there did not fit into neat boxes like "plant," "animal," and "vertebrate." They found insectoid lifeforms - but they were not animals. They were the flying seeds of pterosperm black plants. Some of the trees appeared to be infested with wood fungus - but it was not fungus. The structures belonged to the tree; their purpose was to attract and fertilize the flying seeds, then develop into a fruit. Ilion's higher gravity and lower oxygen levels limited the evolution of flight among animals. Here, plants rule the skies. Pterosperm seeds are short-lived and single-minded. Their goal is to disperse and find a pollen pad or pitcher of their own species while avoiding predation.

All flying seeds have four limbs, a tail, and a head. The head contains the main sensory organs for sight, balance, and olfaction. It also contains the opening through which pollen is ingested. The limbs are divided into upper and lower. The upper limbs are wings. The lower limbs can be wings, feet, halteres, or vestigial remnants. Some seeds also possess a caudal fin for stabilization during flight. The function of the tail varies from species to species. For some, it is a balancing organ; for others, a grasping appendage. While attached to the parent tree, the seed is fed through the tail and in some cases the tail’s function as a feeding proboscis persists beyond its connection to the tree. Heterotrophic seeds pierce plants to drink from their blood vessels. These seeds tend to survive longer and may one day spawn an animal lineage of their own.

Learn more about black plants:

Description
Many popular depictions of aliens have features of insects and other invertebrates. Although this is no less terracentric than alien wolves and alien men, these portrayals get a free pass because invertebrates already look alien to the human eye. This is why hive people so often look like ants, and hardly any extraterrestrials in popular culture have fur.

Ilion's early explorers were surprised to find that the life there did not fit into neat boxes like "plant," "animal," and "vertebrate." They found insectoid lifeforms - but they were not animals. They were the flying seeds of pterosperm black plants. Some of the trees appeared to be infested with wood fungus - but it was not fungus. The structures belonged to the tree; their purpose was to attract and fertilize the flying seeds, then develop into a fruit. Ilion's higher gravity and lower oxygen levels limited the evolution of flight among animals. Here, plants rule the skies. Pterosperm seeds are short-lived and single-minded. Their goal is to disperse and find a pollen pad or pitcher of their own species while avoiding predation.

All flying seeds have four limbs, a tail, and a head. The head contains the main sensory organs for sight, balance, and olfaction. It also contains the opening through which pollen is ingested. The limbs are divided into upper and lower. The upper limbs are wings. The lower limbs can be wings, feet, halteres, or vestigial remnants. Some seeds also possess a caudal fin for stabilization during flight. The function of the tail varies from species to species. For some, it is a balancing organ; for others, a grasping appendage. While attached to the parent tree, the seed is fed through the tail and in some cases the tail’s function as a feeding proboscis persists beyond its connection to the tree. Heterotrophic seeds pierce plants to drink from their blood vessels. These seeds tend to survive longer and may one day spawn an animal lineage of their own.

Learn more about black plants: