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Description
A size comparison chart depicting a sample of Martian wildlife from the Flea War universe. This image was inspired by ~M0AI's fantastic scale chart of various prehistoric organisms ([link] ), and his same disclaimers apply: the silhouettes are all based on photos and drawings found on the Web, scale may not be exact, etc. etc.

In this universe, the Martian ecosystem is artificial, having been seeded for unknown reasons by the vanished Overculture. It is a very limited and primitive ecology with its foundation in chemosynthetic, anaerobic bacteria feeding on the metals and minerals in the Martian rocks and soil. These bacteria are in turn consumed by "sand plankton" ranging in size from microscopic to several centimeters in length. The megafauna consists of burrowing and surface-dwelling filter-feeders preying on the sand plankton, with a very few top predators possibly feeding on the "grazers."

To reflect the proper order of the food chain, descriptions read from bottom to top.

BOTTOM ROW: Resembling terrestrial amphipods, these burrowing and surface-level filter-feeders are the most tractable and least aggressive of the Martian megafauna. They are often found in fairly sizable aggregations, scuttling over rocks and burrowing through the soil in search of sufficient nutrients to support their largely anaerobic metabolisms. While not territorial or aggressive, they do have the unpredictable (and disconcerting) tendency to "swarm" over human mecha in response to the machines' heat and metallicity (these factors recalling the most "appetizing" traits of their own food source).

MIDDLE ROW: Large, solitary surface grazers of the Martian desert. At this level of the food chain, organisms require large tracts of grazing area to support their metabolisms and have established feeding grounds. These creatures are not predatory at the macroscopic scale, but can be quite aggressive in defense of their nutrient-poor territories. They read the heat and metal content of human machines as indicating living rivals for their food source, and will very often attack out of territorial instinct.

TOP ROW: Top predators of the Martian food chain. Although their life cycles remain largely unknown, these creatures appear to feed on the "bottom-row" grazers as well as on the ubiquitous "sand plankton." Like the mid-level grazers, they range over vast tracts of open desert and ferociously defend their territories from intruders and rivals. They possess the most aerobic metabolisms of the Martian megafauna and will attack human mecha on sight, seeing them not only as a territorial threat but as a potential source of the metal and oxygen compounds needed to supplement their nutrient-poor diet.

Each tic mark represents 1 meter, with the human figure standing 2 meters tall. The italicized names below the silhouettes represent the terrestrial organisms on which their forms are based (according to my creative process, that is, not the Overculture's). My intention is to do a similar graphic for the rest of the solar system's "bugs," but Mars is heavily-enough infested to merit its own chart and exposition.

Description
A size comparison chart depicting a sample of Martian wildlife from the Flea War universe. This image was inspired by ~M0AI's fantastic scale chart of various prehistoric organisms ([link] ), and his same disclaimers apply: the silhouettes are all based on photos and drawings found on the Web, scale may not be exact, etc. etc.

In this universe, the Martian ecosystem is artificial, having been seeded for unknown reasons by the vanished Overculture. It is a very limited and primitive ecology with its foundation in chemosynthetic, anaerobic bacteria feeding on the metals and minerals in the Martian rocks and soil. These bacteria are in turn consumed by "sand plankton" ranging in size from microscopic to several centimeters in length. The megafauna consists of burrowing and surface-dwelling filter-feeders preying on the sand plankton, with a very few top predators possibly feeding on the "grazers."

To reflect the proper order of the food chain, descriptions read from bottom to top.

BOTTOM ROW: Resembling terrestrial amphipods, these burrowing and surface-level filter-feeders are the most tractable and least aggressive of the Martian megafauna. They are often found in fairly sizable aggregations, scuttling over rocks and burrowing through the soil in search of sufficient nutrients to support their largely anaerobic metabolisms. While not territorial or aggressive, they do have the unpredictable (and disconcerting) tendency to "swarm" over human mecha in response to the machines' heat and metallicity (these factors recalling the most "appetizing" traits of their own food source).

MIDDLE ROW: Large, solitary surface grazers of the Martian desert. At this level of the food chain, organisms require large tracts of grazing area to support their metabolisms and have established feeding grounds. These creatures are not predatory at the macroscopic scale, but can be quite aggressive in defense of their nutrient-poor territories. They read the heat and metal content of human machines as indicating living rivals for their food source, and will very often attack out of territorial instinct.

TOP ROW: Top predators of the Martian food chain. Although their life cycles remain largely unknown, these creatures appear to feed on the "bottom-row" grazers as well as on the ubiquitous "sand plankton." Like the mid-level grazers, they range over vast tracts of open desert and ferociously defend their territories from intruders and rivals. They possess the most aerobic metabolisms of the Martian megafauna and will attack human mecha on sight, seeing them not only as a territorial threat but as a potential source of the metal and oxygen compounds needed to supplement their nutrient-poor diet.

Each tic mark represents 1 meter, with the human figure standing 2 meters tall. The italicized names below the silhouettes represent the terrestrial organisms on which their forms are based (according to my creative process, that is, not the Overculture's). My intention is to do a similar graphic for the rest of the solar system's "bugs," but Mars is heavily-enough infested to merit its own chart and exposition.