Hycean

 | Feature | Details | | :--- | :--- | | **Species** | *Hycean hycean* | | **Type** | Mobile | | **Category** | Predator | | **Biome** | Coral Gardens, Necrolei Hills | | **Attitude** | Passive |   ![Hycean](Hycean.png)   **Hycean** is a large, passive lifeform that flies through the air. Despite the fact that the PDA says to avoid the areas underneath the Hycean, it cannot damage the player in any way. Sometimes, the Hycean will dip into the water enough that the player can stand on them and be lifted into the air slightly.   ## Databank Entry  -**Hycean hycean**, a remarkable flying predator named for planets that mix a hydrogen sky and a water ocean.+> **Hycean hycean**, a remarkable flying predator named for planets that mix a hydrogen sky and a water ocean.+>+> **1. Gasbag flyer**+> Though descended from the same squidlike ancestor as the houndgar and other Protean teuthis, the hycean's mantle is full of buoyant hydrogen. The ancestral hycean probably stored ammonia for buoyancy, like many Earth squid. The hycean uses bacterial symbiotes to convert this ammonia into carbon nitride, which, when exposed to sunlight, splits seawater into oxygen and hydrogen lifting gas.+>+> **2. Predatory fisher**+> Free of most predators, the hycean drifts above the sea surface and snags prey with its arms. The larger a hycean's gasbag, the more food it can afford to lift and digest. Large prey can be suffocated by holding them clear of the water until their gills dry out. The sails provide steerage in the wind, and can be flapped for emergency power.+>+> **3. Flammability risk**+> Any spark may ignite the hycean's gas bag, with disastrous results. Hyceans are acutely sensitive to electromagnetic activity, and may be forced to shelter in the water during thunderstorms.+>+> **4. Philosophical musings**+> The buena vista hypothesis (proposed by Malcolm McIver) argues that advanced cognition could only evolve when Earth fish began to raise their eyes above water, allowing them to see far enough to require long-range behavioral planning. If this hypothesis is credited, then the hycean — as one of the only discovered Protean species that lives outside water — may be unusually intelligent.+>+> **Recommendation:** avoid areas beneath hyceans. Monitor for signs of high-level behavior, such as 'fertilizing' certain areas of the ocean with defecated waste.  -### 1. Gasbag flyer-Though descended from the same squidlike ancestor as the houndgar and other Protean teuthis, the hycean's mantle is full of buoyant hydrogen. The ancestral hycean probably stored ammonia for buoyancy, like many Earth squid. The hycean uses bacterial symbiotes to convert this ammonia into carbon nitride, which, when exposed to sunlight, splits seawater into oxygen and hydrogen lifting gas.- -### 2. Predatory fisher-Free of most predators, the hycean drifts above the sea surface and snags prey with its arms. The larger a hycean's gasbag, the more food it can afford to lift and digest. Large prey can be suffocated by holding them clear of the water until their gills dry out. The sails provide steerage in the wind, and can be flapped for emergency power.- -### 3. Flammability risk-Any spark may ignite the hycean's gas bag, with disastrous results. Hyceans are acutely sensitive to electromagnetic activity, and may be forced to shelter in the water during thunderstorms.- -### 4. Philosophical musings-The buena vista hypothesis (proposed by Malcolm McIver) argues that advanced cognition could only evolve when Earth fish began to raise their eyes above water, allowing them to see far enough to require long-range behavioral planning. If this hypothesis is credited, then the hycean — as one of the only discovered Protean species that lives outside water — may be unusually intelligent.- -**Recommendation:** avoid areas beneath hyceans. Monitor for signs of high-level behavior, such as 'fertilizing' certain areas of the ocean with defecated waste.-  ## Gallery   ### In-Game   ![Hycean above water in Coral Gardens](Hycean Ubovewater.webp)-*Hycean above water in Coral Gardens*-  ![Hycean within water in Necrolei Hills](Hycean In Water.webp)-*Hycean within water in Necrolei Hills*-  ![A submerged Hycean with tendrils dragging the bottom](Hycean side.png)-*A submerged Hycean with tendrils dragging the bottom*-  ![Front view shows regular luminescent patterns](Hycean front.png)-*Front view shows regular luminescent patterns*-  ![What appears to be three propulsion jets](Hycean back.png)-*What appears to be three propulsion jets*-  ![Each tendril is individually flexible and shows prominent, regular luminescent features](Hycean tendrils.png)-*Each tendril is individually flexible and shows prominent, regular luminescent features*-  ![These majestic creatures are rather spectacular at night](Hycean night.png)-*These majestic creatures are rather spectacular at night*+![Top view of the Hycean at night](Hycean top view at night.png)   ### Concept Art   ![Hycean concept art by Alex Ries](Hycean Concept Art 1.jpg)-*Hycean concept art by Alex Ries*-  ![Further detail on the Hycean's anatomy, by Alex Ries](Hycean Concept Art 2.jpg)-*Further detail on the Hycean's anatomy, by Alex Ries*   ## Trivia  -*   The Hycean may be based on a [Portuguese man o' war](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portuguese_man_o%27_war).+*   The Hycean may be based on a [Portuguese man o' war](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portuguese_man_o'_war). *   The BFJ's databank entry implies that it is an earlier form of the Hycean.-*   It is possible to get atop a Hycean using an Air Bladder, or waiting for it to submerge and following it until it resurfaces.+*   Before the "Adaptive Measures" EA updates, it used to be possible to get atop a Hycean using an Air Bladder. Another way is to wait for it to submerge and following it until it resurfaces.