Petriform

Petriforms are a peculiar inorganic species of "living rocks" that have been found on various worlds across the cosmos.

Appearance and biology

Petriforms are small, around 3cm to the size of an apple and from above they are indistinguishable from pebbles, however, if you picked one up, you'd notice six tiny legs along with a small, rounded mouth.

Due to their rock-based nature, Petriforms are extremophiles, being able to survive in a multitude of different environments ranging from airless worlds to barren, scorching deserts to temperate Earth-like worlds. Petriforms feed by dissolving minerals using an acidic substance from inside them.

While they lack sight, they are able to sense vibrations an will retreat quickly if they feel threatened. Their inorganic nature also prevents them from being detected from life scanners, meaning they could be found on any planetoid.

Their exact lifespans are unclear.

Behaviour

Petriforms are often found in large groups of up to 20-30. They don't seem to interract with each other as theyve only been scene randomly scuttling about.

If a Petriform feels threatened, they will quickly retreat although since most of them dwell on otherwise uninhabited worlds, they don't get threatened very often. The only thing that sends Petriforms into a panic would be earthquakes for those on active worlds.

Discovery

They were discovered in 2409 when a small lander detected movement around it while exploring an airless dwarf planet orbiting Lalande 21185 and were later found to be widespread throughout the system. Scientists and Xenobiologists alike were astonished at the discovery and more would be found across various systems in the following years. Eventually in 2493, some were taken to be researched in labs.

Information about them is public although the X.R.O has prohibited them from being sold as pets to the public. A few have been put in zoos though.

History

Xenobiliogists and Xenohistorians widely believe that the Precursors were responsible for spreading them across various worlds. The original homeworld of the Petriforms remains a mystery although given their nature, they most likely evolved in quite a hostile/extreme environment.