Subject: (urth) Abo Taxonomy, A Lecture

From: Robert Borski <rborski at coredcs.com>
Date: Sun, 31 May 1998 23:42:46 +0000

My Dear Students of Exobiology 101:

Here are my thoughts on the taxonomy of the soi-disant abos of Sainte Anne.

There are basically three types of Annese, all clearly humanoid in stock,
all proto-Adamic. Perhaps you've read Dr. Wolfe's monogaph?

At any rate the first is the oldest and most ancestral, Pleiomorphus major.
They still
retain full shape-changing abilities--obviously, a Darwinian response to
massive predation (nasty fauna on Ste. Anne, says Dr. Wolfe: lions,
tire-tigers, ghoul-bears), where enormously mimetic abilities would confer
a major selection advantage. Examples from Dr. Wolfe's work include the abo
female who could change herself into an amorous cat, as well as the abos
described as looking like dead trees.

Next, we have an offshoot branch of this, Pleiomorphus minor. They possess
only minor
amounts of shape-changing ability, having perhaps ancestrally moved into a
less predatory niche, like the mountains, where they're freer to mutate
away from the norm; they still have some shape-changing abilities, because
there is still some predation, but not enough so as to require full
pleiomorphism. Examples of this include the stone-colored abos or the
actress who's known as Three Faces, mother to one of Dr. Wolfe's ill-fated
expeditionary comrades--Victor, I believe his name was.

Lastly then, we have the third and least ancestrally remote group,
Pleiomorphus
nugarus, aka the Shadow Children, who, by becoming smaller-statured and
evolving dark skin, and then becoming nocturnal (a pineal gland mutation
might spur this), have so totally escaped predation by the larger
carnivores of Sainte Anne that they've lost their shape-changing abilities
altogether. 

Yes, yes, you randy rascals. I see your hands and I can anticipate your
questions.

The answer is 'probably.'

Given the diverseness of our own genome here on earth, where a Masai can
mate with a pygmy (just to pick an obvious set of extremes) and reproduce,
it's very likely all three variants could interbreed, and might even
hybridize with good old Homo sapiens terrae. God is sometimes wondrous--

RINGRINGRING!

Ouh, there's the bell. Class dismissed. 

But definitely do expect this material to be on the test!

M.Dr.RB, Universite d'Urth, Branch Campus.

*More Wolfe info & archive of this list at http://www.urth.net/urth/