Gaerath needs an ecology, not merely Gaian civilization. Old species concepts are best retained as ecological roles rather than imported names or mechanisms.
Native survivors: organisms descended from Gaerath’s original biosphere that survived catastrophe in protected refugia such as subsurface or geothermal environments.
Managed survivors: native organisms deliberately preserved, cultivated, moved, or maintained by Gaians during underground survival.
Engineered organisms: later biological technologies developed for food, atmosphere management, waste cycling, medicine, materials, habitat monitoring, or other practical purposes.
Potential old ideas worth reworking include native burrowing fauna, geothermal microbial/fungal/lichen-like communities, engineered indicator organisms whose luminescence communicates habitat condition, and organisms used for mineral accumulation or remediation.
Not every surviving organism should be useful. Gaerath should also contain pests, nuisances, opportunists, organisms children like and maintenance workers dislike, and life for which Gaians have found no instrumental purpose.
Open questions
- What primary producers support surviving native refugia?
- What plausible trophic levels survived catastrophe?
- Which organisms were preserved deliberately versus accidentally?
- What mundane pests or commensals live in modern Gaian settlements?
Related entries
Surviving Gaerath Ecology · Subterranean Gaerath Settlements