Phyla Exam

For this exam, I chose to classify the Otachi Kaiju under the new order repitiliata (reptiles + alata, Latin word for winged), which in itself is under class reptilia.

Taxonomy of the Otachi Kaiju:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Reptiliata
Family: Kaiju
Genus: Quatuor (latin word for 4, because Otachi is a Category IV Kaiju)
Species: Otachi


Characteristics of the Otachi Kaiju:

• four legs (tetrapod)
• four-digit wings that can be used to fly
• spine
• powerful jaw
• unique structure: structure on the tongue that is bioluminescent which it uses as a sensory organ
• sac that can be used to spit a corrosive blue substance
• tail with three prehensile pincers

The first trait I looked at was that the Otachi has a spine. Therefore, I immediately could classify it as a vertebrate under the phylum Chordata. This is reinforced by the fact that it also possesses a jaw . Because the Otachi is four-legged, I immediately thought of tetrapods. Therefore, I sought to classify the Otachi as a reptile, since reptiles are tetrapods who are also chordates. However, the Otachi kaiju also has wings which it uses to fly. These wings are on the end of four digits, with the fifth digit unfolding the wing when it is in use. Now, I had a dilemma to choose from either reptiles or birds as a class to classify it!

Therefore, I went to a tiebreaker trait. I looked at the unique structure of the Otachi, a structure on the tongue that was bioluminescent and which it seemed to use as a sensory organ. In addition, the Otachi has a sac that can spit a blue acid, similar to the poison of snakes. Therefore, I chose to classify otachi under class reptilia. In addition, beacuse they are tetrapods, I did not choose to classify them as birds. 

For further classification, I created the new order reptiliata (combination of reptilia + ata, Latin for winged). I did this because the kaiju would not solely fit under any existing orders under reptilia, such as the testudines or even squamata, which contain snakes. The family is Kaiju, and because it is a Category IV kaiju, its genus is quatuor (Latin for 4). Finally, its species is simply Otachi. 

The new order reptiliata is meant to consist of reptiles who possess poison or acid glands, and another feature is  heavy wings that allow them to fly. In addition, reptiliata possess a unique tail with three pincers that allow for defense. Howevr, the most important structure of reptiliata is an advanced version of the reptilian tongue that is bioluminescent and allows reptiliata to sense their way, as well as to devour things.

Phylogeny

The main difference that reptiliata have from other orders of reptiles are their wings, and their unique tongue. In this section, I will be exploring the possibilities of evolution for reptiliata.

My theory is that otachi evolved from salamanders.

Wings

The wings of Otachi are located actually on their forearms, which allow it to fly. Therefore, the 

forearms of the Otachi are extremely pronounced. One theory that I can come up with to support the evolution of these wings are that a single Otachi was previously a normal salamander, but due to the excess radiation of the sun, once obtained a mutation that made his arms more fleshy than that of other Otachi and obtained a pouch of flesh near his arms. By stretching the flesh around its arms, it was eventually able to survive better than the Otachi who didn't have the flesh around its arms--beacuse the flesh allowed it to have a thick layer of defense against predators. Therefore, by natural selection, the Otachi who had stretchy flesh developed into wings, survived, and reproduced.
Wings:
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://dreager1.files.wordpress.com/2013/07/otachi_2.jpg&imgrefurl=http://dreager1.com/2013/07/&h=720&w=1280&tbnid=Y90W5pe2B93kUM:&zoom=1&docid=mq1Ql8_K0iXW1M&ei=GRxDU8D6GqLhygGi4YBo&tbm=isch&ved=0CDsQhBwwAQ

Tongue

Otachi has a bioluminescent structure on its tongue, that serves as a sensory organ. This tongue probably evolved from the vomeronasal structure found in salamanders, which served the same function and structure (accessory sensory organ). This vomeronasal structure allowed the salamander to have an enhanced sense of smell. However, I believe that radiation from the sun had another effect on this structure. A salamander mutated and had a bioluminescent vomeronasal structure. This allowed it to have more fitness because it could now hunt in the dark better by activating the bioluminescence on will. Therefore, by natural selection, bioluminescent vomeronasal structures were passed on in generations. 

References

http://pacificrim.wikia.com/wiki/Otachi