Biter

This article is about the Biter. You may be looking for the Blighter.

Biter
Category	Carnivores
Tab	Fauna
Attitude	Aggressive
Health	10
Damage	Bite: 7
Biome	Crash Zone Mesas Grassy Plateaus Jellyshroom Cave Mountains Mountains Caves
Active During	Cathemeral (Day and Night)
Debug Spawn	biter

Biters are a small, aggressive fauna species, mostly dwelling in the Grassy Plateaus, Mountains, and the Jellyshroom Cave.

Appearance

The Biter's body somewhat resembles a real-life tadpole; however, it has a greater size. It has two turquoise eyes on each side of its head, and a small mouth full of small, razor-sharp teeth like a piranha. It has two nostril-like structures on the front of its head. Its head features five horizontal black stripes. The Biter has no pectoral fins, possessing only dorsal and caudal ones running along its body length. Its upper body is a bright red, while its underbelly is a dull, pale grayish blue. It also has a small protrusion on its forehead, similar in appearance to the esca of anglerfish. Rather than being used to lure potential prey, this growth is effectively an extension of the olfactory system, used to track blood and other bodily fluids in the water, in order to catch prey. The PDA says that 2% of the biter is brain, which is extremely high compared to Earth fishes.

Behavior

The Biter is an extremely fast and territorial fish. It occasionally emits quiet growls and clicks. It will attack without hesitation if the player gets too close. Each bite deals 7 damage to the player's health. Biters will eat any corpses that they come across, including their own kind, making them disappear. Biters will usually form shoals or small groups of two to three individuals. The Biter, like other predators, will eat from the player's hand if offered fish and will leave the player alone for a moment. This can be risky with a group of Biters as they individually eat around three samples each and some may still injure the player while swarming. Although one Biter can be easily dealt with, a large swarm of Biters can be dangerous to encounter, and can easily kill the player. Biters may also try to bite the Seamoth, resulting in a annoying "tap" sound.

Data Bank Entry

Vicious, pack-hunting predator. 94% muscle, 4% connective tissue, 2% brain. Indiscriminate when hungry. Almost always hungry. 1. Specialized Olfactory Antenna: Employed in detection of bodily fluids in the water at impressive range. 2. Secondary Pair of Eyes: Likely dedicated to detecting the peripheral movement of larger predators, and hungry members of its own species. 3. Overdeveloped Tail Fin: Favors out-pacing and outnumbering their prey over individual maneuverability. Calculations suggest creatures up to 100x the biter's body weight could succumb to a focused assault by a pack of ten. Assessment: Avoid packs - Try not to bleed

Gallery

• Screenshots
• Concept Art
• Models

Front view

Side profile

Top view

Underside view

Rear view

Bioluminescence

Size comparison to the Player

A Biter in the Grassy Plateaus

A Biter in the Jelly Shroom Caves

A close up of the Biter's mouth

A view from inside the Biter's mouth

Concept art

Model from Sketchfab

Trivia

• Despite having a closer resemblance to real-life anglerfishes, the Biter's behavior strongly associates them with real-life piranhas.
• There is a closely related species named the Blighter that inhabits deeper waters in the Blood Kelp Zone and the Blood Kelp Caves.
• Biters once lived around the Floating Island, but were removed from the location soon after they were added.

References