Creature seed: Gumibehrs.

Gumibehrs – Google Docs

 

Gumibehrs

 

Spelled that way because the trademark is still enforced, even in the 26th Century. Apparently sweetened gelatin is still going to be a thing for our descendants. Go figure, huh?

 

Anyway, gumibehrs are essentially transparent blobs of free-moving alien plant matter that lack any kind of bone structure or exoskeleton at all.  Their skin is, however, incredibly strong, and can get them enough traction to allow a gumibehr to reach a decent rate of speed once it gets started.  While the species is obviously highly plastic and flexible, it relaxes to a shape that is indeed reasonably ursinoid: hence, the name.   They reproduce via the usual wind-borne pollination method, albeit a bit more proactively than normal: gumibehrs typically release pollen via regular outgassing of built-up oxygen in a centralized waste orifice. Gumibehrs typically move on all fours, but can be trained to walk upright.

Gumibehrs are generally harmless to humans: as noted before, they’re basically mobile plants that pick up nutrients via their limbs, breathe carbon dioxide, and find human body heat just a little too high for long-term comfort. Humans can train them to do minor tricks, but the species isn’t very bright, and doesn’t taste anything like appetizing, either.  They are still popular pets among spacers, primarily because gumibehrs are amazingly efficient at scrubbing carbon dioxide from the air. Having a reasonably-sized colony of them onboard can double the emergency air supply’s effective duration.

 

Plus, while they taste horrible, gumibehrs generally smell all right, by human standards.  Although the continuous (and loud) outgassing can be kind of distracting.  Then again, it’s something to laugh over, on those long trips out to the Oort clouds.