News Files - Atlantean Biology

Atlanteans possess twin gills located on their necks near the clavicle bone, which enable them to extract oxygen from the water. They possess physiologies far stronger and more durable than their surface counterparts, which enable them to withstand the vast water pressure at the ocean's bottom as well as the pressure changes encountered travelling from one depth to another. Compared to the average air-breather, the average Atlantean is about ten times stronger. The average Atlantean can swim at a maximum speed of 50 kilometres per hour.

Atlanteans are warm-blooded, and their blood circulation is superior to that of land-dwellers, enabling them to withstand the near-freezing temperatures of the ocean depths with minimal discomfort. Atlanteans have specially-adapted eyes possessing vision more sensitive to the green portion of the spectrum. This enables them to see more acutely in the dimly-lit ocean depths. Atlantean skin colour ranges in variety from blue, to green, pink, brown, and grey. Atlanteans possess residual body hair primarily on their heads, a holdover from their surface-dwelling ancestry.

Despite their various marine characteristics, Atlanteans are mammals: they bear their young live and care for them during infancy. Although rare, it is possible for an Atlantean and an air-breather to mate. The physical characteristics such an offspring will inherit are subject to genetic chance. In the few known cases of such mating, the offspring acquired the capacity to breathe in air and underwater. The life expectancy of an Atlantean is about 150 years.