r/SpeculativeEvolution

63K archived posts · Feb 2013 – Sep 2026

Life finds a way

Where evolution meets science fiction and art. Speculative Evolution (also called Speculative Biology and Speculative Zoology) is the envisioning of fictional, but scientifically possible creatures that could have existed on an alternate Earth, or might actually exist somewhere on another planet or in the deep sea.

Created Feb 8, 2013

116KMembers (last snapshot)

63KArchived posts

Ever wondered what lifeforms might exist under the ice on Europa at this very moment? Or how life might have evolved if that cataclysmic asteroid impact 65 million years ago never wiped out the dinosaurs? If so, you're at the right place.

Welcome to the Speculative Evolution subreddit! This sub is for images, discussion, and articles about life forms that could have existed in a different world. Speculative organisms may be from the future, an alternate timeline, or alien planets.

Speculative maps and landscapes, and concepts relating to speculative evolution as a whole, are also permitted.

The content of this sub is a combination of biology, sci-fi, paleontology, astrogeology, and artistic creativity. When posting art, please include the name of the artist in the title if it's available.

Feel free to cross-post any submissions from this sub!

r/SpeculativeEvolution Rules

###1. Follow Reddit site rules and Reddiquette You are required to abide by Reddit site rules and Reddiquette. Depending on severity, infractions may result in a ban. This includes but is not limited to:

Do not harass, bully, or make threats of violence for any reason
Do not engage in spamming, vote manipulation, or ban evasion
Respect individual privacy
Do not impersonate others
Label graphic content as such

###2. Be respectful Observe the following:

Critique constructively
Ask to critique before doing so (outside of posts specifically flaired "Seeking Critique")
Do not speak of or to others in a disrespectful manner, regardless of if they are present on the subreddit or not
Do not attempt to solicit others publicly
Do not incite drama or witch hunts; attempt to work out differences in private and alert the mod team if you need assistance

###3. Submissions and discussion must relate to speculative evolution This subreddit is focused on the speculative evolution genre. Similar content is allowed if relevant, such as (but not limited to):

Paleontology
Extinct animal reconstructions
Portrayals of aliens in fiction
Concept art
Speculative geography and maps of fictional planets

If content does not clearly relate to these, please provide a rationale when posting. Sexually explicit and fetish content are not permitted under any circumstances.

###4. Crediting the artist(s) is required When posting other people's art, credit the artist in the title and use a relevant non-OC flair. The name of a project alone is insufficient credit. If posting a gallery of works produced by multiple artists, please append a comment with a link to the direct sources of each work on your post, such as the artists' website, or Behance/DeviantArt/ArtStation page.

When posting original content [OC], you do not need to do this.

###5. Plagiarism is prohibited Plagiarism is the act of copying the work of another individual and claiming it as your own without proper attribution to the original creator. Sharing the works of another artist and attempting to pass them off as your own, publicly posting traced drawing, and claiming a project to be your own are all forms of plagiarism. **If found guilty of plagiarism, the offense is grounds for a permanent ban.

###6. Comment descriptions on original content [OC] image posts are mandatory You are required to include a description of your artwork when using flairs marked as original content [OC]. If text is present on your submission, as in a diagram, simply copy that into the comment. The automoderator will approve your post once the description has been added. When sharing non-OC artwork, a comment description is not necessary, but you must still credit the artist and use the correct flair.

###7. Refrain from low effort posts and comments You are expected to put effort into your posts and comments. The following are prohibited on the grounds of being low effort:

Claiming plausibility/implausibility without an in-depth rationale
Fantasy creature designs without hypothetical biology, anatomy, or ecology
Asking how fictional creature designs could evolve without attempting to speculate yourself beforehand
Shitposting

###8. Short posts should be directed to the Weekly Discussion & Announcements thread The following post types should not be posted independently outside of the dedicated weekly thread:

Project announcements without content
Project server links
Seed organism or planet condition lists
Short descriptions of organisms

To find the active Weekly Discussion & Announcements thread, please follow this link and select the most recent thread.

###9. Memes and non-OC inspiration crossposts are only permitted on certain days Memes are permitted only on Mondays starting at 0:00 UTC; please use r/specevojerking outside of this time window.

Non-OC crossposts meant to provide inspiration are permitted only on Tuesdays starting at 0:00 UTC; speculative evolution content from other subreddits such as r/worldbuilding and original content depicting real world phenomena (using the [OC] Inspiration flair) are always allowed at any time.

Do not attempt to circumvent this rule by assigning an inappropriate flair.

###10. Flair your posts correctly The burden of labeling your post correctly falls to you; please take responsibility and carefully chose your flair prior to posting. Incorrectly flaired posts will be subject to removal. A list of flairs and their intended functions can be found on this Wiki page.

###11. Limit submissions to 3 per day You may post as many as three submissions per day. This is not a hard limit, but is enforced when an individual appears to be monopolizing the subreddit feed.

#Spec Evo Resources

Community FAQ

Expedition by Wayne Barlowe

All Tomorrows by C.M. Kosemen

Future Evolution by Peter Ward

The World of Kong: A Natural History of Skull Island by Weta Workshop

The Snouters: Form and Life of the Rhinogrades by Gerolf Steiner

Last and First Men by Olaf Stapledon

Mockumentaries

The Future Is Wild

Alien Planet

Extraterrestrial

Other communities

Reddit Rebuilt is an independent, non-commercial archive and is not affiliated with Reddit, Inc. Content belongs to its original authors.