Author Notes - Honeywisps are such cool creatures, but unfortunately we'll never get many details on them due to the whole 'disappears completely upon death' thing. I worked with what I had, though.

HONEYWISP FAMILY

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Exspiravit
Class: Clearderma
Order: Ovumus

EMILY'S PERSONAL NOTES

Out of all the creatures on this planet, this one is one of the most fascinating. Everything about it is just… how?! Not to mention that it's rather elegant as it drifts on the wind. The one problem with it is that it is borderline impossible to study in detail. Not only does it teleport around whenever it darn well pleases, but its body just… ceases to exist upon death. I've spent sooo long trying to get as many details as I could, but the inability to properly dissect them will forever lead to some mysteries never being solved.

Yeah, yeah, I know. Finding stuff out is my job. Unfortunately, when you go into science, you quickly learn that you will never find all the answers, and the answers that you do find are liable to change the next day. Need I bring up the researcher who thought the Crawbster was peaceful?

In all seriousness, you have to look up 'cliones'. Yes, they are essentially sea slugs, but their translucent skin makes them look like angels. I know most people think slugs are ugly and gross (for whatever reason) but cliones might make you change your mind.

PHYSICAL APPEARANCES

The Nektara fatuus (Honeywisp) is best described as resembling a ghost, or a clione. Its outer body is translucent and shaped like a teardrop, while its inner body - which acts as a core of sorts - is pink. There are two 'branches' that extend from this pink body to the surface of the outer body to function as basic eyes. It has two small arms, and a tail capable of carrying objects multiple times its own weight.

Its outer body appears to be made up of what can only be described as ectoplasm, feeling much like jelly that hasn't quite set yet.

HABITAT

Honeywisps have proven themselves to be able to live just about anywhere there's plants, regardless of the climate or even altitude. They can be found in places as cold as the Valley of Repose to the tropical Perplexing Pool, seemingly unaffected by temperatures due to their ectoplasmic make-up. They also live in caves, deep underground, as long as there is some sort of plantlife growing, and can also thrive in high altitudes even as the atmosphere thins.

DIET AND DEFENCES

As their name implies, Honeywisps feast primarily on nectar or honey. They collect this nectar to bring back to their nests for their hungry larvae, and will often form a hard shell around their spoils so it resembles an egg. This egg has also been recorded to carry the nectar of the Fructus cursimius (Burgeoning Spiderworts), though rarely.

Honeywisps do not have any real means of offence or defence. This should, theoretically, make them liable to getting eaten by just about every creature on the planet and essentially into cannon fodder. However, they are near impossible to kill thanks to one simple characteristic - they are perhaps the only creature in the galaxy that naturally has the ability to teleport. If they are struck by the lightest of forces, they will unleash a cry and then disappear into thin air. This may look like the creature has died, but it will reappear someplace else.

SOCIAL STRUCTURE

Honeywisps typically travel together in tightly-knit groups, though solo wanderers are not too rare. Though specimens often do not interact with each other, they have demonstrated an ability to understand connections between each other. This becomes clear when a swarm of Honeywisps disappear and later reappear somewhere else in the same place, albeit in a different arrangement.

COURTING AND CHILDREARING

Due to their wildly different genetic makeup compared to almost every other creature on this planet (with some exceptions, see 'Wraith'), they have a wildly different manner of reproduction. To say they reproduce asexually would not quite sum it up.

When the time comes for a Honeywisp child to be 'born', the parents will remove one small part of themselves and combine them much like mushing two colours of play-dough together. They do this several times until only the pink inner body remains, whereupon the outer body will regrow in a matter of seconds. Each little ball of material will slowly (six months at the minimum) grow into a Honeywisp.

In times of desperation and incredibly low population numbers, the parent Honeywisps may use up their 'material' so quickly and vastly that they cannot possibly regenerate, leading to the creatures' inevitable demise. This tactic works out surprisingly well, for up to fifty offspring can be created through this method, versus a 'mere' twenty-five the normal way.

The only thing that really prevents the Honeywisp from becoming the dominant species on the planet is their strikingly low reproduction rates. Not only does it take a while for Honeywisps to reach maturity, but they only seem to mate once every decade.

OTHER NOTES

Further research on this creature is near impossible, for they will dissipate into thin air upon their death. This renders them impossible to dissect. On top of their teleportation making containment difficult at best, studying Honeywisps will continue to be uphill battle.

NOTES FROM OTHER RESEARCHERS

Honeywisp -

They're so lovely as they drift away in the air… and so mysterious too. Why can we never find out just what makes these creatures tick? It's like seeing a beautiful ship but never finding out what it looks like on the inside. - Alph

I want to be like a Honeywisp. Just imagine it. Drifting blissfully through the air… disappearing when the going gets tough… looking like an angel… and, of course, being able to carry a big blob of sweet delicious nectar everywhere! - Brittany

I'm not entirely unconvinced that these guys aren't playing spy for the other side. Think about it. They float above us and so get a good view, and when you notice they're there... DING! They teleport away! I have no doubt that they must be gathering intel for the others. ... Then again, they're so harmless, that it seems unlikely. - Captain Charlie

Author Notes - Fun Fact: I made it so these things share a class with the 'Wraith' family. You can guess who that makes them related to then.

Next time... oh god, there are Jellyfloats everywhere. Where's SpongeBob when you need him? ... I stole this joke from a YouTuber.