Aspidochelone Juvenile

A somewhat more polished take on the Aspidochelone ([link]), addressing some of the comments about island size relative to whale host, barnacle stem elasticity, etc. I really wanted to get a sense here of the whale as an entire massive, mobile ecosystem, from the bird-eating dry-land barnacles atop the "island," to the various species of plantkon- and fish-feeding barnacles on the "continental shelf" of its sloping brow, down to the healing Vamporpoise scars on its vast benthic underside. I also wanted to convey a sense of the animal's great longevity, even in a relatively young individual--I'm not sure that really comes across here. Lastly, I was hoping to reinforce the association between the barnacles and abyssal tube worms, which were the inspiration for the chemosynthetic symbiosis.

Ideally I'd also like to do more refined versions of the Snorkoise and Vamporpoise. Stay tuned!