Morphospace

The space of all possible forms. On the left, random peppering — vast, noisy, unnavigable. On the right, developmental rules create structure. Clusters of viable form emerge, reachable step by step.

Random peppering Developmental rules constraint

Click the structured side to zoom in

Worlds

Different worlds, different rules. Each one changes what you find when you zoom in.

Embryology
Developmental toolkits shape form-space. Recursion, segments, gradients.
Composite
Creatures made of creatures. Zoom in and find more organisms.
Locomotive
Selection for movement. Form meets function meets physics.

Choose a world to explore

Embryology

Each developmental toolkit opens a different region of form-space. More rules doesn't mean fewer forms — it means more structure to explore.

Recursive
Branching trees from 9 genes. Symmetry makes every mutation meaningful.
mode 1 · 9 genes
Segmented
Repeat the body plan. Arthropods, centipedes, vertebrae.
mode 3 · 11 genes
Gradient
Segments that taper and transform. Organic, flowing forms.
mode 5 · 13 genes
Symmetry Variants
Same genes, new axes. Up-down, radial — one genome, many body plans.
symmetry · 9 genes

Pick a developmental toolkit to explore

Colony

A population shaped by developmental rules. Hidden genetic diversity — the raw material of evolution.

Click a creature to zoom in

Organism

Select. Breed. Shape evolution with your choices. Each offspring is one mutation away.

Genome

The developmental recipe. Every gene shapes the embryology. Fossil genes carry silent history. Duplications open new degrees of freedom.

Colony

A population of composite organisms. Each one is built from smaller creatures cooperating as sub-units — like cells in a body.

Click a composite creature to zoom in

Composite Organism

A creature? Or a colony wearing a body plan? The large-scale structure is one genome. But zoom in and each sub-unit is its own evolved organism.

Sub-organisms

Each sub-unit is itself an evolved creature with its own genome. Mitochondria were once free-living bacteria. Every cell in your body is a composite.

Colony

A population under selection for movement. Form follows function — streamlined, jointed, built to go.

Click a creature to zoom in

Organism in Motion

Morphology is only half the story. The same body can crawl, swim, or bounce — the gait genome controls how.

Kinematics

Two genomes working together: one for form, one for motion. The body plan genome and the gait genome evolve in tandem.

Morphology
Gait genome