#chaurus

Chaurus Mount with Falmer Rider

Concept for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

So we know the Falmer have some sort of relationship with Chaurus: much of their infrastructure and armor is made from Chaurus chitin, they have corrals that they keep Chaurus and their eggs in, and Chaurus are found pretty much exclusively among Falmer settlements and Falmer settled caves/ruins. I imagine it's also safe to say Chaurus are likely a food source for them. This relationship has been going on for at least a few millennia since we see Chaurus among the frozen Falmer that attacked the Chantry of Auri-El in Dawnguard.

Forgive my inclusion of the HUD in my screenshots lol

How did their relationship form?

I've always wondered what exactly the relationship is between the two. Is the relationship just mutualism where they both benefit from living among each other, full blown domestication of the Chaurus, or are the Chaurus wild animals the Falmer simply tame?

(for clarity's sake, taming is when an individual animal is tolerant of "human" presence while domestication is the evolutionary process where one species has evolved under the mutualistic control of another. Dogs and cattle are domesticated, foxes and deer aren't, even though they may also be kept as pets or get acclimated to human presence)

I lean towards a mutualistic relationship. While they may appear tamed or domesticated because we see the corrals that the Falmer keep them in, and we know the Falmer kill them to use their resources, the ubiquity of Falmer and Chaurus working together across most Falmer settlements we see makes me think it's unlikely to be a circumstance of taming, but the size and aggression of Chaurus makes me hesitant to assume they're domesticated. Typically domesticated species become less aggressive and smaller (with a few exceptions like horses) as they are domesticated over generations. It could be a minor touch of domestication though, since domestication involves mutualism anyway. The Falmer obviously benefit from this relationship for food, protection, materials, etc. and perhaps the Chaurus benefit from the husbandry of the Falmer protecting their young and providing them food. Perhaps the Falmer providing safety for their eggs and young has selected for Chaurus individuals that are less aggressive towards the Falmer over generations. Even if part of the reason the Falmer keep them is to kill them, it still proliferates Chaurus and increases their survivability to adulthood.

From what I can remember, we rarely if ever see Chaurus independent from Falmer settlements. Perhaps, after millennia of cooperation (although real world evolution takes way longer, I am ignoring that because it would make this whole post less fun), the Chaurus that had traits that allowed them to more easily live among the Falmer lived longer, had more offspring that lived longer, and over time the Chaurus as a species became dependent on the Falmer. Hell, with the Falmer being blind, perhaps the Falmer are somewhat dependent on Chaurus.

Falmer uses of Chaurus

Which leads my to my next set of thoughts, what other ways could the Falmer use or depend on Chaurus. In canon, we know they use their chitin shells for armor and building structures, but we also have concept art depicting them riding Chaurus as well.

Remember how I mentioned earlier that horses increased in size as they were domesticated. Maybe they same is true for Chaurus?

As I mentioned in a previous post, I think the idea of Chaurus as mounts could be interesting paired with the Falmer's lack of sight. If you need to move as a group, transport materials, or navigate complex cave systems, riding an animal that can traverse them more easily (both because they can see and because, as we see in ESO, they can climb walls easier) would make the Falmer as a group more mobile and organized over larger distances.

Other potential uses for Chaurus includes food, both the meat of the adults and the eggs. While they probably have a few other sources of meat underground from the stray mammal, Chaurus would be a much more reliable source of protein. Chaurus are probably also good at defense, both in being able to warn of potential threats and attack them. I imagine your average Falmer is more aware of the meaning of various Chaurus calls and vocalizations, which means the response of the Chaurus could help the Falmer figure out the nature of a potential threat.

Chaurus Hunters

The Chaurus we see among the Falmer in the games appear to actually be the larval stage of Chaurus. At the end of this life stage they form cocoons and eventually emerge as Chaurus Hunters, wasp-like flying bugs (tangent: I thought these were predators that hunted Chaurus for years lol). But what relationship do the Falmer have with this phase of the Chaurus' life cycle? Truthfully, we know very little about Chaurus Hunters. We do observe that their cocoons are found near falmer settlements, which makes sense since that's where Chaurus are present, and we know they are tougher enemies in-game than the other Chaurus variants. UESP also states, "While Chaurus and Chaurus Reapers are set to be "pets" of Falmer, Chaurus Hunters (of both varieties) are not, likely due to them having to "hatch" from a cocoon, first." I'll be honest, I'm not sure exactly what this means since I think it's talking from a gameplay mechanics perspective. This does mean, for our purposes at least, that we don't get an opportunity to see them present among Falmer.

So I have two ideas for what the relationship is between Falmer and Chaurus Hunters: 1) They basically maintain the same mutualistic relationship, and we just don't see it in practice because of gameplay limitations (they all start out in cocoons in Skyrim and aren't present at all in ESO). Perhaps, in this case, the Falmer are still an advantageous ally because they protect the cocoons. The Hunters could be beneficial to the Falmer as they can navigate more easily (although I'm not sure someone could ride one of them) and are more formidable foes. My other, less conventional idea is 2) the mutualistic relationship between the Falmer and Chaurus is over after the larval stage. After emerging from their cocoon, Chaurus Hunters are too aggressive or hard to corral for the Falmer, and they live on their own in the caves of Skyrim independent of the Falmer. This could explain why we see so little of them in the games. This theory makes way less sense (especially because it would mean the potential larval Chaurus stage is the one that lays the eggs), but I think it would be an interesting relationship to explore!

Dwemer, Falmer, and Chaurus

One last little idea I'd like to put forth (and, disclaimer, this is my most "making shit up" thought of this post) is what did the Dwemer think of the Chaurus, having lived underground with them before disappearing themselves? The Dwemer don't really give me the "getting along with nature and animals" vibes, so I'm going to go ahead and assume Chaurus were just really big pests. What if the Falmer used that to their advantage when they rebelled/went to war with/attacked(?) the Dwemer in the decades before their disappeance (context, if you aren't aware). Perhaps this is the origin of the mutualistic relationship between the two.

Art time

Finally, it's probably a job or task among Falmer to take care of the group's Chaurus. I imagine it's not the safest job given how big and aggressive Chaurus seem to get. Since I already did that post about Falmer attire, I thought I'd make another one based on that idea :)

So what is Blacreach? Blackreach is a massive underground system of caves, caverns and tunnels that span underneath the holds of The Pale, Winterhold, Hjaalmarch, Haafingar and The Reach, and it’s also home to various creatures and inhabited by the Falmer. It’s most noticeable cave being it’s namesake Blackreach or in Dwemer “Fal'Zhardum Din” or "Blackest Kingdom Reaches". Now as we all know one of the most notable features in Blackreach has to be its bioluminescent walls and celling which in my opinion appeared to be some form of fungus, Lichen or Moss.

Some might say these are Glowworms but these glowing ceilings appear in almost every cavern inhabited by Falmer, such as Darkwater Pass and the giant Mushroom Trees appearing in Darkfall Passage and the rest of the Vale.

Flora Hive-Mind? Uhh Explain Yourself

I’m glad you asked because it’s about to get very science-icy in here involving plants their root system/structure and chemicals. Have you ever mowed a lawn, broke a stem or tore a leaf in half? If you said yes to one of those things you would have noticed a peculiar pleasant smell. Well that’s the chemical reaction of a plant screaming in agony releasing a signal to all surrounding flora that there is an unforeseen threat that is harming them and that they should keep their guide up. And another way plants can communicate with each other is through their root system which can connect the largest of trees to the smallest blade of grass, and one of the biggest connectors in this system is… Fungus aka Mushrooms. Now this form of air communication is called Biosemiotics but particularly form is Volatile Organic Compounds. Which are chemical signals released by plants to signal plants to warm of them potential threats or to attract pollinators, and the root base communication is called Mycorrhizae in where roots and fungi are connected underground in a mostly beneficial relationship. This root/fungus base communication allows plants to share information, nutrients, water and even provide aid for damaged or sickly plants and works as a massive support group in different ways.

Also not only are the walls and ceiling of Blackreach are covered in glowing fungus but on the cavern floor stands large and almost tree like Mushrooms that tower over creatures and buildings. If these over sized mushrooms have a Taproot structure that would mean they go deep into the ground and hold it from any form of erosion, either from underground water and rivers which Blackreach has. This also goes for the long glowing tendrils that come from the ceiling and ground.

Now for my Blackreach Hive-Mind theory, so while exploring the various Falmer dwellings you’ll find that various species of mushrooms from near the entrance to deep within their lair. Now although mushrooms don’t have roots they do have Mycelium, these are fungi threads that can span deep and extend miles connecting large areas of flora to a network of beneficial interest. Three places of interest in this theory are Shimmermist Cave, Lost Echo Cave and Darkwater Pass all of which are Falmer inhabited, home to glowing mushrooms and show no sign of entry to Blackreach accessible to the player, but let’s say that the Falmer Wall Holes lead to unseen tunnels and caverns that also contain glowing fungus which would mean a large network of connections back to Blackreach fungal mass. So if we use the examples of root/fungal network and how they use this to share information, resources and aid we also know that Falmer caves and Dwemer ruins are all over Skyrim, so if we used this information that would mean that the entirety of Skyrim surface area from farms, forest and meadows are connected to deep underground tunnels allied with fungus that Mycelium threads connect them to a larger network of underground ecosystems doing everything in its power to live and thrive.

(corn is know to release a chemical signal that wasps will pick up to come to it’s aid when it it’s being eaten by pest such as locust)

How does this benefit the Ecosystem?

Skyrim is a large and diverse nation when it comes to weather and its environment, but even evaluation has it’s effects on how temperatures work. But to simplify it, the Northern Parts of Skyrim are cold while the Southern Parts are Warmer but that doesn’t matter as winter will still cause frost and if Nir tilts like Earth, then night will be longer and more intense etc.

But let’s so it’s winter and most of the Flora has “died” and won’t be able to photosynthesize, well that to worry as Skyrim is full of Pine/Spruce trees which are Evergreens. That means they do not lose their foliage and have the ability to attain nutrients from the sun, and they actually share their nutrients with their dominant neighbors and they share these nutrients with the previous fungal Mycorrhizal Network. Now let’s other important nutrients from decaying plants/animals aren’t as abundant as before well the surface won’t have to worry as deep beneath the surface are large tunnels and caves filled with Falmer and Chaurus, Vale Deer, Durzogs, Trolls and insects such as Spiders, Moths, Shroom Beetles, Cockroaches, Nixads and even Gloomspore Creatures. Which are giant sentient fungal growths that take the form of animals.

So now let’s say there’s a drought in Whiterun hold the fungus in Blackreach can share much needed water and let’s say theirs a blight effecting the trees in Haafingar Hold, again the glowing fungus from the tunnels would be able to transfer that information to the network system and warm the other of a possible threat and to prepare antibodies for themselves and to send to the infected plants. As plants do in real life

How Does This Benefit The Falmer?

One thing I noticed while in Blackreach is that it’s able to support Trees, Shrubs and Grasses, which would mean that the bioluminescent that is produced from the wall and ceiling glowing fungus, lichen or moss and the giant mushrooms like trees/tendrils are able to produce the same amount of ultraviolet lights as the sun. which would give the Falmer and other creatures a daily/yearly supply of vitamin D which would give them stronger bones and immune system, but that is not all. The root from the tress and mycelium from the fungus would hold the ground, cleaning and walls tightly keeping the ground above and below them steadily in place.

Also water from the surface that will be absorbed by the ground will be purified from pollutes and other undesirable materials. As roots and tightly compacted soil will work as a natural filter and provide clean drinking water to the Falmer, creatures and foliage that grows there. Also according to Elder Scrolls lore the Mushrooms that cause the blindness in Falmer are ironically extinct so that don’t have that to worry about but they do still have a large option when it comes to edible vegetables as they could grow crops like the Falmer in the Vale do.

(And if you ever had to de-weed or cut roots, you’ll know what I mean)

End

I think I written and botched enough of what I was originally thinking and thought/theorized about. I hope I made sense and that the read wasn’t boring but I had fun and I hoped you liked it too.