TAXONOMY AND EVOLUTION
The Aphem species is still considered new, only being discovered about 100 years ago. Not many skeletons have been found past 150 years old, and not many have shown variation at all other than in the head, which seems to be the same variations found in today's Aphems depending on the temperature and humidity of the fetus when developing.
There are currently three active archaeological sites where large colonies were once found. These archaeologists are hoping that they are able to find previous evolutions of the Aphems to learn more about them and where they came from.
Wild Species Surviving into Modern Times
The reason behind Aphems living into modern times is clear. This species is greatly populated and have little predators. As of today, there are still thousands of wild herds of Aphems in mountain ranges, and hundreds of domestic Aphem breeders around the world.
The first colony of Aphems was found high in the Alps after a hiker collapsed from exhaustion. When he was found, Aphems were surrounding his body hunting after bugs and insects hoping to feed and breed in the body. The Aphems fled into the trees when the search party arrived, however not before being seen by one of the search party members. Eventually, others went out to find these creatures, and after capturing one a scientific investigation began on these creatures. The Aphems were then named after the deceased hiker that led to the find, Jeremy Aphem.
Other Modern Aphems
Through selective and somewhat risky breeding, the Miniature Aphem was born. These creatures were only developed due to a photoshopped image rising of a Aphem resting comfortably on a finger. The demand for these “finger sized” Aphems suddenly rose, however it was impossible to create genuine finger sized Aphems. The Miniature Aphems were bred to be about half the size of the full size Aphems, and come with a long list of genetic medical issues. These creatures are more prone to arthritis, repository issues, organ failures, and have a much lower immune system.