Gildrons

The gildron genus replaced its ancestors the gilded gildring, armored gildring, floating gildron, polar gildron and other extant gildrons. Gildrons are a highly successful form of photosynthetic Masoni microorganisms. They are found globally, with the majority being water-dwelling (although a few do live on land). Their distinctive features include both a spore-producing center and chitinous plates that cover their outsides that are used as protection. Forming the base of many ecosystems, gildrons are common throughout Mason's waters.

The majority are around 500 µm in size, but the largest may achieve the size of 1 cm. Almost all are free-floating, with a few of the larger, more armored species being immobile. Some species possess a thinner, semitransparent shell, sacrificing armor for more energy towards reproduction. The number of chitin segments, and their arrangement, varies wildly from species to species. One particular species forms into colonies, forming crusts on rocks and flora. Most are more or less circular, although several species are elliptical.