Field Guide
Volume 01
MALIA
The Machine Kingdom
60 species concepts
6 kingdoms · 1 shared intelligence
The Field
Guide.
60 biological solutions, read as engineering problems. Every entry is a proposed research or product concept — not a manufactured, fielded or validated robot.
MALIA does not build robotic animals. It studies biological capabilities and engineers them into practical systems. Readiness marks are planning categories, not formal TRLs.
(01) — Index
Every program, one intelligence.
Filter by kingdom or readiness, or search the index by animal, program or capability.
● Now — Assemblable largely from mature, demonstrated technology.
◐ Build — Requires meaningful proprietary engineering and field validation.
○ Research — Higher-risk program; key advantages remain experimental.
Readiness is a MALIA planning category, not a formal technology-readiness level. Every entry is a proposed concept — none is manufactured, fielded or validated.
(60) — of 60 programs
- 01TUSKMammothMammuthus primigeniusAutonomous heavy field logistics: payload carriage, mobile power and casualty-support transport.TERRAFlagship◐ Build
- 02TRUNKElephantLoxodonta africanaHeavy platform with a dexterous arm for handling materials in unstructured sites.TERRA○ Research
- 03WARDENWolfCanis lupusCooperative ground robots for perimeter inspection, hazardous-area sensing and facility support.TERRA● Now
- 04HOUNDDogCanis lupus familiarisGeneral-purpose quadruped tasks: patrol, search support and payload escort.TERRA● Now
- 05IBEXMountain goatOreamnos americanusSteep, broken-terrain mobility for inspection, rescue and remote logistics.TERRA◐ Build
- 06DUNECamelCamelus dromedariusLong-range autonomous logistics across desert and austere environments.TERRA◐ Build
- 07PACKERMuleEquus × mulusPayload-mule platform that follows and resupplies dismounted teams.TERRA● Now
- 08STRIDECheetahAcinonyx jubatusHigh-speed ground reconnaissance and rapid response over open terrain.TERRA○ Research
- 09BURROWMoleTalpa europaeaSubterranean inspection, tunnelling support and buried-infrastructure sensing.TERRA○ Research
- 10LEVEEBeaverCastor canadensisAutonomous small-scale earthworks: flood mitigation and bank reinforcement.TERRA○ Research
- 11NOCTUAOwlTyto albaAerial robot that reaches a vantage point, perches, powers down and becomes a persistent sensor node.AERFlagship◐ Build
- 12VISTAEagleAquila chrysaetosWide-area mapping, change detection, disaster assessment and infrastructure reconnaissance.AER● Now
- 13FARWINGAlbatrossDiomedea exulansLong-endurance autonomous aerial survey optimized for persistent coverage.AER◐ Build
- 14HOVERHummingbirdArchilochus colubrisStation-keeping micro-UAV for close inspection of structures and confined outdoor sites.AER◐ Build
- 15DARTDragonflyAnax imperatorAgile micro-platform for pursuit-free close-quarters manoeuvre and inspection.AER○ Research
- 16STOOPPeregrine falconFalco peregrinusRapid-descent sensing for time-critical assessment of inaccessible points.AER○ Research
- 17APUSSwiftApus apusUltra-long-endurance platform that treats landing as the exception.AER○ Research
- 18CONDORAndean condorVultur gryphusHigh-altitude persistent observation and communications relay.AER○ Research
- 19VESPERSBatPipistrellus pipistrellusGPS-denied flight using acoustic sensing in caves, tunnels and dark structures.AER○ Research
- 20MONARCHMonarch butterflyDanaus plexippusMinimal-mass disposable aerial sensors for wide, temporary coverage.AER○ Research
- 21VEILManta rayMobula birostrisLong-duration underwater inspection, environmental sensing and subsea infrastructure monitoring.PELAGICFlagship◐ Build
- 22PULSEDolphinTursiops truncatusAcoustic mapping, sonar perception and navigation for low-visibility underwater environments.PELAGIC● Now
- 23REACHOctopusOctopus vulgarisCompliant underwater manipulation for inspection, retrieval and maintenance in constrained geometry.PELAGIC○ Research
- 24MAKOShortfin makoIsurus oxyrinchusHigh-speed surface and subsurface patrol craft.PELAGIC○ Research
- 25ABYSSAnglerfishMelanocetus johnsoniiDeep-sea sensing and persistent presence at extreme pressure.PELAGIC○ Research
- 26DRIFTJellyfishAurelia auritaUltra-low-power drifting sensor bodies for persistent ocean data.PELAGIC○ Research
- 27SONGHumpback whaleMegaptera novaeangliaeLong-range underwater acoustic communication and positioning research.PELAGIC○ Research
- 28REEFCoralAcropora milleporaFixed subsea sensor infrastructure deployed for years at a time.PELAGIC◐ Build
- 29JETSquidLoligo vulgarisBurst-mobility inspection vehicles for rapid station changes.PELAGIC○ Research
- 30UPWELLAtlantic salmonSalmo salarGNSS-denied return-to-base navigation for long-range marine missions.PELAGIC○ Research
- 31COLONYLeafcutter antAtta cephalotesDistributed task allocation and fleet coordination that stays useful when individual nodes fail.SWARMFlagship◐ Build
- 32HIVEHoneybeeApis melliferaCooperative sensing in which many inexpensive nodes construct a shared operating picture.SWARM◐ Build
- 33LUMENFireflyPhotinus pyralisDeployable sensor and beacon mesh for navigation, emergency marking and distributed awareness.SWARM● Now
- 34MOUNDTermiteMacrotermes bellicosusCollective construction research: many simple robots building what none could plan alone.SWARM○ Research
- 35MURMURStarlingSturnus vulgarisCoordinated aerial group behaviour for wide-area sensing and coverage.SWARM○ Research
- 36KRILLAntarctic krillEuphausia superbaMassed low-cost marine sensor swarms for basin-scale observation.SWARM○ Research
- 37SHOALSardineSardina pilchardusCollective underwater sensing that re-forms around obstacles and losses.SWARM○ Research
- 38HOPPERDesert locustSchistocerca gregariaRapidly deployable ground sensor fields that self-organize on arrival.SWARM○ Research
- 39CHORUSPeriodical cicadaMagicicada septendecimDistributed acoustic sensing and mesh signalling across terrain.SWARM○ Research
- 40WEAVESociable weaverPhiletairus sociusCooperative fabrication and assembly by teams of simple agents.SWARM○ Research
- 41CLINGTokay geckoGekko geckoVertical and inverted-surface inspection for structures, ships, tanks and industrial assets.ADAPTFlagship● Now
- 42COILSidewinderCrotalus cerastesArticulated robot for pipes, voids, tunnels and other inaccessible spaces.ADAPT◐ Build
- 43NEWTSalamanderSalamandra salamandraAmphibious crawling and swimming inspection for drains, flooded infrastructure and littoral zones.ADAPT◐ Build
- 44CHROMAPanther chameleonFurcifer pardalisAdaptive surface materials for thermal and optical signature research.ADAPT○ Research
- 45INCHGeometer moth larvaGeometridaeSoft robots that compress through gaps far smaller than their resting size.ADAPT○ Research
- 46SPINNEROrb-weaver spiderAraneus diadematusTether-deploying robots that lower, secure and sensor-rig themselves into place.ADAPT○ Research
- 47LEAPAmerican bullfrogLithobates catesbeianusJumping mobility research for obstacles, debris and rough terrain.ADAPT○ Research
- 48SCALEPangolinSmutsia temminckiiProtected mobile sensors for hazardous and contaminated environments.ADAPT○ Research
- 49ADHEREBanana slugAriolimax columbianusWet-adhesion climbing research for contaminated and irregular surfaces.ADAPT○ Research
- 50SHEDWall lizardPodarcis muralisModular joints designed to detach and be abandoned to save the machine.ADAPT○ Research
- 51LEXICONSongbirds & corvidsTaeniopygia guttata · Corvus coraxLearned, bandwidth-efficient machine-to-machine communication across heterogeneous robots.INSTINCTFlagship○ Research
- 52ORACLEMultisensory cognitionAnimaliaProbabilistic shared-world model fusing uncertain observations from many robots.INSTINCTFlagship○ Research
- 53MEMORYClark's nutcrackerNucifraga columbianaPersistent semantic world model linking places, objects, events and mission history.INSTINCT◐ Build
- 54PRISMMantis shrimpOdontodactylus scyllarusMultispectral and polarization perception research for degraded environments.INSTINCT○ Research
- 55SCENTDetection dogCanis lupus familiarisTrace-chemical sensing research for leak, hazard and search applications.INSTINCT○ Research
- 56REFLEXCatFelis catusLow-level reactive control research: balance and recovery faster than planning.INSTINCT○ Research
- 57SCARABDung beetleScarabaeus satyrusCelestial and polarization compass research for GNSS-denied navigation.INSTINCT○ Research
- 58MERIDIANEuropean robinErithacus rubeculaMagnetic-field navigation research as a satellite-free positioning layer.INSTINCT○ Research
- 59TRAILAnt stigmergyFormicidaeIndirect coordination research: agents leaving machine-readable traces for each other.INSTINCT○ Research
- 60SOMAOctopus nervous systemOctopodaDistributed edge-compute architectures where limbs sense and decide locally.INSTINCT○ Research