Tyto Ecology

Tyto Ecology is an ecology simulation in which you build a biodome and create an ecosystem from the ground up. You balance producers, consumers and decomposers, using experimentation to learn life science principles and sustain—or disrupt—the life in your biodomes. The game is calm and slow-paced until problems arise, and up to a year can pass while you are away, changing the ecosystem and potentially leaving issues to handle when you return.

Build an ecosystem

You begin with an empty biodome and can customize it with over 70 animals and plants. Plants form the basis of each biome. They regenerate leaves for animals to eat, and reproduce through vegetative, flowering and/or fruiting cycles. Some plants need pollinators to pass through the blooming phase, while animals must eat fruit for the greatest possible number of seeds to germinate.

Consumers include herbivores, insectivores, predators, scavengers and omnivores. Animals live and breed in territories over time, eating appropriate food and, in many cases, becoming food themselves. Poisonous or tough species, such as tortoises, limit which animals can eat them.

Keep the cycle balanced

Plants and animals produce detritus over time, so decomposers are needed to complete the cycle of life. If detritus builds up, poop, bones and debris appear in the ecosystem, reducing the health of everything in it. A data tool with a map lets you monitor the ecosystem, and ecological challenges provide achievements.

Tools and play

The game includes a sandbox mode, Photo Mode for capturing moments, and educational gameplay aligned with Middle and High School Next Generation Science Standards.