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Wallace Quails (Wallacecortuniraptor spp.) (Wallace-quail-thief)
Creator: Disgustedorite
Ancestor: Quail Raptor
Habitat: Wallace
Size: 10-20 cm long
Support: Endoskeleton (Chitin)
Diet: Omnivore (Various kinds of small wingworms, vermees, kruggs, mikuks, gundis, burrowing larvae of larger creatures such as Teacup Saucebacks, Crunchy Trufflegrass crumples, small fruit and berries, seeds, shrooms, marbleflora and other small easily-digestible flora)
Respiration: Active (Microlungs)
Thermoregulation: Endotherm (Feathers)
Reproduction: Sexual (Male and Female, Hard-Shelled Eggs in Burrow)

The Wallace quails are a genus of small, primitive, quail-like biats. Like the terran birds they share their name with, they primarily live on the ground rather than in trees and primarily fly to escape predators. Unlike terran quails, however, the Wallace quails are excellent burrowers, allowing them to keep their eggs and chicks safe from predators. It is this remarkable adaptation that has resulted in their ancestor being replaced within Wallace.

The jaws of Wallace quails are upturned, allowing them to dig by tossing dirt overhead. A ring of feathers on their faces flips back to cover their eyestrils while digging to prevent dirt from entering their open pupils. Though this is slower than digging with a pair of clawed limbs, they do not have a pair of clawed limbs with which to dig, so they are adapted to do this repeatedly very quickly, swiveling their head up and down using fast-twitch muscle fibers.

Wallace quails are unique in that the raising of chicks is handled exclusively by the males. As small creatures with a low chance of surviving to adulthood, it is optimal for a single female to lay eggs as often as possible, however if she has just one nest and one mate there’s a high chance that a predator will find it and devour all the eggs and chicks at once. So, instead, a female will leave her mate as soon as her help in incubation is no longer needed, leaving him to raise the chicks on his own while she seeks a new mate immediately. This speeds up the maximum egg laying rate of a given female without risk of complete waste due to predation, operating on the principle of not putting all of one’s eggs in one basket--or burrow, in this case. This also leaves most males unavailable for mating at a given time, as they are busy raising chicks and can’t afford to raise more, which will sometimes result in females fighting over available mates--either by trying to captivate males better than their competitor, or by literally kicking and biting until one flees. In some cases, with no other options, females might even try to kill a given male’s chicks to make him willing to breed again. In some species, a male that already has eggs or chicks may be receptive regardless, in which case after mating the female will seek a different male, usually of a different species, to raise the chicks for her; this makes them facultative brood parasites.

Like terran hares, Wallace quails avoid drawing attention to the location of their burrow--and therefore eggs and chicks--by staying away while foraging, instead flying to safety when threatened. Before the eggs hatch, the parents take turns hiding in the burrow and sitting on them while the other is away. Once they hatch into feathered chicks, as they no longer need to be incubated, the mother leaves to be able to breed again immediately while the father continues to return to feed them twice a day. In some warm tropical biomes as well as those with the advantage of geothermal heat due to volcanism, the mother might even leave immediately after laying the last of the clutch, leaving all further work to the father. The chicks are developed enough from hatching to run away in the event that the burrow is suddenly exposed, increasing their chances of survival. Once they fledge, they start following their father on foraging trips until they are independent at 6 weeks of age. Wallace quails breed several times a year, even in winter in some species thanks to the insulation provided by burrowing, except in polar biomes where it is still simply too cold.

Clutch size varies from species to species. Wallace quails, and other basal biats, have two functional ovaries unlike birds and thus usually lay an even number of eggs. In alpine regions, the clutch size may be as small as 2, and it may be as large as 18 in warm tropical and volcanic regions. Smaller clutch sizes may also exist in species which have more egg-eating predators, as females will lay a small number of eggs in as many different places as possible.

Digging is not just used for burrowing. Similar to other basal ornitherian saucebacks with upturned jaws, wallace quails use their jaws to turn over dirt and stones and grab and eat any small morsels that they uncover. They may also flip burrowing creatures that attempt to rebury themselves, if they miss their first grab.

There are many species of Wallace quail. They can be split into two main morphological types, woodquail and grassquail. Woodquails are stronger fliers and reside in more wooded biomes (woodlands, rainforests, and dense shrubland), while grassquails are faster runners and live in more open biomes (open shrubland, plains, and desert). The two types overlap in shrublands and can both hybridize and evolve into one another. Some species are sexually dimorphic, with females having more colorful or distinct eyes. Species vary in color according to their environment, blending in with soil, ground flora, snow, or branches and leaf litter according to what is present. Some polar and subpolar species have white winter coats.

Tambite (Scandonychotherium mordax) (biting climbing-claw-beast)
Creator: Disgustedorite
Ancestor: Tambuck
Habitat: Martyk Archipelago Temperate Beaches, Martyk Temperate Woodland Archipelago
Size: 2 meters long
Support: Endoskeleton (Bone)
Diet: Omnivore (Marbleflora, Snotflora, Pioneeroots, Ferry berries, Supershrooms, Tubeplage fruit, Scrubland Tubeplage fruit, Scrubland Quhft fruit, Boreal Tubeplage fruit, Feroak berries, Tropical Gecoba Tree fruit, Quilbil berries, Gecoba Tree fruit, Quhft fruit, Crowned Kingrush, Mainland Fuzzpalm leaves and berries, Qupe Tree fruit, Gumjorn, Topship Fuzzpalm leaves and berries, Barkback, Shrubrattus, Nectarsnapper, Scrambled Shrew, Phouka, Chasing Twintail, Gryphler, Brighteyes, Treehook Tamow, Smirking Soriparasite, Eggslurping Sorite, Twinpaw Twintail, Quail Raptor, Woodsalcon, Coastwoodufo, Underswooper, Songsauce Piper, juvenile Martyk Mega Quail, Sealyn, Vivus Dinarunner, Fansnapper, Shipper Buoyskin, Kakonat, Fatcoat, Sansaws, Rockshorian)
Respiration: Active (Lungs)
Thermoregulation: Endotherm (Fur)
Reproduction: Sexual (Male and Female, Placental, Milk)

Though tambucks were absent from the Martyk archipelago when it first formed, they were present in the surrounding mangals; it was inevitable that some would eventually make it to the islands proper. These island colonizers evolved into the tambite.

In the absence of any large predators in the forests, the tambite has lost its spikes and has taken on more omnivorous dietary habits. Its incisors are fang-like and its jaws are strong, allowing it to dispatch small prey with a well-placed bite that crushes or severs the spinal cord. For most creatures this means biting the neck, but it can easily distinguish saucebacks from other creatures and knows to bite them on the base of the tail instead. It mostly feeds on forest creatures, but it will also hunt on the beaches. As a large creature in an insular environment, though it has technically taken the role of apex predator at the time of evolution, it cannot survive only off of meat, so it also still consumes various flora.

Much like its ancestor, the tambite is semi-arboreal and spends much of its time in trees, using the hooked thumb claws on all four of its feet to aid it in climbing. Unlike its ancestor, it also constructs its den in trees to keep its young safe from smaller ground-dwelling predators. Its tail saw, though smaller than that of other tamjacks, can be used to cut up wood which it can then use to form the den’s radial “skeleton”. The “skeleton” is then covered by a loose net of woven flora dotted with leaves that serve to disguise it, and the interior is filled with a soft bedding of flora, fur, feathers, trichomes, plent cotton, and other insulatory material. This is where it sleeps, and where females give birth.

Unlike its ancestor, the tambite is generally more solitary, with males departing after mating while females have to raise their young on their own. They mate and give birth to 2-4 babies at a time every 1-2 years. Tambites gestate for 6 months, take 3 years to reach full size, and, barring early death by disease or predation, they can live for up to 20 years, the shortened lifespan reducing overcrowding.

The tambite is mostly terrestrial, but as it resides on an archipelago, it inevitably has to disperse in order to survive the loss of old islands. When an island becomes too crowded, tambites will sometimes venture out to the sea and swim off to new islands.

Rock Ferries (Petrofrondus spp.) (rock-frond)
Creator: Disgustedoite
Ancestor: Ferries
Habitat: Wallace, Koseman
Size: 50 cm-2 m tall, 0.5-3 cm long fruit, 3-10 cm long leaves, 0.5-2 mm long seeds, 2-5 cm wide flowers
Support: ?
Diet: Photosynthesis
Respiration: Passive (Stomata)
Thermoregulation: Ectotherm
Reproduction: Sexual (Flowers, Berries, Seeds)

Rock ferries split from their ancestors. These are small sun-loving ferry bushes which are better suited to growing in rocky soil with low organic content. They are able to grow earlier in primary succession than most other perennials and can readily survive on beaches and in temperate deserts. They are most common in shrublands and mountains. Like their larger ancestors and cousins, they have flowers which provide nectar to pollinators and they produce seed-filled berries which are distributed by various fauna, allowing them to be present in both Wallace and Koseman.

Rock ferries evolved from bush-like ferries with hardly any trunk below the branches. Rock ferries essentially re-evolved the trunk from the branches, and technically consist of a single branch with many sub-branches. This is responsible for their smoother bark and more complex growth form. They do not shed whole branches at all.

Rock ferry leaf fronds are generally waxier than their ancestors’ leaves, protecting them from desiccation in their preferred habitats. Ironically, some species also live in rainforests with greater diversity than normal ferries; here, the wax instead makes their leaves hydrophobic so that rainwater drips away.

With bird-like saucebacks increasing in abundance, many rock ferries produce savory berries preferred by them, as the bird-like saucebacks will not chew the seeds and can retain them in their gut for longer than plents such as phlyers can, making them preferable dispersers. Berry clusters are also more tightly packed and blackberry-like, making them easier to eat whole. The berries are usually green and the flowers are usually yellow, but some exceptions exist.

Some rock ferries are very small and hardly recognizable as being a part of the same genus, consisting of just a few leaf fronds seemingly coming right off a short woody base. A remarkable example of the plasticity of flora forms in evolution, these are in fact still just very small rock ferries lacking any sub-branches, produced by any normal-looking shrub undergoing dwarfism. Likewise, they quickly evolve back into forms indistinguishable from the larger, branchier shrubs.

There are many species of rock ferry, which readily hybridize to produce even more species. Most species are in the 1-2 meter range and can be found covering great swaths of land in shrublands and young growth montane forests, and dotting open plains and deserts. They will also be present in young growth forests in general, though they are typically pushed out by the ancestral ferries. They get smaller and smaller the deeper into subpolar and polar regions one goes, and further up in mountains, with the small, woody fern-shaped species occupying the alpine tundra and the most extreme polar regions. Beach species are also generally smaller and have paler leaves; they don't live in the intertidal zone, as they are not especially tolerant to high amounts of salt, but they cope with the salt they are exposed to by depositing it in leaves that are to be shed. In regions with cold winters, they will shed their leaves in the fall, while in mild climates they are everpurple. Depending on the biome, they sprout either at the start of the wet season or following snowmelt in the spring. They may sprout year-round in equatorial regions, including equatorial alpine tundra.

Gossarat (Pilosiglutinator bellus) (cute hairy gluer)
Creator: Disgustedorite
Ancestor: Desert Gossalizard
Habitat: Dingus Bush, Dingus Temperate Woodland, Dingus Temperate Rainforest, Dingus Highboreal, Dingus Lowboreal, Dingus Taiga
Size: 20 cm long
Support: Endoskeleton and Skin-Covered Exoskeleton (Chitin)
Diet: Omnivore (Xenobees, Minikruggs, Xenowasps, Vermees, Teacup Saucebacks, Minibees, Supershrooms, Dartirs, Sapworms, Sweetworms, Uniwingworms, Marbleflora, Cryobowl fruit, Sunstalks, Fuzzweed, juvenile Lahnworm, Pinyuk eggs, Lizalagarto eggs, Fluneriga eggs, Brickbark Ferine berries, Wafflebark Ferine berries, Fuzzpile berries, Dwarf Pinyuk eggs, fallen Vesuvianite Tree crystals, Communal Janit, juvenile Switchfang, juvenile Creab Walker, juvenile Creab Shell, Nectar Crystalworm, Syrup Ferine berries, Wub), Scavenger
Respiration: Active (Tidal Microlungs)
Thermoregulation: Endotherm (Setae)
Reproduction: Sexual (Hemaphroditic, Silk-Wrapped Eggs Buried in Soil)

The gossarat split from its ancestor. It lives all over the Dingus landmass, where it lives as a small burrowing omnivore reminiscent of some kind of unspecialized mammal. Its living carapace, which like in all binucleid worms is made up of chitinous walled cells rather than solely dead material like an insect’s exoskeleton, is covered by leathery skin rather than a dead chitin layer, similar to the most basal lizardworms. Its skin in particular is so thick and hairy that it largely obscures the exoskeleton underneath. The skin does not extend over its claws, and its segments and joints can still be easily felt through its skin. The thick hairy skin serves to keep it warm at its small size in its relatively cool environment. Fully endothermic, it is able to be active throughout the year, unlike many other lizardworm species; in winter, it mostly scavenges and feeds on dead and dormant flora under the snow.

The gossarat’s many chitinous teeth are serrated similarly to a troodontid’s, and are black and faintly banded from layers of heavy sclerotization, which slows the rate at which they wear down in a pattern which maintains the serration. It now has a pair of primitive tympanic ears, formed from skin stretched between the protrusions of its “skull” which were present in its ancestor. The ears allow it to hear predators and prey alike, increasing its chances of survival.

The gossarat’s respiratory system consists of many tidal lungs analogous to the microlungs of saucebacks. Unlike most living lizardworms, which have small, obscure spiracles where visible carapace meets skin, the gossarat’s spiracles are fairly large and visible. Like all other lizardworms, it inhales and exhales by expanding and contracting its back carapace laterally. Because of the redundancy, its lungs are all fairly small, which allows it to breathe very quickly. This is quite valuable for a small burrowing creature due to low oxygen conditions underground.

The gossarat catches its prey in a similar fashion to other gossalizards--by firing gossamers from the nozzles on either side of the face and reeling it in. Its saliva contains warfarin, which prevents its prey’s blood from clotting so it can’t get far before bleeding out even if it escapes. This also makes its bite dangerous to potential predators, should it turn to defend itself. It also eats various flora, and it can use its gossamers to reel in leaves it could not otherwise reach.

As the gossarat is small and relatively easy prey, it breeds several times a year to keep up its numbers. It is hermaphroditic, so all gossarats can breed with all others. Like many hermaphroditic species on Earth, they scuffle over which one gets to be fertilized, though quite unusually for a hermaphroditic species, it is the stronger of the two that is fertilized rather than the weaker. It takes two weeks to produce a clutch of eggs after fertilization, and the eggs are wrapped in silk, buried underground, and abandoned. After laying, a gossarat is fertile again almost immediately, but it is usually weakened--if it tries to lay another clutch so soon, the energy it has to expend doing so might kill it and thus prevent any further breeding opportunities. But breeding often is necessary to keep numbers high in the face of predation, so it retains the drive to mate. This is why the victor being fertilized was selected for--to be able to breed as much as possible while ensuring that the one that lays the eggs is the one that actually has the energy to do so.

Main audio (this goes in the "audio" field in the template): https://file.garden/YofOl4CqGHPlp7p8/sagan4...20alarm%203.ogg
Krikrees (Parusvolucrus spp.) (titmouse winged-things)
Creator: Disgustedorite
Ancestor: Ferry Quail
Habitat: Wallace, Koseman
Size: 10-20 cm long
Support: Endoskeleton (Hollow Chitin)
Diet: Omnivore (Wingworms, Minikruggs, Vermees, Teacup Sauceback larvae, other small binucleid worms, and their eggs; Gamergate Gundis, small Neuks and their descendants, and other small squishy fauna; seeds, nuts, megaspores, small crystals, and small fruit/berries; adult Teacup Saucebacks, small shrews, small plents, and bigger minikruggs during harsh winters)
Respiration: Active (Unidirectional Microlung Network and Air Sacs)
Thermoregulation: Endotherm (Feathers)
Reproduction: Sexual (Male and Female, Hard-Shelled Eggs in Nest)

'''Krikrees''' split from their ancestor and diversified. To the degree that the [[interbiat]] is like a chicken, that the [[Quail Raptor|quail raptor]] is like a quail, and that the [[Ferry Quail|ferry quail]] is like a robin, krikrees are like titmice. These tiny winged [[sauceback]]s are highly adapted for life in the trees, but will sometimes land on the ground to hunt and forage. They can be found all over Wallace and Koseman, anywhere where trees or large shrubs such as [[Snowflake Obsidioaks|snowflake obsidioaks]] and [[ferries]] are present.

==Summary==
Much of the information in this section is described in much more detail in other sections below, which are also linked throughout the summary.

===Changes From Ancestor===
Krikrees [[Krikrees#Anatomy|differ anatomically]] from their ancestors in two main areas, their respiratory system and their eyes. The tail is compressed and very short, and [[Krikrees#Respiratory System|the microlungs]] are partially fused together into unidirectional lungs and squished into the body cavity. Their bones are also hollow and connected to the lungs, making them lighter. [[Krikrees#Eyestrils|The eyestrils]] are all fused into a single pair of compound eyes containing thousands of units, granting them very good eyesight, especially for detecting motion.

Krikrees can [[Krikrees#Vocalization|chirp]] with their tongues, like all saucebacks, but their ability to do so is especially advanced. They can produce a great variety of complex, musical calls by rubbing their comb-like tongue over the numerous differently sized and shaped teeth lining their mouths. Their large mouth cavity amplifies their song.

[[Krikrees#Behavior|Behaviorally]], krikrees also differ from their ancestor in a few major ways. They [[Krikrees#Reproductive Behavior and Nesting|nest]] in cavities, such as tree hollows, rather than constructing nests on branches. They are also [[Krikrees#Social Behavior|social]] with [[Krikrees#Interspecies Social Structure|other species]], even with non-biats, particularly over winter when working together to find food is advantageous. Krikrees are fairly intelligent, and larger species can even [[Krikrees#Tool Use|use simple tools]].

===General Information===
Krikrees are omnivores that [[Krikrees#Hunting and Foraging|hunt small fauna like kruggs and wingworms, and forage for various fruit and seeds]]. They can brachiate, swinging upside-down along branches to catch prey that hides on the undersides of flora to avoid less-agile predators. Their strong beaks can break into seeds and carapace alike.

Some, but not all, krikree species are sexually dimorphic, with males frequently having more colorful eyes, throats, and chests. Krikrees living in Koseman and southern Wallace also have another sexually dimorphic feature, long rachises extending from the ear feathers of the males.

Different species of krikree that live in the same area [[Krikrees#Niche Partitioning|hunt for prey in different parts of the tree]]. Species that live in shadow forests are more carnivorous than their purple forest counterparts.

==General Description==
Krikrees generally share common anatomy. The body is very short and lightweight, and the wings are relatively short, pointed, and broad, suited to short bursts of flight and navigation through tight spaces. The ears are triangular and the tail feathers form a fan of medium length. The head is large, but empty, consisting mostly of an enlarged oral cavity which serves to amplify calls. The eyestrils are small, bright, and numerous, numbering in the thousands, and are clustered together into a single pair of compound structures. The feathers are typically some shade of brown, orange, or yellow with dark spots or stripes, except for the males of some species which may have blue or green patches on the chest and throat. The sauce plate is small and scute-like, and is typically hidden by the body feathers. There are three pairs of spiracles, with a noticeably larger gap between the second and third compared to the first and second. The feathers are generally stiff with a soft down layer underneath, and the skin is dry. They don’t have a particularly noticeable odor.

==Anatomy==
(Note: Although the bones are colored white in these diagrams for clarity, the bones of krikrees--and all other saucebacks--are actually black, due to sclerotin.)
Gallery art by @Evolutionincarnate





Krikrees have a stouter, more compressed body shape than most biats, even more so in proportion to their size than ophreys, and long legs suited to strong flight and moving through trees. They have short, strong beaks which can break through the shells of [[minikruggs]], seeds, and small crystals.

Krikrees are strong fliers yet retain two free toes. This is enabled by the partial sclerotization of the tendon which folds the primary flight feathers, which stabilizes them and allows for much longer primaries than can normally be present on a didactyl species, granting krikrees the benefits of both strong flight and a stable foot posture. This trait is also present in the related Martyk mega quail. (Conversely, monodactyl biats such as ophreys typically lack this tendon at all, as the wing toe completely takes over its role.) This structure holds the feathers very strongly until they are ready to be molted and replaced, and as such it is rather difficult to pluck a primary without injury.

The "tail spurs", branches of the tail which aided their ancestors in clinging to bark, are fully detached from the original tail and float freely like a snake's pelvis. This was technically already the case in the ferry quail, but in krikrees, they are weaker and less flexible because they no longer serve any purpose apart from assisting in mating.

===Feathers===
(Image caption: Krikree chick, showing feather tracts.)

The feathers grow in tracts, or pterylae, on the body. There are five pterylae for flight feathers: caudal (tail fan), left and right alar (wings), and left and right aural (ears). The alar feathers extend from the knee to the first phalange of the wing toe, where the long primaries are held and stabilized by a flap of skin and a partially sclerotized tendon.

The rest of the body feathers are split between the dorsal tract (a U shape on the back that meets in front of the sauce plate), ventral tract (a U shape on the underbelly that meets at the gastralium), femoral tract (wing coverts; not to be confused with a bird’s femoral tract), capital tract (head and neck), and buccal tract (cheeks and throat).

In some species, the capital and buccal tracts meet or even overlap, but developmentally they are separate; in more basal biats, the buccal tract is the feathers in front of the oral ring. An additional pair of tracts, the pulmonary tracts, will sometimes appear on either side of the spiracles by mutation, overlapping with the dorsal tract; this is a vestige of a fourth set of flight feathers that is present in more basal long-tailed biats.


===Eyestrils===
The imperfect compound eyestrils of their ancestor have fused into a single sparkling pair bearing numerous individual eyestrils, which grant krikrees acute image formation compared to other jewel-eyed saucebacks as well as excellent movement detection. Due to their structure involving mirrors and a retina at the front of the eye, unlike the compound eyes of terran arthropods and certain unrelated ukfauna, krikree compound eyes have an external skin component (also present in the single-eyestrils of other jewel-eyed saucebacks) which can be pigmented without impacting their function. This is the reason for their differing appearance from standard compound eyes.

The component eyestrils can still be compressed to focus using tiny muscle fibers running through the compound structure, granting krikrees much better image formation than standard compound eyes. This is possible to accomplish due to the eyestrils being mirror eyes, where the shape of the eye itself is adjusted to focus instead of a separate, smaller lens. As is the case in other [[Jewel-Eyed Saucebacks|ornitherian saucebacks]], the eye consists of a round hollow chamber with a pupil at the front, a concave mirror at the back, and a retina next to the pupil.

Similar to the eyestrils of their relatives, krikree eyestrils have open pupils that let air in to smell and they must flush them with tears to remove debris. When krikrees cry, their eyestrils swiftly overflow and form relatively large tear droplets on the surface of the compound eye. This is because shaking off a large droplet removes tears from multiple eyestrils at once more effectively than trying to remove a much smaller volume contained only in each, due to surface tension and momentum. As this also results in more water loss, they only do this when debris starts to impact their vision (they can afford to wait due to redundancy) or when they need to remove a parasite.

Under some lighting conditions, a large white "pupil" may seem to be present in the dead center of a compound structure regardless of the angle it is viewed at. This is not technically a pupil at all, but the result of the mirrors of the eyestrils facing directly towards the viewer not being obscured.

====Color Vision and Color Preferences====
Like all jewel-eyed saucebacks, krikrees have excellent color vision thanks in no small part to the presence of 6 types of color receptor for the ultraviolet spectrum, which help them distinguish the pigments used by fauna from the pigments of flora that they camouflage against, an ability which their cousins the Argusraptors put into full use to hunt plents. In krikrees and other biats, however, of the 6 types of ultraviolet receptors, 4 of them are only present in a low density and only detect anything at all when a target is actively focused on, and no blending with other colors is perceived. Krikrees thus only passively perceive two distinct ultraviolet primary colors, one of which (UVB) is usually only present in significant quantities in direct sunlight, making them functionally pentachromats and only usefully tetrachromats.

Similar to humans, krikrees and other biats see secondary colors between the primary colors based on multiple kinds of color receptors being stimulated, which their brains automatically blend together (such as producing yellow from the simultaneous detection of red and green). Also like humans, their brains invent colors without a corresponding wavelength for cases where they detect a gap in the spectrum, such as perceiving magenta when they detect red and blue but not green.

However, as they have more than 3 color receptors, krikrees and other biats also have more than one imaginary color for perceiving gaps. They share some of these imaginary colors with birds; red+UVA, green+UVA, red+green+UVA, and red+blue+UVA. More rarely, however, they will also have a chance to see colors that combine with the higher energy UVB wavelengths that they can perceive, but without the lower energy UVA. As these colors are rarer, they are also attention-grabbing and as such can play a significant part in sexual selection when they are produced with structural color. A particular favorite among female krikrees is when it is combined with green and blue, which is responsible for the color of the eyes, chest, and throat on the males of some species (though other colors also exist). They avoid damage to their cells by only “making” a small amount that their ability to repair their DNA can easily keep up with.

===Respiratory System===
The respiratory system of krikrees is compressed entirely inside the hip girdle, effectively making the body cavity end at the cloaca, unlike in other saucebacks where most of the respiratory system is post-anal. Similar to the unrelated ophreys, the microlungs of krikrees are fused into a unidirectional system, but unlike ophreys which have a single pair of macrolungs, krikrees still have three distinct pairs of microlungs. In fact, the missing fourth pair (technically the third, when starting from the sauce and counting along the pulmonary vertebrae) is still present as well, but it has transformed into tubing which connects the other three pairs and no longer has corresponding external spiracles (leaving krikrees with just three pairs). Breathing is powered by the postpelvic gastralium, which is slotted into the back of the hip and is roughly Y-shaped.

When a krikree inhales, air flows into the rearmost pair of microlungs. It then pushes the air through the tubing into the two frontmost pairs, one located near the hip socket and the other nearly up at the neck. Their unusual location makes a krikree’s body more lightweight, similar to the function of air sacs in terran birds. These continue to take in oxygen from that same air while the hindmost pair inhales again before pushing the next breath through, expelling the previous breath from the first two pairs of spiracles. This system is slightly more efficient than the wave flow system employed by ophreys, as only one pair of microlungs powers the entire system.

Extensions of the first and second pairs of microlungs form air sacs which run up the neck and thread into the wing bones, respectively. These extensions serve no purpose in absorbing oxygen, but do make these body parts lighter.

==Behavior==
Krikrees are intelligent and social, and likewise have varied personalities and are capable of many things. Their general behavior may be broken down into many categories.

===Social Behavior===
Krikrees form small flocks for much of the year. Within these flocks, they will form and improve social bonds through mutual preening, and they will clean one another's wounds. This has the effect of causing krikrees in the same flock to share a similar scent, which, while only barely perceptible to them due to their poor sense of smell, has a result of making them calmer if they are in the presence of their flock. This sense of comfort and security causes krikrees to rarely leave their flock when they are more than two years old, and the younger krikrees that disperse to other flocks will sometimes try to form bands with former flockmates for safe travel.

Flocks have established territory, which they will prevent other krikrees of the same species from invading. The males of the flock will also defend nesting locations from different krikree species and other cavity nesters that might try to oust them. Likewise, if there are not enough nesting locations in their territory, pairs will work together to try to oust other species from their nests and take them over.

====Interspecies Social Structure====
Krikrees of different species may be social with one another, though they prefer to stay more separated to avoid accidentally becoming imprinted on the wrong species. Their interactions are not all friendly, however, as larger species will frequently bully smaller ones away from "their" part of the tree. As mentioned previously, krikrees will also defend nesting locations from other species.

Krikrees are non-migratory. Instead, during winter, all krikree species in a given area will put aside their differences and come together into large flocks, which may also merge with flocks of other biats, as well as phlyers and skysnappers. By working together, they can protect themselves from predators and find food more efficiently. When spring arrives, krikrees will usually split back up into their original flocks.

=====With Non-Biats=====
Krikrees are social with some phlyers and skysnappers, foraging by their sides at any time of year but especially winter. The phlyers and skysnappers, frequently being bigger than krikrees, can offer some degree of protection from predators. In exchange, with their superior hearing, krikrees can notify them of danger with their warning calls and abrupt flight.

===Hunting and Foraging===
(Image caption: Krikrees frequently hunt while hanging upside-down from tree branches.)

Krikrees are capable of brachiating, swinging along the underside of branches to catch prey that use the undersides of flora to avoid less-agile predators. To move to a better location more quickly, they can hold on with one wing and flap the other to gain enough momentum to swing back to the top of the branch, where they are also very good at keeping their footing when running along thanks to their long, opposable toes and didactyl foot posture. Krikrees are also capable of foraging on the ground, where they source the majority of their food over winter.

The frequency of the two strategies during the summer correlates with the size of the species, with the largest ones spending more time on the ground and the smallest ones mainly hunting in the trees. In wooded and shrubland biomes, a minimum of three krikree species will coexist partitioning between ground foraging, larger branch foraging, and smaller branch foraging, similar to Earth’s titmice.

(Image caption: Over winter, hungry krikrees may branch out to more difficult sources of protein, such as hunting small saucebacks.)

Several species in regions with cold winters will engage in food caching in the fall, allowing them to stay healthy over winter. Most species will also hunt larger prey such as teacup saucebacks and even shrews and nodents over winter if they cannot find enough food.

When given plenty of options, krikrees will preferentially eat meat and savory fruits (such as those of [[supershrooms]]). They cannot taste sugar, as like all modern saucebacks their ancestors had been hypercarnivores that lost that ability, which is why the umami flavor has taken its place in drawing them to high-energy foods. This also causes some krikrees that have gotten a taste of cooked meat from fauna seared by wildfire to intentionally seek out fire in the future.

===Vocalization===
(Image caption: The twinkle-twinkle krikree (P. scintillare), a medium-sized species native to the temperate woodland regions of Koseman, produces a mating song which sounds remarkably similar to the popular lullaby ‘twinkle twinkle little star’ when slowed down. One is depicted with his ear feathers flared as part of his mating broadcast.)

(Sound files:
Song: https://file.garden/YofOl4CqGHPlp7p8/sagan4...e%20vibrato.ogg
Alarm: https://file.garden/YofOl4CqGHPlp7p8/sagan4...20alarm%203.ogg
Happy chirping: https://file.garden/YofOl4CqGHPlp7p8/sagan4...hirping%202.ogg
Chatter: https://file.garden/YofOl4CqGHPlp7p8/sagan4...chatter%202.ogg
Baby chatter: https://file.garden/YofOl4CqGHPlp7p8/sagan4...y%20chatter.ogg
Growl (Lungs): https://file.garden/YofOl4CqGHPlp7p8/sagan4...ree%20growl.ogg
)

The namesake call of krikrees is produced not by their lungs, but using stridulation. Like other saucebacks, they can produce chirps using their tongue. However, this ability is exceptionally advanced in krikrees. The tongue bears many chitinous bristles, which a krikree can adjust the arrangement of simply by extending or contracting it. It opens its mouth and rubs its tongue against its specialized oral spines, which themselves bear tooth-like serrations, causing them to vibrate and produce sounds which are amplified by the shape of its mouth, like a phone speaker placed in a cup. The sound is more similar to a cricket or other insect chirp than to a bird chirp in how it’s produced, despite the creature’s birdlike appearance. Each group of oral spines corresponds to a specific note, while the adjustment of the tongue alters the exact pitch, allowing for vibrato and other effects. The tongue can also rub against multiple oral spines at once, allowing for chords. The beak will also be clacked for additional sound in some calls.

Krikrees stridulate almost continuously to communicate with others in their flock, as long as they are awake and not frightened by a predator. The namesake “krikree” is actually an alarm call to warn others of a predator so that they may hide. Other calls include a social trill which sounds similar to a cricket chirping and a “chittering” used by juveniles that have not yet gotten the hang of stridulation. Krikrees are still capable of making “creaking” sounds with their lungs, but this is now restricted to the equivalent to a threatening growl (primarily heard in territorial conflicts), as stridulation has completely overtaken it in effectiveness for communication.

===Body Language===
Krikrees have robust body language to display their mood visually in the absence of useful scent-based cues. In general, their overall body language is intuitive to make communication with unrelated creatures easier, such as tensing up when stressed.

Krikrees also have a variety of specific emotional expressions, which often largely involve the face. Many expressions also involve the ears, but if a krikree is in flight, splaying the ears for stability or pinning them for speed takes priority. When raised or otherwise outstretched, the ear feathers naturally splay, and they fold up against one another when the ears are pinned.

* A relaxed, loosely closed or slightly open mouth, ears relaxed, and a slightly bowed head: Happy.
* Loosely closed mouth, head and both ears raised: Alert, interested.
* Jaws clenched, head and both ears raised, twitchy: Alert, cautious.
* Jaws relaxed, head raised and ears facing forwards: Dominant, confident.
* Feathers flat, ears pinned, mouth loosely closed, head bowed or turned away: Submissive.
* Jaws clenched, feathers puffed up, wings bowed out and ears facing forwards: Scared of small or intermediate threat. Trying to look bigger.
* Feathers flat, jaws clenched, ears pinned back, crouching, head held low: Scared of major threat. Trying not to be seen.
* Jaws open or biting, ears pinned back: Aggressive.

Signals:
* One ear raised and facing a visible target: Signal. "Be alert".
* Directional ear flicking: Gesturing in the direction of something.

===Defense===
====Against Predators====
(Image caption: A krikree harassing a [[Biat-Eating Flunejaw|biat-eating flunejaw]].)

Though krikrees are small, they do not live helplessly in fear of predators that might eat them. When a threat is identified, after the flock has fluttered to safety, they will continue to make their alarm call at the threat until it leaves. If it does not, a few brave individuals will start harassing the predator, nipping at vulnerable body parts such as eyes, ears, and wings and using dive-bombs to throw them off balance. Some species may also land on the predator’s head and attempt to shove sticks and leaves into its orifices, primarily the eyes, nostrils, and ear canals. They have to be careful, however, as a swipe or a bite could break a limb--which would be a death sentence, as it renders them unable to walk or fly. They are usually successful in the end, as even if they do no lasting harm, the predator will still eventually tire of the harassment and leave. This allows them to safely resume foraging without further risk.

When faced with a smaller predator, rival, or other threat, krikrees are also capable of defending themselves on their own. Beneath their soft feathery exterior, they have very muscular legs--though all biats have large leg muscles, as they are strong fliers, those of krikrees are, proportionally, as strong as those of the much larger opheys. A well-aimed kick can stun smaller creatures.

====Against Parasites====
Krikrees are able to reach and scratch any part of their body using their claws, allowing them to scrape and flick off parasites and harmful microbes. Especially tricky parasites can be killed and removed by dustbathing. They will also bathe in puddles and [[cryobowls]] where available.

On occasion, krikrees have been observed to remove parasites from their ears by gripping a feather with one foot and fishing it into the ear canal.

Krikrees will attempt to remove intestinal parasites such as [[keryhs]] (more specifically, the krikree keryh (''Metamothermata parusvolucrus'')) using diarrhea to purge it before it can implant.

====Against Disease====
Krikrees, as saucebacks, have an immune system remarkably convergent with that of terran vertebrates, making use of amoebic red tissue cells that simply eat diseases and cancer cells throughout their body. As they have to be able to recognize two distinct lines of cells, the red and green tissue, however, their immune system is slightly more susceptible to being tricked. They can also have fevers to inhibit the reproduction of their diseases, enabling their immune system--which is also able to act faster in the increased temperature--to catch up. Krikrees are susceptible to a few different species of [[pestilences]], including a disease specific to them called the krikree fever (''Pestilentia parusvolucrus''). Krikrees are not major vectors of disease, though more generalist sauceback pestilences can sometimes be spread through their droppings.

====Against Weather====
Krikrees don't mind light rain, but they will take shelter during storms. In the event of hail, if they have no cover to duck under, they will face the incoming hail and attempt to dodge individual hailstones, preventing them from striking their mandibles and breaking them.

In some parts of their range, krikrees have to face hurricanes. In such an event, they will cling to strong branches to resist the powerful winds, but being so small and light, they are sometimes swept up regardless. When caught in the eye, they may attempt to cling to larger and more endurant fliers such as the various coastal [[skysnappers]], which can keep soaring away from the eyewall.

===Reproductive Behavior and Nesting===
(Image caption: A mother krikree with eggs.)

At the start of the breeding season, which typically begins in the spring, krikrees become more territorial, as they must compete for both mates and ideal nesting grounds. Krikrees prefer to nest in natural cavities such as tree hollows, though they will also use abandoned constructed nests formerly belonging to other organisms, such as xenobee hives, if better options are unavailable. Krikrees seeking a mate will broadcast with song, producing rhythmic melodies that are species-specific and often incorporate chords due to their ability to sing multiple notes at once. The female is usually the one making a mate selection rather than it being mutual, resulting in some species being sexually dimorphic. Their tail spurs aid them in holding on to mate, a task otherwise made difficult by their leg-wings getting in the way.

A nest is constructed in the cavity using dry leaves, feathers, fur, trichomes, and plent cotton as bedding. The female then lays a clutch of eggs, as few as 2 in some alpine species and usually somewhere between 8 and 14 in most others. The hard-shelled eggs hatch into blind, pink, featherless chicks that are completely dependent on their parents for survival. In species with larger clutch sizes, siblings may be competitive with one another to get the most food from their parents by begging more intensely. The chicks are mostly fed meat early in life, until they fledge at 2-3 weeks depending on the species and can join their parents in foraging. The pair stays together throughout the breeding period, producing multiple broods of eggs to maximize the chances that at least one chick will survive, and part ways in the fall. Some species remain monogamous, choosing the same mate every year provided it’s still alive, while others, especially the more sexually dimorphic species with more visually striking males, may form different pairs each year. In either case, mate infidelity is not uncommon, though it is more frequent in sexually dimorphic species.

Homosexuality is present in krikrees, most frequently in the form of male-male pairs of sexually dimorphic species, followed by, in any species, pairs of older individuals whose former mates died. In female-female pairs, one or both may mate with a male so that they may have eggs and chicks to raise together; this is the leading cause of mate infidelity in some species. Homosexual pairs may also adopt orphaned eggs and chicks.

===Tool Use===
(Image caption: A krikree using a ferine needle to access a food item inside a log)

Krikrees are fairly intelligent among biats and some species, particularly larger ones, can use simple tools to extract prey while foraging. The tools are natural, rather than crafted, typically being something like the needle of some sort of ferine being used to extract a worm from a log. Seeds and kruggs too large and tough for them to break open on their own or by pressing against a hard surface will sometimes be smashed with small rocks.

Knowledge of when and how to use tools is shared culturally among krikrees in a flock, and spreads to other flocks over winter when they merge into one big flock. This cultural exchange occurs through demonstration and observation.

==Development==
To summarize, krikrees begin as eggs which hatch into blind, naked, helpless chicks after about 2 weeks of incubation. They develop fairly quickly and fledge at 2-3 weeks, but do not begin breeding until they are a year old. However, one well-versed in the evolution of saucebacks might correctly suspect there to be more going on before hatching. Much of embryonic development can be observed directly through the eggshells, which are translucent in direct sunlight to facilitate reabsorption of nutrients from unviable eggs--by eating them--without errors.

===Egg Formation and Embryonic Development===
In all saucebacks, eggs are formed in the ovaries of the female. Red and green tissue oocytes are formed from stem cells in the red and green ovarioles, respectively, and pair up as they travel down the ovary to await the arrival of spermatocytes. Upon being fertilized, the red and green tissue zygotes arrange themselves and begin to divide. The red tissue produces an extraembryonic membrane around the embryo, called the serosa, which secretes the chitinous shell which hardens upon exposure to air.

Similar to other binucleid worms, the body axes are determined by the positions of the red and green tissue relative to one another and the direction which the red spermatocyte arrived from, the cell lines form a joined pair of embryos with a “taco” shape (or rhytiblast) with the green tissue as the shell, and the suturing of the red tissue forms the gut and orifices. Early in development, the cells are indeterminate in that if the embryo is cut in half two whole embryos are formed, but only if both red tissue and green tissue are preserved, as the two tissue types are incapable of becoming one another. The embryo begins to develop distinct limbs and other parts with green tissue on the outside almost reminiscent of the markings on a skeleton costume. Like in other dromaeodont saucebacks, the red tissue then overgrows and almost entirely envelops the green tissue to form the majority of the endoskeleton, though some of the tissue remains exposed to form the sauce plate, tail spikes, and nail beds. The teeth and jaws are not green tissue--instead, they are produced by the red tissue.

The green tissue is far simpler than the red tissue, which controls the green tissue’s growth using hormones. The green tissue diverges into just a handful of cell types, with two serving for support in some way, the internal skeletal cells and the external nail/plate cells. The skeletal cells produce a chitinous extracellular matrix, in reality modified cell walls, which serves a similar role to cartilage in bone formation. The red tissue produces the enzymes which sclerotize this matrix as it grows. As for the nail/plate cells, these produce cells that harden into claws (or hooves in more primitive saucebacks), the sauce plate, and the tail spurs. Much of the endoskeleton remains unsclerotized by the time krikrees hatch, due to their altricial nature.

The tooth line begins as a ring around the head, which becomes wavy to free up enough space for the numerous tiny tooth buds to grow. One pair enlarges and migrates to the front, where it will grow the beak-like jaws. Once the tooth placement has been set, the developmental tooth line continues to morph, drawing cells from the gums into a deep zig-zag pattern which tightens into two round areas on either side of the head. This is where the compound eyestrils form, beginning as a cluster of pits which do not finish shaping into functional round reflection chambers until some time after hatching.

===Feather Growth===
Feathers are developmentally related to the teeth and jaws and use some of the same genes, especially for the formation of the follicle. The main difference, apart from shape, is that feathers grow their chitinous cuticle all at once, while the teeth and jaws produce new chitin continuously throughout their growth.

Krikree feathers begin much as the feathers of the first feathered saucebacks do, as branching filamentous extensions of the skin which are sunken into follicles. In some more primitive saucebacks that are still extant, such as waxfaces, development stops here and the feather's chitinous cuticle is secreted. In neodromeodonts and ornitheres, including krikrees, however, a waxy coating is produced to protect the developing feather and prevent heat loss as its epidermal cells continue to grow into a shape more closely resembling a bird's feather. In non-ornitherian saucebacks, the feathers lack barbules and may have branching rachises (present even in stem-group neodromeodonts, like [[longmouth]]s), but in the ornitheres there is rarely any branching of the rachis because a single unbranched rachis is stronger for flight. This is the case in krikrees, as well.

Once the epidermis of the developing feather has finished forming its full shape, it secretes a chitinous cuticle and begins to itch, prompting a krikree to preen away the waxy coating or seek a flockmate for aid. The feather is shaken and groomed to unfurl it so that it may dry and harden into the proper shape, like an insect's exoskeleton. Also similar to an insect's exoskeleton, this can go wrong sometimes, resulting in crumpled, useless feathers that may hinder flight. This is especially problematic for the primary flight feathers, as they are not easily plucked. As long as a krikree is active and not stuck in cramped conditions, however, it should be able to shake out newly freed flight feathers just by flapping its wings.

===Sex Determination and Sexual Dimorphism===
Sex determination is determined by the Z and W chromosomes of the red tissue, with ZW usually being female and ZZ usually being male. The green tissue produces either an oocyte or a spermatocyte at the instruction of the red tissue. Various secondary sex characteristics are controlled by the level of testosterone that is present, with more testosterone resulting in masculine traits. A large amount of estrogen can inhibit these traits, as well.

Sometimes, a female krikree will produce too much testosterone, or a male will produce too little, either because of mutation or old age. This will cause them to appear to be the opposite sex, and it also usually results in infertility. This is because the green tissue will produce the wrong gamete type if the level of testosterone doesn't match, preventing green tissue fertilization. However, in theory, it is possible for a low-testosterone male to fertilize a high-testosterone female, as the male provides a green oocyte and the female provides a green spermatocyte.

===Deformities===
On occasion, something can go wrong during development that usually kills or otherwise severely harms the chick. This is not an exhaustive list, but just a few examples.

One of these is the failure to fully envelop the green tissue, caused by a deficiency in the relevant morphogen. The green tissue is, as much as cell tissue can be, "smart" enough to produce a walled cuticle where it is exposed during development to hold in blood and other fluids, as it does on the sauce plate and for the claws and tail spurs. However, a skeleton that has not been internalized is useless, so the chick can barely move and usually dies without hatching.

Another deformity that is always fatal is the failure of the abdominal wall to suture. This defect happens very early in development, when the embryo is still just a rhytiblast. Without this suture, the abdomen is left wide open--the two halves of the pubic keel grows straight instead of curling under the abdomen--and the organs hang out freely. The specific cause of death in the case of such a deformity is usually asphyxiation, as the free-hanging microlungs deviate from the location of the postpelvic gastralium which would normally pump them.

Another deformity is a failed bifurcation of the foot. This is not usually immediately fatal, but it is a significant disability because it renders a krikree unable to climb as it only has a single toe on each leg. This mutation also makes standing difficult, as the toes actually depend on one another for stability, though it's not as bad for the digitigrade krikrees compared to their unguligrade ancestors and relatives. Such monodactyl krikrees are typically picked off by predators soon after they fledge.

Polydactyly can also occur in krikrees. This usually takes the form of a duplicated wing toe, called seraphism (for the resultant "6 wings", including the ears). This is also not fatal, and seraphic krikrees are even able to survive to adulthood and breed, but does make flight require more energy, so they are frequently eaten before their siblings.

Another deformity that is not necessarily fatal is the development of "wisp eyes"--that is, the scent line doesn't fully tighten, resulting in a separated, gentle zig-zag line of clustered eyestrils rising up from the main compound structure, resembling a stylized wisp of smoke or steam. These separated eye units are functional and can see, but frequently can't be focused as easily and may also affect the ability of the main compound structure to focus, as well. Such krikrees, as a result, have poor eyesight compared to their siblings, though they can still sometimes survive to adulthood if they're lucky and can learn to use motion instead of shapes to navigate.

==Healing from Injuries==
Krikrees, and most other saucebacks, are able to recover from some pretty significant injuries. All of the following is also true of all other saucebacks unless specified.

A typical wound is initially sealed by a blood clot. This differs from a mammalian (or [[nodent|xylodontian]], in Sagan 4 context) blood clot in that the cells do not stick together, rather their different shape--being so large, round, and nucleated--combined with there simply being less blood flowing to bleed out allows them to just clump together on their own without issue. A scab forms to protect the wound as immune cells and fibroplasts migrate to the site of injury to remove tissue that's damaged beyond repair and to granulate and restore the damaged tissue, respectively. The site of the injury will be swollen and painful during this time. Once the wound has been repaired, the scab falls off and a scar is left behind.

The structure of pin feathers is different in saucebacks compared to birds in that it lacks the hardened external structure until late in development. This makes broken pin feathers considerably less likely to result in bleeding out--and in fact they don't easily snap at all due to their structure, and are usually damaged by tearing instead. This better healing compared to birds is because the wound is not being physically held open by an already-hardened feather.

A fractured or torn bone will grow new walled cells, similar to those on the sauce plate and other exposed parts of the green tissue, where the damage occurred. Once the gap is filled and sealed, the cell walls transform into the chitinous matrix present in unsclerotized bones, and then proceeds to sclerotize. The same occurs on damaged external plates, such as the sauce, and will usually leave behind a visible gouge-like scar which fades with each shed. Bones that are actually fully fractured rather than torn are rarer than in creatures with more rigid, mineralized bones, but they still happen.

Certain injuries are almost always fatal even though they can theoretically be healed from. A krikree with a broken leg can't fly or climb, and it'll be lucky if it can even walk, so it will usually be eaten. The importance of flight and climbing makes a broken leg more likely to be fatal in biats like krikrees than in non-biats. However, if the injury occurs in a chick before it fledges, it might be able to survive and heal by staying in the nest. Rarely, this can also happen to one of a mated pair, and the other may work extra hard to feed its injured mate as well as chicks so that it may heal.


==Diversity==

There are around 50 species of krikree, which can be divided into three main subgenera: Dixon krikrees (left), Darwin krikrees (right), and Koseman krikrees (bottom). Dixon and Darwin krikrees are broadly similar due to semi-frequent hybridization permitting gene flow in central Wallace, while Koseman krikrees are slightly more distinct, their most externally obvious difference being the long black rachises extending past the vanes on the ear feathers in males. Koseman krikrees are also sometimes found in southern Wallace, contrary to their name, which permits hybridization with the other two subgenera. However, in general, female krikrees of the Dixon and Darwin subgenera don’t seem to have the same taste in ear feathers as female Koseman krikrees, which limits the spread of the elongated rachises further north.

Apart from this, general coloration trends can also be seen in the three subgenera: Dixon krikrees are frequently white, gray, or pink; Darwin krikrees are frequently red-brown or yellowish; and Koseman krikrees often incorporate contrasting black and white patches. Males may also be more colorful or otherwise more striking than females, regardless of subgenus, with green or blue patches on the chest or throat being common. Males also frequently have blue or green eyes, while in females they will be pigmented similarly to the surrounding feathers for camouflage.

===Niche Partitioning===
As there are many species of krikree and they come in many sizes, they likewise have considerable niche partitioning. Different krikree species eat mostly the same kinds of food, but they forage in different locations. The largest species (at or close to 20 cm) forage primarily on the ground and are the most common in mixed-species flocks, and they can be found in nearly all biomes as they do not depend on trees for food. Medium-sized species (in the 15 cm range) instead prefer to hunt in the trees, though they can still come down to forage, particularly in the shrublands. The smallest species (as little as 10 cm) also prefer the trees, but due to their small size they can hang from thin branches and even the stems of leaves without them snapping from their weight. These tiny species are only found in woodlands, gallery forests, and old-growth shrublands. But while these three types can be identified in most biomes, they are not the only types of krikree.

For instance, in many forests, a fourth type can also be identified--arboreal tool users. Though the large ground foragers can also use tools, those in the trees are distinct, typically being more agile and lithe. Using ferine needles, pieces of bark, and other natural tools, they can extract prey that has bored into the wood, which is inaccessible to smaller, less intelligent arboreal foragers.

Further, completely different species of krikree are adapted to live in purple forests and shadow forests. As black flora such as snowflake obsidioaks out-shade sun-loving purple flora such as ferries in lowland forests through ecological succession, edible seed production dramatically slows and fruit and nectar cease to be common food sources for wingworms. As a result, the types of food available to krikrees dramatically changes as well. The shadow forest specialists are far more carnivorous than their purple forest cousins, sourcing the majority of their needed nutrition from [[vermees]], kruggs, small [[ukfauna]], and eusocial gundis, though they still supplement their diet with [[Crystal Entourage Swordgrasses|crystal entourage swordgrass]] spore pods and [[woodyshroom]] achenes where available. Over winter, the shadow forest specialists are also less interspecifically social and may even kill other fauna close to their size if they are desperate enough for food; all species will do this, but the shadow forest specialists are especially proficient. Shadow forest specialists also have a high frequency of albinism (to blend in with the white leaf litter left by snowflake obsidioaks), melanism (to blend in with black leaves), and excessive sclerotin in the feathers (causing them to be black and stiff, also to blend in with black leaves).

Biat-Eating Flunejaw (Eospinomaxilla volucruvore)
Creator: Disgustedorite
Ancestor: Flunejaw
Habitat: Darwin Subtropical Rainforest, Darwin Tropical Rainforest, Darwin Tropical Woodland, Dorite Subtropical Woodland, South Darwin Subtropical Woodland, Darwin Temperate Woodland, South Darwin Chaparral, Dorite Chaparral, Darwin Bush
Size: 1 meter long
Support: Endoskeleton (Bone)
Diet: Adult: Carnivore (Songsauce Piper, Wallace Quails, Ferry Quail, Krikrees, Interbiat, juvenile Coastwoodufo, juvenile Woodsalcon, juvenile Underswooper, juvenile Sausophrey, juvenile Vultoph); Young: Insectivore (Minikruggs, Silkruggs, Neuks, Mikuks, Feluks, Vermees, larval Teacup Saucebacks)
Respiration: Active (Lungs)
Thermoregulation: Ectotherm (Basking)
Reproduction: Sexual (Male and Female, Eggs in Foam Nests)

The biat-eating flunejaw split from its ancestor. It is exactly what its name suggests--a flunejaw that eats biats. But under its generic appearance lies a hidden adaptation that allowed it to expand its range far beyond the river--it no longer needs to lay its eggs in water.

While other descendants of the flunejaw opted to evolve an amniotic egg, the biat-eating flunejaw instead evolved a method to keep its eggs moist even when they’re far from a water source. Like some terran frogs, a female biat-eating flunejaw will produce a secretion from her oviduct which she can then kick into a foamy froth, in which she lays her eggs. The production of this foam nest can take several hours, over the course of which many different males will arrive to fertilize some of the eggs within. When the nest is completed, the exterior dries into a papery sheet that protects the interior from desiccation, and the mother will hide it from potential predators using leaves and other debris. She then abandons the nest.

Upon hatching, baby biat-eating flunejaws resemble “hopper”-stage tadpoles and are kept moist by the foam. They eat any eggs that fail to hatch, and sometimes each other, until they finish developing into scaley miniature adults. Then, they claw through the exterior of the foam nest and switch to a diet mostly consisting of smaller fauna until they are big enough to start eating biats instead, which it hunts by stealth.

The biat-eating flunejaw is generally colored to match the soil in a given region, as its body is low to the ground, though melanism is common in the darker old-growth forests. It is solitary, though only especially territorial when there’s less food. In the colder parts of its range, it burrows underground to brumate over winter.

image caption: Some biats don't like being eaten.

Athiwi (Rostratamus striatus) (striped beaked-mouse)
Creator: Disgustedorite
Ancestor: Atholat
Habitat: Maineiac Bush, Maineiac Temperate Woodland, Lamarck Temperate Woodland, Lamarck Highboreal, Lamarck Rocky, Maineiac Volcanic, Maineiac Plains, Lamarck Highvelt, Lamarck Alpine, Lamarck Lowboreal, Lamarck Prairie, Lamarck Steppe
Size: 50 cm long
Support: Endoskeleton (Jointed Wood)
Diet: Omnivore (Marbleflora, Vermees, Floraverms, Minikruggs, Silkruggs, Teacup Sauceback Larvae, Fuzzpile berries, Blastree seeds, Mountain Pedesorm, Pilokepderi seeds, Pilunoroot fruit, Pedesorm, Rustwurm, Armored Pedesorm, Harvester Pedesorm, Miner Pedesorm), Scavenger
Respiration: Active (Lungs)
Thermoregulation: Endotherm (Cotton)
Reproduction: Sexual (Male and Female, Live Birth)

The athiwi split from its ancestor. It is larger and more omnivorous. It uses elongated mobile fangs to rummage around in the substrate searching for food, which it then grabs with its tongue and eats whole. It will also use its fangs to pick fruit. It retains the ability to use gastroliths, which now also aid it in breaking apart seeds and exoskeletons. It is nocturnal and has a whiskered face.

Despite being predatory again, the athiwi has not resumed using electric shock to kill prey, instead still using it for defense. At its larger size, it can store more electricity at once, though it also takes longer to charge. It still uses the green color of its tongue as a warning when confronted.

Like its ancestor, the athiwi lives in dens which are often hollow logs or the abandoned nests of other species. It can stash some types of food such as seeds for later. If it aims to bring certain prey like kruggs to its den, it will dismember them first, leaving them alive but unable to fight or flee. It stores food in a pouch under its tongue for transport.

The athiwi has gained a breeding season in the winter, which allows it to give birth in the spring. It gives birth to 2-3 babies the size of their head at one time, warping the lower jaw to accommodate birth. Only the mother takes part in raising the young. Babies are mostly fed soft-bodied fauna and berries until they have their fangs and can handle gastroliths, at which point they start following their mother on foraging trips. They are independent at 3-4 months, but can take about a year to reach full size.

Saucege (Vermitalpus farciminis) (worm-mole sausage)
Creator: Disgustedorite
Ancestor: Wolverback
Habitat: Fermi Plains, Fermi Steppe, Fermi Subpolar Volcanic, Fermi Prairie, Fermi Bush, Fermi Temperate Volcanic
Size: 20 cm long
Support: Endoskeleton (Chitin)
Diet: Carnivore (Vermees, Floraverms, Megaverms, Teacup Sauceback larvae, Wolverback larvae, Saucege larvae); Youngest larvae: Scavenger
Respiration: Active (Microlungs)
Thermoregulation: Mesotherm (Feathers)
Reproduction: Sexual (Male and Female, Eggs and Larvae)

The saucege (pronounced like “sausage”) split from its ancestor. It is the result of wolverbacks which begun hunting burrowing prey by scraping with their claws. Due to their burrowing larval form, this encouraged larval traits to be inherited into adulthood--resulting in them relatively quickly taking on a neotenous form where they never truly grow out of their “fat hairy sausage”-stage fat, as they do not burn it off switching to endothermy like other shrewbacks. This cylindrical form allows the saucege to easily move about underground as it hunts.

The saucege digs by clawing top-to-bottom in front of itself with two huge claws on each foot, similar to golden moles and marsupial moles. Unlike its Terran counterparts, however, it has no back legs to kick dirt behind it--as, being a sauceback, it has just one pair of legs--so it instead sweeps it backwards with the same feet it used to dig, more similar to true moles. It is enabled to do this in part by its open hip joint, which is present in all saucebacks and allows it to swivel its legs around more freely than it could with a more mammal- or dinosaur-like hip.

The saucege uses its jaws, blackened with hardening sclerotin, to easily grapple with and kill burrowing creatures. It primarily eats vermees and their descendants, as well as the larvae of related sauebacks. It can detect them using seismic vibrations, similar to Terran moles, both audibly through its ears and by feeling with its feet to get a three-dimensional image of all tunnels and solid objects in its surrounding area of soil.

The saucege breeds in the early spring, as winter eggs often freeze and die. After mating, a female will lay about 300 eggs, two at a time every 2 hours, as she burrows, spreading them over a wide area. Upon hatching, juveniles will immediately begin burrowing and searching for food on their own. Sauceges perform no parental care, and in fact will eat their own babies indiscriminately.

Mandela's Tasseled Volleypom (Cornutanux Multilibrifimbriata) [Horned nut many children and tasseled)

Ancestor: Contorted Volleypom
Creator: Colddigger
Habitat: South Darwin Plains, South Darwin Rocky, Darwin Highboreal, Darwin Temperate Woodland, South Darwin Highveldt, Wallace Plains
Size: 15 meters tall
Diet: photosynthesis
Respiration: Passive (Tracheal system in leaves, Lenticels and air labyrinth throughout tissue)
Thermoregulation: Heliothermy (Black Pigmentation)
Support: Cellulose, Lignin (Cell Walls)
Reproduction: Sexual, Hard Shelled Megaspores, Airborne Microspores, Root Suckering


Mandela's Tasseled Volleypom split from its ancestor to live more inland, primarily found in dense thickets near waterways with the undergrowth dominated by immature and stunted root suckers. Their thinner trunks often fork multiple times resulting in several leading points of growth. The bark is relatively smooth, old layers quickly being dropped away to shed possible parasites and prevent any krugg, vermee, or floraverm, infestations from occurring. The roots sucker readily along their length, giving rise to clone trees. Suckers appear at the base of the trunk as well, quickly replacing the main body if it is broken or dies suddenly. They may potentially give rise to a second, third, or fourth trunk with the original entirely intact as well. The growing tips are colored a deep maroon due to pigmented defensive compounds that deter voracious herbivores such as floraverms from destroying the new growth.

The leaves form a fluffy canopy varying in color leaf to leaf as light and wind exposure changes, just as in its ancestor volleypoms. The summer and winter leaves have similar growth habit to the Contorted Volleypom, pinnate and needle-like in shape respectively. The edges of the summer leaf tend to be choppier and toothier than their ancestor, this choppiness is due to multiple dominate and subordinant tracheal veins occuring, creating a mild redundancy that buffers against leaf damage from herbivory as the bottlenecking in tissue makes sealing the damage off easier. The tip of the winter leaf happens to be thicker than their ancestors winter leaf.

The microsporangia clusters have taken on a different growth habit. They no longer form loose clusters of units, rather they now grow in single file chains hanging down from branches. New units are added at the growing end of the chain, with the chains being able to reach lengths of up to 2 meters. The units in these chains all open within a short time of one another, and their arrangement allows for the creation of spore clouds that cover large vertical areas early on while dispersing. Microsporangia begin appearing on trees 1 meter tall, albeit very short lengths.

Megasporangia grow as solitary units on twigs and are typically 10-15 cm in length. They over time lose the hollow pocket behind the reproductive portion of the sporangium, the reproductive portion actually sinking into the voided area. Toward the trilobed tip of the sporangium a three pointed beak occurs with an inner surface for catching and funneling in microspores. This structure increases area for capture, while providing greater obstacle to potential predation of the megaspores. Inside the sporangium are only three very large, hard, megaspores. With their hardened spore walls, or shells, they are very nut-like and hold quite a bit of energy dense meat to allow for a quick growing sprout. Megasporangia will begin appearing on trees 3-4 meters tall, but can occur on root suckers of mature trees when only 1 meter tall, though in low number. Once the megaspores are mature the sporangium will dry and may release them directly from the tree, the beak pointing away from the tree and shaped like a short slide to direct the fall of the nut. More often though the entire sporangium falls from the tree and fauna may carry it off to feast, dropping one or two lucky megaspores along the way.

This post has been edited by colddigger: Apr 29 2023, 01:20 PM

Cesta Volleypom (Paxillinux lataramus) [Paddle Nut Broad Branch]

Creator: Colddigger

Ancestor: Contorted Volleypom

Habitat: South Darwin Plains, South Darwin Rocky, Darwin Highboreal, Darwin Temperate Woodland, South Darwin Highveldt, Wallace Plains

Size: 30 M Tall

Diet: Photosynthesis

Respiration: Passive (Tracheal system in leaves, Lenticels and air labyrinth throughout tissue)

Thermoregulation: Heliothermy (Black Pigmentation)

Support: Cellulose, Lignin (Cell Walls)

Reproduction: Sexual, Hard Shelled Megaspores, Airborne Microspores



The Cesta Volleypom split from its ancestor and spread more inland, existing mainly around the inland portion of [[South Darwin Plains]], [[South Darwin Rocky]], [[Darwin Highboreal]], [[Darwin Temperate Woodland]], [[South Darwin Highveldt]], and [[Wallace Plains]]. Its growth habit is less columnar, with weaker apical dominance in growth resulting in strong branches dominating the central body structure instead. This increased branchiness provides them with a large canopy of overlapping layers. These layers can be varying in appearance due to different light and wind exposures influencing their growth of trichomes, some layers even appearing snow white. The populations of this tree are generally sparsely scattered or in tiny clusters across their environment.

The leaves of the Cesta Volleypom have diverged from the typical structure of its ancestors. In summer leaves the tracheal vein core expands in diameter to such a degree to give the whole leaf a trumpeted shape. Tracheal veins begin development very early and briefly off the core and reach parallel along its length. This results in complete loss of the pinnate form and gives rise to a redundant and damage resistant form. Pneumathodes still exist at the ends of the tracheal veins, while evaporation occurs mainly on the inside face of the trumpet form, allowing for a higher humidity environment and lessening the affects of wind. In winter leaves the tracheal vein core terminates nearly immediately once tracheal veins begin development, this results in a splayed clump of needles rather than the fishbone of the [[Shaggy Volleypom]] or the singular needle of the [[Contorted Volleypom]]. Summer leaves can measure up to 15 cm in length, while winter leaves rarely exceed 5 cm.

Microsporangia now grow more tightly together and in larger number. The size of an individual structure is the same as its ancestor, 2-3 cm long, with clusters still measuring up to 40 cm long, however the sheer quantity results is a group with far higher mass. This greatly increases the amount of microspores released into the air at once during breeding. The majority of the micrsporangia occur near the top, or base where the cluster attaches to the tree, with the density decreasing as the individuals age and drip further and further down. Maturity of units occurs in reverse, with the oldest microsporangia hanging at the bottom and opening first.

The megasporangium are the namesake of the Cesta Volleypom. The air pocket of their ancestor no longer occurs, rather the empty space behind the reproductive portion of the sporangium becomes a flat piece. This had proven useful in taking advantage of wind to knock the structure loose and fling it away from the parent tree. Because of this the flat piece rapidly grew in size and became scoop shaped, like a shallow basket with a handle at one end. This basket and sporangium can have a length of up to 40 cm. The sporangium alone rarely reaching 10 cm long. The inside is packed with the megaspores, measuring 5 mm to 1 cm across, which have further hardened their armored spore wall or shell to become a very tough nutlet. When flung from the mother Cesta Volleypom the dry megasporangium will erupt on impact with the ground and fling the nutlets in all directions. Most sprouts do not survive their first year due to predation or environmental stresses.

This post has been edited by colddigger: Apr 3 2023, 05:04 PM

Narrow Volleypom (Corticihursuti dispersicarpa) [Shaggy Bark Dispersed Fruit]
Creator: colddigger
Ancestor: Shaggy Volleypom
Habitat: Central Wallace Highboreal, Wallace Volcanic, Verserus Rocky, Wallace Plains
Size: 60 m Tall
Diet: Photosynthesis
Respiration: Passive (Tracheal system in leaves, Lenticels and air labyrinth throughout tissue)
Thermoregulation: Heliothermy (Black Pigmentation)
Support: Cellulose, Lignin (Cell Walls)
Reproduction: Sexual, Hard Shelled Megaspores, Airborne Microspores




The Narrow Volleypom split from its ancestor the [[Shaggy Volleypom]], becoming a smaller scrappier species with a maximum height of 60 meters. They can be found forming stands in [[Central Wallace Highboreal]], [[Wallace Volcanic]], [[Verserus Rocky]], and [[Wallace Plains]], ideal growing conditions are near waterways such as minor rivers, springs, or snowmelt seeps. The body structure is dominated by a central and fairly straight trunk with comparatively thin and short branches. The appearance of a Narrow Volleypom varies wildly from individual to individual due to growing conditions, with quite a few in the tough highlands of the the volcanics and rockies being very scraggly, stunted, and sparse in leafed branches. Some Narrow Volleypoms at higher elevations barely exceed three meters in height. Those growing in the more forgiving highboreal and plains very regularly will reach the full height potential of the species, displaying the thick trunk and tiny branches that grant them their name.

The leaves remain similar in appearance to their ancestor's, with pinnate summertime leaves and fishbone wintertime leaves. The sporangia however are different in habit. Both Microsporangium and Megasporangium grow as lone units across the branches and twigs. If one of these reproductive structures becomes infested by floraverm or minikrugg vermin it is less likely to be able to immediately spread to others, and the infested sporangium may be shed to rid the tree of the problem. Structurally both sporangiums are very similar to their ancestor's .

This post has been edited by colddigger: Apr 30 2023, 09:36 PM

Kernel Cornucopia (Keratodendron Gigasyssorevo) [Horn Tree Giant accumulation]

Creator: Colddigger
Ancestor: Branching Bonespire
Habitat: Fermi Temperate Woodland, Fermi Bush, Fermi Temperate Volcanic, Fermi Plains, Fermi Subpolar Volcanic, Fermi Prairie
Size: 30 Meters Tall
Support: Cell Wall (Cellulose)
Diet: PHotosynthesis
Respiration: Passive (Lenticels)
Thermoregulation : Ectotherm
Reproduction: Sexual Spores, Nuts containing many small, hardy seeds



The Kernel Cornucopia split from its ancestor the Branching Bonespire, growing up to 30 meters tall, it has moved further inland on Fermi to take advantage of the available soils and low competition. It can be found in Fermi Temperate Woodland, Fermi Bush, and Fermi Temperate Volcanic, as well as sparse clusters by waterways in Fermi Plains. Stunted populations can be found in Fermi Subpolar Volcanic, and Fermi Prairie.


The central trunk grows upward at a much faster rate than it expands in diameter, leading to a somewhat uniform appearance to its thickness. Branches coming off this trunk are dwarfed by it. the pseudoflowers, or leaves, that alone cap the ends of each branch comprise of four photosynthetic organs with a length of up to 120 cm. New growth along these branches, younger portions, and the pseudoflowers themselves are all ringed with irritating glochidia or tiny spines. The younger upper portion of the central trunk also dawns these structures. They exist on the Kernel Cornucopia as a deterrent during its youth to prevent predation, their continual production in age remains as more of an artifact than anything else. Older parts of the flora simply shed this in favor of hardened tissue.


Existing in temperate and subpolar biomes leads to experiencing cold dark winters with long periods of very dry air. In response to this the broad large leaves are now shed in a controlled manner to remove unneeded and sensitive tissue during that period of the year. The organism also goes into a slowed state of growth, the majority of development being minor root system expansion and the regrowth of large protected pseudoflower buds.


The growth of branches occurs just beneath the leaves, essentially pushing the pseudoflower or bud as a terminal structure rather than growth reaching beyond it during expansion. Formation of new branches, either off the central trunk or off existing branches, occurs as a bare twig for the first year. The following Spring brings with it the development of a bud which acts as its terminal structure and opens up to photosynthetic organs.


Reproduction no longer relies on any wingworms, rather the useless spores its ancestor had released became large airborne clouds of "pollen" or male sexual spores. A single mass of reproductive structures exists at the top of the central trunk, appearing after reaching 10 meters in height, 2 meters in the stunted populations. Prior to its appearance the top of an adolescent with hold a pseudoflower or a bud. This mass consists fronds of incredible size, on fully mature individuals they can reach a length of 4 meters. These are grown with the sole purpose of producing the wind strewn male spores, throwing great clouds of orange into the sky during mid and late spring.


Around the base of these massive antheridia are stouter, sticky, female fronds, their spores are a lighter yellow and remain held fast to their points of origin. As the bright orange clouds of male spores waft through the canopies they bump into their female counterparts and fuse to form zygotes. Fed by the mother flora these zygotes, as they form, grow into clumps of cells 3-5 millimeters in diameter. A two cell thick protective coat is formed from the outer cells, while the inner cells arrange to form a tube shaped oil rich embryo, entirely skipping the protonema or sporeling stage that occurs in most other Black Flora. Thus creating the structure referred to as "seeds" in their ancestors which can remain dormant for many years.


The analogous organs of the reproductive system that had become leaves in the pseudoflowers on the branches have diverged into a more specialized and complex form. The "leaves" form a thin but strong support keel along a ventral ridge while the "petals" of its ancestor have become huge and fused to both the keel and themselves resulting in a hollow horn that can reach 6 meters in length. For their volume these structures on their own are relatively light yet structurally strong and may be held at the top of the flora for several years.


By mid to late summer the majority of the female spores have been fertilized and formed into seeds. The archegonia, or female fronds, will grow to engulf clusters of seeds into balls of flesh 4 centimeters across that harden into a firm nut. These nuts fall into the horns adjacent to them as the fronds disintegrate. Depending on the maturity of the individual, and strength of their horns, this cycle of filling can happen several times until the horns collapse or fall from the Kernel Cornucopia in a violent crash.


These crashes happen most often in late fall or winter during windy days or storms. The falls may take out a branch or two, but more often the horn simply crumples across them. Along the dorsal side of the horn, formed from the fusion of what were once petals, a ridge of "longitudunal dehiscence" exists to aid in the destruction of the large container. As it ruptures against the ground the hundreds of thousands of nuts inside are thrown across the ground. A good portion of these will decompose where they land, but if any are found by hungry fauna during what is otherwise a period of scarcity it is nearly gauranteed their seeds inside will be taken elsewhere to grow.


The first two years of growth is spent as a dark, thin, fast growing tube. By the Spring of the third year a bud will have appeared and from it will spring its first pseudoflower to increase its growth rate, this cyclical structure of pseudoflower and bud will remain until replaced by the central reproductive structure. Branches will begin to appear as bare twigs coming off the central trunk by year five.

This post has been edited by colddigger: May 8 2023, 08:35 PM

Mangal Snark (Branchiolophus mangue)

Creator: MNIDJM
Ancestor: Gillcrest (Branchiolophus iceageus)
Habitat: Martyk Temperate Mangal, Iituem Temperate Bay, Elerd Temperate Coast, Martyk Temperate Sea, Elerd Temperate Mangal, Vivus Subpolar Mangal
Size: 45 cm Long
Support: ?
Diet: Scavenger, Carnivore (Common Gilltails)
Respiration: Active (Gills)
Thermoregulation: Ectothermic
Reproduction: Sexual, Eggs in Clusters in the Sand, Two Sexes

As the waters of the Krakow regions began to connect to the mainland of Wallace, the species living in the shallows found themselves once again exposed to environments they had been disconnected from for millions of years. This allowed for an interchange of species, and while some found themselves wiped out by the new competition, others found themselves presented with new opportunities to expand. One such example is the effect this had on the two gillcrests of Krakow. The increased competition of new scavengers has resulted in the [[Redfin Gillcrest|redfin gillcrest]] out-competing their basal ancestor in the southern polar coasts of Wallace, as their ability to hunt in packs allowed them to gain an advantage in resource acquiring. However, this has not resulted in the outright extinction of the [[gillcrest]], as their ability to survive in warmer waters has allowed them to spread to every southern coast of the Koseman-Wallace shelf below the subtropics. These new waters have opened new niches for the gillcrest to fill into, and the separation of the population has resulted in speciation, resulting in them splitting into new species, such as the '''mangal snark'''.

They have grown smaller and more compact, acting primarily as bottom feeding scavengers. They are primarily scavengers, swimming through the waters using their keen sense of smell to seeking out carcasses to eat, but will also opportunistically hunt gilltails. However, they will back down from a hunt if they are faced with competition, preferring easier meals than ones they'd have to defend. They have lost the distinctive crest of their ancestor, instead adopting a more streamlined body plan. This allows for more precise rapid movements in the mangals, allowing them to fit between the roots of the flora such as the [[tlukvaequabora]]s. They can be a common sight following behind larger predators or underneath [[Topship Shrog|topship shrog]] nests, Though these actions can result in they themselves becoming a meal.

Like their ancestors, the mangal snarks are solitary creatures, only seeking out others to mate. After mating, the male leaves and the female digs a small burrow in the sands of the twilight zones. Like their ancestors, they lay large clusters of gelatinous eggs, which are cared for until they hatch. The young are left to fend for themselves, though when hatching draws close the mother will leave a gilltail carcass for the young to eat. She will stay by until the first of the clutch begin to hatch, so as to ensure that other scavengers don't detect the carcass and eat her young. Those that hatch early have an advantage on their siblings of having more food, so there is an evolutionary pressure ongoing in the species to hatch earlier.

Azarus Flapper (Neopterovexilla pterovestia)
Creator: solpimr
Ancestor: Blubber Flapper
Habitat: Fermi Bush, Fermi Temperate Volcanic, Fermi Temperate Woodland, Fermi Subpolar Volcanic, Fermi Plains
Size: 35 cm long
Diet: Omnivore (Sunstalks, Sunleaf, Gumjorn, Lesser Steppespire (nuts), Kernel Cornucopia (nuts), Sruglettes, Sootplume (saplings), Poorbion, Vermees, Sweetworms, Sapworms, Inland Nectarworm, Uniwingworms, Mudfish, Cloudswarmers, Floraverms)
Respiration: Active (Lungs)
Thermoregulation: Mesotherm (Flapscales)
Support: Endoskeleton (Bone)
Reproduction: Sexual (Two Sexes, Ovoviviparous)

Splitting from its ancestor and moving inland the azarus flapper resembles the related sayront in that it has a denser coat of scales than its ancestor. One major difference which is readily apparent under even a cursory inspection however is the presence of a pair of large wings. While the blubber flapper greatly reduced its primary wing pair a rudiment remained in the form of a pair of deeply rooted wings. Superficially resembling the other “winglets” these could be distinguished from the others by the muscle attachments that once allowed it to provide lift and the fact that the bony support joined the axial skeleton. In the azarus flapper these wings have grown large again. Like the leaping flapper these larger wings enable them to practice wing assisted incline running as well as fluttering leaps across gaps.

In addition to these wings, they also retain a coat of smaller “winglets” known as flapscales. Flapscales are similar to the wings, consisting of a small bonny core at the base which is anchored to the body wall and a large curving claw like scale with a quick near the base. These scales trap air pockets between them and the body which provides insulation for the azarus flapper. Because each flapscale is mobile they are able to raise them when they need to cool down or lower them to retain heat. Like their ancestor they are mesothermic, providing a baseline a body temperature, which healthy individuals remain warmer than. During times of intense activity, such as while running or jumping, their body temperature rises higher.

Like their ancestor azarus flappers are ovoviviparous. Fertilization takes place internally and the soft, shell less eggs are retained in a “pool organ”, an extension of the reproductive tract filled with nutrient rich fluid kept oxygenated by diffusion across the highly vascularized walls of the organ. The homologus organ in males is eversable and is used during mating to transfer gametes to the female. They are born fairly well developed but with small flapscales and wings. Mating occurs in early spring and the young are born in early summer, giving them time to grow their wings and flapscales to full size before winter.

Although they spend most of their time on the ground they are able to climb trees, especially those with bent trunks or low branches they can jump to. Thick soles on their feet help protect them from the spines found on many of Fermi's large flora, as well as sharp rocks and other debris.



Diagram of a flapscale.

This post has been edited by kopout: May 13 2023, 09:49 AM