Crinaero
Taxonomy
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Ancestors and Descendants
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Creator: Bufforpington
Habitat: East Peninsular Beach, East Peninsular Scrubland
Size: 50 cm Long
Diet: Carnivore (Beachworm, Spikeworm, Crawlarmor, Tuckleech, Slyther)
Reproduction: Sexual, Hard-Shelled eggs laid in nests
Splitting from its ancestor, the crinaero has moved from the sea to land, specifically the beaches and scrublands of the East Daturian Peninsula. This was no easy task though, as its ancestor heavily relied on it. First, one pair of its sensory tentacles and its hind flippers have gained the ability to support its weight. However, it cannot walk with these 'legs', as they are not meant for terrestrial locomotion, they are merely used as landing gear. Since it cannot build up speed by swimming before flying, its wings now have the ability to like those of a dragonfly as well as a bird. If it wants to fly, it hovers of the ground and then starts to fly forward. Once it has gained enough speed, it will switch to flying like a bird. Its fins have atrophied, and its tail fin has become a sort of stabilizer. This makes it a very poor swimmer. Another one of its sensory tentacles has gained long, feathery protrusions, which are meant to pick up vibrations moving through the air. Because they can now hear, they have begun to communicate with sounds, however, they still use their bioluminescent patch. The final pair of sensory tentacles have atrophied away due to the lack of space. Because they are poor swimmers, the crinaero can no long afford to return to the ocean to breed. Thus, they lay amniotic eggs in nests dug out by a mating pair, which will care for the egg until it hatches. Because crinaeros are incapable of walking with ease, crinaeros must care for their young until they are able to fly. This takes only a few weeks. Once the young are capable of flight, the parents leave the fledgling to fend for itself. In order to protect their young from predators, crinaeros nest together in huge colonies on the beach, where predators are slightly smaller and less mobile. If one nest is attacked, the whole colony takes off and attacks the predator.