HOME | DD

#gorgonopsid #therapsid #gorgon #mammal #synapsid #speculativeevolution #speculativebiology
Published: 2024-04-15 17:18:57 +0000 UTC; Views: 697; Favourites: 2; Downloads: 1
Redirect to original
Description
Submitted by NoahredSize: cat
Planet of origin: alternate earth
Niche: cat-like small game predator
Description: These little chubby animals stem from a surviving group of gorgonopsid therapsids. Now these little predators stalk the tundras and forests of their homeworld for small prey.
They hunt by sniffing out any creature within their preferred prey size and stalking it, before rushing it down or jumping it in ambush and killing it with a bite of its long canines.
They do not have solid territories and are instead migratory, but with their strong senses they are still able to avoid each other for the most part. If a member (usually a youngling) doesn't respect their boundaries, they will usually get corrected by a swipe or a punch with growling.
This only changes in the mating season, usually during the end of winter. Then Females release hormones and markers for males to find her, when one does, they will play a little game where the male has to catch up with the female and catch her, if he does good enough, he is allowed to mate. The male will then bring her gifts for a 4 months and then leave again.
The pregnancy takes around 3 months and they are born in litters of 3, they get independent quite fast and only rely care for around 1 and a half months.
There are different morphs depending on region and time, during the winter they appear more grey while in the summer they are more brown while the ones in the warmer regions are usually smaller.
They have soft pats that allow silent movement and wide feet for traveling on the snow and allowing strong grip. Their noses are bulbous to warm the cold air entering and they have small eyes to protect them from the cold.