Wyverns

Wyverns are mysterious and fearsome reptilians animals that live in North-western Mahador, in a placed dubbed the The Savage Green by Arrosian explorers. Thankfully, Wyvern interactions with humans are extremely rare, but this makes collecting information about those ferocious beasts is tricky. Its the reason that explains why even though we've known of their existence since the first age, we still know very little about them.

Basic Information

Anatomy

Wyverns have four limbs, a tail and a head. Two of their limbs are powerful hind legs while their front legs are smaller and are something resembling more a small pair a wings, rather than full fledged legs. They can nonetheless use them as if they were legs when simply walking around. They have a long muscular neck and a large head. The tail is also long and tipped with a poisonous stinger. In all three subspecies, their skin is entirely covered in gleaming green scales. All wyverns are born with the ability to fly, or at least glide down, but once they reach adulthood, they are no longer capable of flight, except for Mountain Wyverns, who never lose their gliding ability.

Genetics and Reproduction

The gestation period is though to be around 18 months, during which the female will stop hunting and enter a sort of hibernating state.

Growth Rate & Stages

Young Wyverns are capable of short flights, best described as gliding down. However, after 3-4 years, their wings become unable to fully deploy and as they reach adulthood, the bone structure fully solidifies. This makes them unable to fly, but renders the wings solid enough to be used as front legs.

Ecology and Habitats

Nests

Wyverns live is the thick humid jungles of eastern Mahador, the island of Nolath and the surrounding hills and Mountains. Nests of wyverns are made out of fallen trees assembled in a horseshoe formation while the interior is filled with bunched up foliage. Their size vary from the type of Wyvern but the larger ones are as big 15m in diameter. Wyverns living in mountains may choose a crevasse or gorge to establish a nest. Insular wyverns make similar but smaller nest.

Habitat Location

The nest is usually build near a stream of water and elevated from the land around it, presumably to keep the nest from flooding during the frequent rain storms that hit the region. The general area around a wyvern nest is often stripped of trees and foliage as they were used to create the nest. Scattered bones are common as the Wyverns do not eat the larger bones of their prey, which are discarded outside the nest.

Dietary Needs and Habits

Hunting

They hunt in pack of 3 or more during the night. They will smell their prey and run at them at full speed. With their slender bodies, they are able to chase a prey while weaving around the large trees trunks saturating the jungle's floor. Once they are close enough, one of the wyvern will sting the prey, almost immediately paralyzing it. 

Diet

They are carnivorous animals, but it is unknown if they also feed on plants or if they would be able too as they have never been observed eating plants. However, they have been sighted feasting on Noxshrooms. It is theorized that, just like in the case of the Occomors, the toxins in Noxshrooms are what the Wyvern's body uses to create the poison in its stinger.

Behaviour

They are extremely territorial. If something or someone enters their territory, they will most likely be killed. They keep to themselves during most of the time, but they nonetheless sometimes hunt in small packs with usually 2-4 members.

Additional Information

Domestication

Wyverns are savage killing machines. They cannot be domesticated.

Uses, Products & Exploitation

Because of their beauty and rareness, Wyvern Scales have always been a prized possession in Mahador, where it is used as accent on the armor for generals and political leaders. Wyvern scales are collected from the skin or bones of dead wyverns.  They have become popular in Arros as Gysia established a colony in Mahador and exported the local products to their markets of Gandasi and Sargassin. The Guild of Alchemist of Vrahlis recently theorized that Wyvern scales could be served in a potion of strength, but further tests are needed. They are also used in the confection of jewelry in both Arros and Mahador.

Facial characteristics

Horns

Male Plains and mountain wyverns both have four horns on their forehead: two stubby ones on the temples no more than an inch in length and two larger and longer one next to each other coming out the top of their head and curving towards the front. All four horns are white with greyed tips. Females have only two shorter horns on the top of their head that do not curve. These also have greyed tips. Both Male and female Wyvern from the island of Nolath only have two horns, but the male horns are still curved towards the front

Eyes

In all three subspecies, Males have blood red eyes, while females have yellow to Orange eyes. Locals insist that their eyes also glow in the dark, but this isn't confirmed due to the difficulties of gathering witnesses willing to approach such a beast during nighttime

Geographic Origin and Distribution

Subspecies Distribution

Wyverns are divided into 3 subspecies, Plains Wyverns, who are the biggest and most numerous; Mountain wyverns, who can actually use their wings to glide down short distances all during their life; and insular Wyverns, that are found on the island of Nolath, which are smaller and faster.

Past Teritorial Extent

Aswell as being on Nolath island, Insular wyverns are though to have at one point being on nearby Velcath island also, as bones and testimonies confirm their presence during the first age on both island. Wyvern bones can also be found west of the thick Green hell jungle, in the Golcai valley, indicating that they once lived there also in large numbers..
Both of these populations have now gone extinct, most likely during the Long Winter, which severely dropped temperature around the globe as well as making those two regions dryer.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

They have good vision and hearing capabilities. However, their sense of smell is unparalleled. According to the native Ak'aa peoples, they can smell a prey multiple kilometers away through jungle and even heavy rain and wind.

Genetic Descendants

• The Occomor

Lifespan

Estimated to be more than 100 years

Average Height

5 metres , from its feet to its horns

Average Length

8 metres, including the tail.

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

Their bodies are entirely covered in scales coloured in various shades of green. When in sunlight, wyvern scales have a blue gleam to them, making their bodies subtly glow in the sunlight.