Fukibi
The Fukibi are an owlish, humanoid folk. They live in the tall mountains that make up the majority of Malkai, and call that region home. The Fukibi are associated with libraries the world over, due to their accomplishments after the last continental war in establishing one in every country, if not every town, to try and preserve world knowledge after the travesty that was that conflict.
Basic Information
Anatomy
Fukibi people stand shorter than humans, with lighter bones and faster beating hearts--a mixture of owls and humans if you will. They have two strong wings on their backs and fine feathers along their faces that turn into either hair or long feathers on their pointed skulls. As an owl can, the Fukibi can turn their heads almost entirely 360 degrees around. They tend to be one of the shortest races, and because of this are seen as weak. (Nobody wants to be on the receiving end of one of their talons, though, they are known to be quite sharp.)
Speaking of their feet, Fukibi can have 'feet' or 'talons' or a mixture of the two. If they have feet, they are generally small and have sharp claws. All varieties grow claws instead of nails.
Genetics and Reproduction
These people have live births, and reproduce more similarly to humans than birds. They have a slightly shorter gestation period than humans at about six months, and must care for their young for several years before they can be on their own. Fukibi can reproduce among their own kind, and with most humanoid races. For some pairings, it is easier if the female bearing the young is of the opposing species. Young tend to favor the other race, and are usually not born with wings, or they are small and too under-developed for flying.
Growth Rate & Stages
Fukibi have a maturation rate between that of birds and that of humans. Young cannot be left alone for several months, they are helpless for some time. Most do not learn to fly until after they've learned to walk and talk, commonly taking their first leaps at about 3 years of age. They mature slowly, and are considered to have reached this threshold at 20-25 years, fully recognized as independent around 40. They can live to be about 200-300 years old, and can viably reproduce as young as 18 and the oldest recorded living mother was approximately 227 years old.
Ecology and Habitats
Fukibi people live mostly in Malkai, where they enjoy a mountainous region in a temperate part of the world. Their country boasts some of the most beautiful naturally-occuring phenomena; waterfalls, vast flowering praries, hot springs, deep and winding canyons, beautiful ocean cliffsides and hidden sandy beaches.... Seasons occur as normal so they are used to both moderate heat and spitting cold. With their natural insulating down, they do not have issue with colder climates, but on the other side, heat does tend to bother them long term, and this why there aren't many of this species found in Akha, or any desert of the world, truly.
This birdfolk race tends to nest high in the mountains in the spring and summer, but owlets will be born in the villages hidden away in the crags or in the valley below come fall and winter.
Dietary Needs and Habits
The diets of the Fukibi are varied depending on the region they call home, but most eat meats and various crop plants. Their digestive systems are similar to real world owls, as they regurgitate pellets containing what they can't digest on their own. Because these creatures have hands to manipulate their meals before they eat them, some Fukibi regard the whole nature of pellets to be disgusting and avoid it as much as possible, where others embrace that wild nature and eat their kills whole. What they can digest passes just as a human's digestive system will, if perhaps a bit more efficient.
Biological Cycle
Fukibi will grow thicker down in the winter time, and shed these feathers in the spring/summer. Some particularly owlish varieties will go into hibernation in the winter time, but most don't.
Additional Information
Social Structure
The Fukibian people live under a king, and the king is either selected by the most intelligent son, or through the process of elimination to find the most intelligent owl-folk in their lands. The competitions for open-reign are some of the most exciting social experiences of a young owlet's life. The king rules over many alukaps which are essentially districts in the country, each headed by a group of Edellis, or noble family heads. Each town inside that district have their own structure, often topped by one of the families of the Edellis, but the people are generally happy--the society takes care of itself and remains for the most part internal; there is very little civil unrest in Malkai. Nobility are typically recognized by contests of intelligence, judged by the king themselves.
Facial characteristics
Fukibi tend to go one of two ways in their features, they will either slide more toward human with finely feathered faces, round eyes and a rigid nose above a v-shaped mouth, or they will lean toward owl, with a beak instead. Both can communicate just as easily.
Geographic Origin and Distribution
Fukibi live within the mountains of Malkai primarily, but can be found all over the world, sticking to forest regions or mountains where they can find hidden places to nest.
Average Intelligence
Fukibi are very intelligent people, and value this line of culture highly in their society.
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
The owl people of the Fukibi boast superior hearing and vision at night, and tend to be nocturnal.
Civilization and Culture
Major Organizations
[Library organization here]
Beauty Ideals
Clean feathers and a lack of bald spots are ideal in this culture. Height and wingspan are also desired, but uncontrollable so not heavily focused on. A beautiful mind is considered most important of all things.
Gender Ideals
Both genders are encouraged to expand their minds as far and as wide as they can, though child-rearing and protection toward the beginning of young's lifetimes does generally fall to the mother while the partner works and secures their sustenance.
Courtship Ideals
To have achieved a certain level of intelligence is always factored into looking for a mate. For some, they desire a strong flyer, for others another aesthetic appeals to them--it varies from person to person. A positive outlook and smart mind are quite desirable to most.
Relationship Ideals
Fukibi generally mate for life, but there are some that value their mental journey more than a relationship, and sibling nests, as well as multi-family living situations are common enough.
Major Language Groups and Dialects
The Fukibi pride themselves on having attained at least in some measure, languages from all over the world, though in particular, they know Common and Bird speech.
Common Dress Code
Open-backed clothing is generally worn in this society, but it is also socially acceptable to not wear clothing at all.
History
The Fukibian people of Malkai typically remained inside their country from birth to death, until the last continental conflict in which much of the world's history's were being destroyed through pillaging and burning of major libraries. They value knowledge and intelligence above all things, and decided if the rest of the world could not preserve the information themselves, then they would have to do it for them, and so they struck out on a huge missive to establish libraries everywhere for the preservation of world history and cultural knowledge. Since this exodus, Fukibi can now be seen around the world.
Historical Figures
[King whom had a special love for the queen of Malan, the same king that established the world libraries]
Interspecies Relations and Assumptions
The Fukibi see much other species as below them. They see just about everything in the world as something to be studied, and that can come off as a bit pompous and condescending.
Lifespan
200-300 years
Average Height
from 18"- 7', owlish subspecies has a lot to do with variance.
Average Weight
20-80 lbs.
Average Physique
This race of people are most typically thin and small-boned, as they fly they must remain so or they risk becoming flightless or landlocked.
Body Tint, Colouring and Marking
All natural owl feather colors can be found among the Fukibi, but it is most common to see browns, greys and blacks among their feathers to help them blend into their mountainous environment. Speckling, stripes, dotting and other various 'patterns' are common among the many varieties of Fukibi.
Geographic Distribution
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