Jzarmillan Mammoth

In the wide scope of Jzarmille's ecosystem, no relationship is more symbiotic than that of the orvon and mammoths. Through the age prior, mammoths were hunted relentlessly for their tusks as well as their meat and fur and have been driven almost to extinction on multiple occassions. Yet they have still managed to survive through the tremulous changes of civilization around them, and their steady population is due in part to the fallibility of the orvon themselves.

Physiology

Jzarmillan mammoths are thought to be a hybrid of two extinct species: pygmy mammoths and Aveaan elephants. They are slightly bigger in size than traditional pygmy mammoths but not nearly as big as Aveaan elephants. Their tusks are long and curved—they develop an initial set at around six months, which is then replaced by an adult set at around twenty months.

Coat

The mammoths develop a thin coat of hair at around four to six months, and the coat thickens before their second winter. From then on, they shed most of it in the spring—they are left with a thin lining of hair for the hotter months—and regrow it in the fall. Their skin underneath is leathery and brown, noted as a similar feel and permeability to orvon skin. This is thought to be a result of convergent evolution.

Trunk

Mammoth's wide trunks are the strongest muscles in their bodies, and they use them for everything from smelling to touching to drinking. They also seem to be extremely sensitive.

by superemelka from Pixabay

Behavior

Mammoths are thought to be quite intelligent, though they are also very temperamental and stubborn. They can be incredibly loyal to an orvon who's raised them but only to that orvon and they are generally wary of outsiders. They love water and the bottoms of their feet have a rough padding that is especially useful for walking on slippery rocks and sand.

All ages have exhibited play behavior with both their own species and others, however they don't seem to be aware of their size and can be overenthused when roughousing. They're also very vocal, and will 'talk' to just about any amicable species that will respond to them.

History and Evolution

Age Prior

Up until about 600 mammoths were a major food source for orcs and orvon across Jzarmille, as well as a victim of Aveaan, Cravven, and dwarven cultures' sport and greed. Their numbers had dwindled steadily beforehand for at least a millenia but at around 550 their rate of decline had begun to curve almost exponentially. It is estimated that had no intervention occured, mammoths would've been hunted to extinction by the ninth century of the Empress.

Settlement of Attalux

Near the beginning of the seventh century of the Empress, the Northern Obsidian experienced a rise in water level and a resurgence in population of several key aquatic species. The citizens of Attalux, a major orvon settlement along the Northern Obsidian, began to rely on the new influx of fish for food instead of mammoths, thereby changing the nature of their relationship to the mammoths in the area. Suddenly the mammoths were no longer prey for orvon there.

Partial Domestication

Mammoths were still routinely hunted by the Aveaans, mostly adults as calves didn't have enough fur and tusks to be considered worth killing. Calves whose mothers were killed, or who got left behind, thus began to seek shelter near Attalux and eventually many would wander into the settlements and orvon warcamps for refuge.

Interestingly, this period simultaneously saw the initial presence of reproductive issues for the orvon which brought about a strange co-occurance of numerous mammoth calves who'd lost their parents and orvon men who'd lost their wives and unborn children to childbearing. As the complications with reproduction grew more widespread, so did integration of the mammoth calves into their farms for companionship and breeding.

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Note: While the mammoths' domestication is prevalent across eastern Jzarmille, western Jzarmille—from about Vladica westward—still hunts and eats mammoths, though not nearly as much as they used to. The relationship of the mammoths and orvon near Attalux is generally considered to have been indirectly consequential of the river.

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Genetic Ancestor(s)
Aveaan Elephant
Pygmy Mammoth

First Recorded Appearance
~849 Prior

Physical Statistics

Lifespan
60 years

Average Height
7 ft (2.1 m) - 8 ft (2.4 m)

Average Weight
3,500 lbs (1587.6 kg)

Diet

Mammoths are mostly herbivores however they do also love fish, and most orvon raising and breeding them will provide some degree of seafood in their diet as well as plants. They will also occasionally eat birds if desperate, but this is rare.

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Trunk Sensitivity

Rubbing the top of the trunk near the very end incites an immediate reaction from the mammoth, especially in young calves. They will patter their feet and scrunch the top bridge of their trunk, and their eyes will water. This was at first thought to be a reaction of pain but it has since been understood that the reaction is from the mammoth's trunk being ticklish.

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Reproduction

Mammoths reach sexual maturity between 10 and 12 years of age; males generally begin to experience musth three or four years after, and for this reason orvon who raise mammoths will generally release the males into the wild at around 10 years. Both sexes are generally most reproductively successful between 20 and 40 years of age, and pregnancy for females is usually about 20 months.

In the wild mammoths often form long-term pair-bonds to raise offspring; with those raised and domesticated by orvon, it's less common simply because the males are so often released into the wild while the females are not. However, even without pair-bonding the males will often return periodically and can form affectional bonds with their offspring.