Gryphon

Gryphons are one of the world’s more fantastic creatures. A cross between a lion and an eagle, or so it appears, gryphons soar through the skies, looking for their next kill. These creatures evolved through the influence of uncontrolled magic, although it was only very limited, only granting them the gift of flight.

Basic Information

Anatomy

Gryphons have a bat-like posture, walking quadrupedally on their wings. They have a keeled chest and large shoulder blades, to support the massive muscles required to fly. The wings of a gryphon are membranous and are made of three of the gryphon’s fingers, with the other two being used for walking. Though they may resemble a bat's in some ways, the shape of the wings is much more like that of an eagle's, built for soaring and high altitude drops. Their hind limbs are feline-like and powerful, able to launch the gryphon high enough into the air for the wings to carry it the rest of the way. A gryphon’s tail is short and is connected to the legs by a membrane, so that it may be used as a sort of rudder while in flight without causing substantial drag. Gryphon bones are hollow and lighter than most animals of their size, meaning that they have to be especially careful as they more easily break.

Biological Traits

Both sexes of gryphons have spurs on their wings, close to their wrists. These spurs, interestingly, these spurs have different purposes and biology, between the sexes; both sexes have venom but in males, it is weaker and their spurs are larger and more solid, and they use them for intraspecific conflict; females, on the other hand, have smaller, more hollow spurs, and much stronger venom, and use their spurs for self and home defense.

Genetics and Reproduction

During the breeding season, gryphons seek out high altitude gathering places to mate and lay their eggs. Gryphon males fight over females using spurs on their wings, whose venom is painful but rarely if ever fatal even for humans. Gryphons are monogamous and mate for life: strangely enough, gryphons of both sexes have been observed to live their entire lives alone, if their mate dies. It is not clear as to why this is the case, but it has made the gryphon an important cultural symbol.
Gryphonesses usually lay clutches of five almost cylindrical eggs. These eggs stay in the mother for some time, exactly how long is unknown, but they generally hatch within 24 days after laying. These young, known as puggles, have relatively well-developed forelimbs, which enable them to crawl around in search of milk. As monotremes, gryphons have no nipples, and thus gryphonesses lactate through openings in their skin. Females do, however, have a pouch, which they carry their puggles in until they can properly see and eat solid foods.

Ecology and Habitats

Gryphons prefer open grasslands as their hunting ranges, as this is where much of their prey can be found and they offer little cover. Mountains are also common places to find gryphons, which rest on their peaks and hunt the wild goats and sheep that scale the cliff faces. Forests are not a typical habitat for them as they are generally too cramped to allow them to fly, but young ones do inhabit them until they reach a certain age from time to time and gryphons have been known to hunt prey on the forest floor. Gryphons are undisputedly apex predators, taking down animals comparable in size to horses (including horses themselves). The territories they occupy are vast and they wander these stretches of land often, taking shelter within multiple location within them. While horses do fall prey to them as civilization grows, gryphons prefer the wild antelope, goats, sheep, and deer native to the region, although Catoblepas calves are also common enough prey items. The hyenas and jackals common to the region are of no threat to a gryphon and are far more likely to fall prey to one. The only predator that can truly compete with a gryphon is the Leucrocotta, which shares many of the same pry items and the position of apex predator. These two readily compete for food, and gryphons readily steal kills from leucrocotta, although they are careful of them as their jaws can easily crack their delicate, hollow bones.

Dietary Needs and Habits

Gryphons are obligate carnivores, meaning their diet requires nutrients only found in meat to survive. They will only consume plant matter if necessary.
Gryphons are said by many cultures to be the sworn enemies of horses: the primary reason for this is that gryphons prey on large animals and because humans take them with them where they settle, horses are abundant. More wild prey items include deer, wild sheep, goats, antelope, and Catoblepas calves, although wounded or old adults have been known to fall victim to groups of gryphons. Gryphons multiple hunting methods, which they utilize for different types of prey:

• A common technique is described as "high soar with glide attack," where the gryphon soars hundreds of feet in the air or even from a low perch, until it spies a target, where it slightly closes its wings and enters a long, low angle glide, speed increasing all the while. Moments before impact, the gryphon opens its wings and thrusts its feet forward, accompanied by a booming sound similar to thunder caused by its wings. This technique is used for solitary or widely dispersed, and smaller prey, such as small antelope, goats, sheep, small deer, and mammalian predators between 40-50 lbs.

• For larger antelope and horses, the preferred technique is the “low flight with sustained grip,” wherein the gryphon flies over a herd of ungulates which in turn often huddle or break into a run. It then selects it prey and lands on prey's back or neck, talons gripping firmly, attempting to pierce vital organs or cause shock via a crushing grip to bone and cartilage. The hunting gryphon typically rides its prey for a just under a minute with wings outstretched and flapping to maintain balance until the prey collapses, either as result of exhaustion, shock or internal injury.

• Another tactic used on herd animals is the "glide attack with tail-chase", which commences with a low-angled stoop some distance from the quarry. The prey is then chased closely, whether an antelope running evasively or a large bird in flight. The key to success is gryphon's agility and the prey's inability to find cover.

• The "high soar with vertical stoop" is used to attack birds in flight when the opportunity should present itself. Since swift-flying birds tend outpace and out-maneuver them and are too small to be of interest, they can only usually attack larger, slower-flying species such as flocks of geese and cranes. The gryphon also requires a height advantage over their prey for this rarely observed technique to succeed. In some cases, geese have been able to avoid predation by a gryphon hunting them in this way by collectively gaining flying height.

• The final major hunting method is the "walk and grab attack", in which the gryphon walks on the ground and attempts to pull its prey out of cover.This has been used for pulling smaller animals (i.e. jackals, badgers, & antelope) out of brush but has even been utilized to grab the young of large prey (i.e. deer, sheep and etc.) literally right out from under their mother's legs. When the gryphon grabs hold, it may deal a series swift bites, crack it’s head or neck on the ground, or even simply attempt to crush it with its talons. Tandem hunting may be done regularly, especially with larger prey items. Reportedly, while hunting in pairs, the male gryphons flies in front of the female at a higher elevation and usually initiates the attack. Breeding pairs have been seen hunting antelope cooperatively with one individual following the other at different elevations above the ground. The initial pursuer diverts the prey's attention by stooping while the second flies in unseen to make the kill. They've been known to use this tactic on old or debilitated Catoblepas or even on humans, especially children.

In times of famine, gryphons have been known to expand their repertoire to grouse and hares, prey normally too small to even peak their interest. Most often they are hunted on the ground, as gryphons while excellent at soaring do not have the maneuverability in the air to hunt such small creatures. Human children have also been known to become common prey items during strife, even adults out away from their village on their own. Carrion is also an important food source and gryphons are not above bullying smaller predators, even vultures, off a large enough carcass.

Additional Information

Social Structure

From the day they can live on their own to until they find a mate, gryphons are solitary, preferring to avoid others of their kind. Confrontations over territory are rare, which is suprising as gryphon territories are massive and tend to overlap. It is actually because of this that gryphons are not territorial and pass in and out of each other’s territories all the time.
During the mating season, gryphons gather in mass on high cliffs and mountains. Here, males make their attempts to whoo females, by displaying their wingspans and creating a cooing song. Here is where fights are most likely to happen, as males fight viciously for the right to mate, using the large spurs on their wrists. While they could be fatal or crippling if it hit an artery or their wing, these fights rarely get that intense as one is liable to back down after only a few cuts.

Facial characteristics

Gryphons have large heads, comparative to their body size, with a menagerie of features that give them their eagle-like appearance: namely a large beak comparable to a wolf’s snout in length. This bill is raptorial, with a hooked end to penetrate flesh. Aiding in the aquiline look is their eyes, which 34 centimeters in diameter and are sharply pointed forward, giving them a wide field of binocular vision.

Geographic Origin and Distribution

Gryphons are unique to the regions of the Karnica Stretch, but were present in other nieghboring regions in ancient times. The Archianthians in particular have many legends and stories of gryphons in their mythology, regarding them as the guardians of the west.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Gryphon eyes have excellent sight, easy to tell from their large eyes. These eyes, each about 34 centimeters in diameter, are much more powerful than those of humans, able to view even a rabbit from as far as 2 miles away. Gryphons also have dark streaks under their eyes, which go from the corner of the eyes down to the tip of their beak. These dark streaks draw sunlight away from their eyes, a useful adaptation for a diurnal predator.
Gryphons also seem to have a sixth sense of some kind. It is unclear exactly how they do this, but gryphons seem to have a uncanny awareness of changes within their environment. In particular, gryphons always seem to know when storms are about to happen, and so it has become a tradition to the peoples of the Stretch to watch the skies for gryphons to tell if storms will arrive.

Origin/Ancestry

Monotreme

Lifespan

70-80 years.

Average Height

6 ft.

Average Weight

100-200 lbs.

Average Length

Body: 6 ft.
Wingspan: 20 ft.

Average Physique

Gryphons are taught with powerful muscles all throughout their bodies, particularly their wings. These muscles are powerful enough to allow the creature’s wings to hold it in the air, but also allow for its claws to shred all but the thickest padded armor. Their hind limbs are also powerful, able to propel the gryphon several feet, both forward and into the air.

Geographic Distribution

• Karnica Stretch