Sha (/ʃa/ or /sa/)

Mysterious animals that are known to inhabit the central regions of the Nbundo River Basin all year round, even during the harshest off the desert season, the unusual Sha are animals unique to the region. These unusual animals are, in many ways, a symbol of the region and of Zazamanc nobility, as well as the deserts of the central dry seasons.

Basic Information

Anatomy

Sha are slender, tall canids with a similar anatomy to a greyhound. Their torsos are slim and sleek, with a large chest housing a sizable heart and lungs and a long, straight tail, held extremely stiff most of the time. This tail ends in a spade shaped tuft of fur, not entirely dissimilar to a lion's, and their fur is very short and lightly coated, in some parts of the body being almost hairless. Their legs are tall and skinny, much like those of a greyhound, and end in wide paws and generally blunted claws. Their heads are long and slender, with far apart eyes, elongated muzzles that almost come to a point and has a slight downward curve, and large ears that are wide and almost rectangular at the tips. With in their mouth is a long, almost anteater-like tongue, although they still possess teeth typical of a canid, just smaller (especially the carnassials which are all but nonexistent) except for the canines which are long.

Genetics and Reproduction

Sha are serially monogamous, staying with a single mate until the pups are of age to disperse on their own at which point they seek out a new mate. Males are selected from within the pack and in a quite unique manner than most other canids: the females simply select a male that is to their liking and remain with him until the pups are of age. After that point, they move on and select a different male to start a new litter with. All the females do this, and so the males simply have to wait until the next breeding season to get the opportunity to mate. Females without brothers to look after them tend to suffer from high fits of male aggression, even killing pups of rival males. Once pregnant, the females give birth to a litter of 10-12 pups after a period just longer than two months.

Growth Rate & Stages

Pups are born about the same weight of spotted hyena cubs and black as pitch. For the first half a year of their lives, these pups are dependent on their mother's milk for food, and once they are weened they are still feed by the adults as travelling to termite mounds and ant hills can be dangerous with their still relatively stubby legs and the young often don't have long enough snouts to feed on these insects without getting seriously hurt by the soldiers. Adults, usually their fathers but occasionally their mothers and uncles, will hunt small rodents and rabbits and pluck fruits and berries to provide them with food. This is not a typical food source, and they will only need to consume this food until they reach 9 months of age. At this point, they are developed enough to make trips to termite mounds and anthills and feed effectively from them. Once they reach their second year, they are old enough to survive without protection from adults and disperse. Some of the males will seek mates of their own, but others will stay with their sisters to ensure the safety of them and their offspring.

Ecology and Habitats

The sha are a species entirely unique to the Nbundo and as such are adapted to its particular conditions of dry and wet. Their long legs and wide paws facilitate travels over long distances, especially in the dry conditions when the soil becomes somewhat sandy. This also matches their lifestyle, as sha only seasonally maintain a territory: during the wet season, they choose a sheltered place to call home for a few months and patrol massive territories with which they feed of the assortment of fruits, seeds, berries, and insects, with small game like rodents, rabbits, and lizards to supplement pups once they've been weaned; during the dry season, they become fully nomadic, traveling miles across the deserts at night and stopping at rock shelters to beat out the heat of the day while they persist almost entirely off termites and ants. Their role in the wet season as frugivores is important for several species that inhabit the central regions of the Nbundo, including the davuki, a kind of cactus that produces rich fruits that who's seeds are dispersed by the droppings of animals. The sha in particular are known to disperse these seeds and play an instrumental role as such. While sha only occasionally hunt small game, medium antelopes to large herbivores have nothing to fear from these canids as their delicate teeth can do little. This goes the same for predators as well: lions, hyenas, and wild dogs are known to viciously attack sha, not just for territory but even as a prey source, especially the pups in the case of hyenas. This is why sha still retain such large canines, as these are just about the only weapons that they have against the more robust predators that would hunt their offspring.

Dietary Needs and Habits

Quite unusual among canids, sha are insectivores: specifically, they are almost exclusively myrmecophagies, feeding mostly on the ants and termites that make their homes in the Nbundo. The get at these had to reach food sources by sticking the tips of their snouts into the entrances of their tunnels and slurping the insects up with their sticky tongues, so long that they often are not at risk of bites from the soldier castes at all. Once they have had their fill, they move on, with little to no evidence the hive was disturbed at all. It is not unheard of to catch a sha in the act of feeding: in fact, these go on for so long it is the most likely way to see one this way, gulping down thousands of termites or ants. This is almost the entirety of their diet during the dry season but sha are resourceful animals that can make use of many food sources, such as small rodents and rabbits. However, it only uses them as food during particularly harsh starvation or to feed pups who are not as skilled at feeding on the ants and termites. During the wet season, their diet is much wider, though animal matter still consists almost entirely of insects: the variety is simply broader, with grasshoppers, moths, and even millipedes added to the menu, as well as fresh carrion though they are rarely able to maintain the carcass from or muscle off other scavengers and predators. But with the wet season comes a new food source to exploit: plant matter; specifically, fruits and berries, which make up as much as 50-60% of their diet during the wet season. In particular, the fruits of the davuki cactus are a delightful delicacy in both the wet and dry seasons.

Behaviour

Sha are generally calm and do not acknowledge other animals: herbivores and other insectivores are typically ignored unless they get too close to the den or pups. Even when at feeding sites, other insectivores are tolerated, as long as they don't bother the sha directly. When it comes to predator species however, sha are typically shy outside the pack, moving with great stealth when in the territories of predators such as lions or hyenas. These animals especially are the most likely to prey on sha: lions will hunt adults when presented, as will spotted hyenas, with both them and brown/striped hyenas also preying on pups when given the chance. Sha are cautious of rivers and trees, where crocodiles and leopards are known to hide and ambush. It was once said that sha have been calm, even friendly around people, though in recent years this seems to be becoming less and less the case.
They are semi-cathemeral, but are mostly crepuscular foraging typically at dawn or dusk. They're activities are also effected by humidity and temperature, with cool, cloudy days being when they are most active sometimes all day. Their territories are quite large, often 50 sq miles or so, with hundreds of termite mounds and ant tunnels within that range. As stated above though, they only seasonally hold a territory: during the dry seasons, they are purely nomadic, wondering the central desert in constant search for food. Their daily patterns also change, becoming almost exclusively nocturnal during this time.

Additional Information

Social Structure

While sha often forage for food alone or in mated pairs with offspring, they often live in fairly sizable social groups of 7-8 sisters, a few brothers that join them, and a number of males who independently joined which are either equal or slightly below the females and brothers together. Instead of dispersing to find their own mates, the related males often stay with their immediate family to act as protectors of their nieces and nephews. These males are at the top of the male dominance hierarchy and may reciprocate aggression towards females with violence of their own, even to the point where some males are castrated by the brothers and/or chased out of the group. The brothers also, along with the breeding males of the pack, protect the females and their pups, both from predator species and from lone sha males seeking to muscle their way into the pack.

Domestication

Due to their elusive nature, sha have not been truly domesticated by the peoples of the Nbundo. There is however a long standing tradition of taming sha and keeping them from a young age. They are generally kept outside, as their wide wondering nature does not make them good indoor animals, though nobility with large estates can manage.
Among those who border upper class, such as village leaders, they are employed as pest control service, keeping termites and ants out of homes and buildings, generally free to come and go as they please. For nobility however, breeding sha is a longstanding tradition and past time, especially among ambassadors and merchants, who often show off these exotic animals to foreign nations. This is so prevalent that the sha is in many ways a symbol of foreign powers and peace among Zazamanci people.

Origin/Ancestry

Canidae

Lifespan

10-14 years

Average Height

Dogs- 2.32-3.64 feet at the whithers
Bitches- 2.23-2.32 feet at the whithers

Average Weight

Dogs- 71-94 lbs.
Bitches- 68-86 lbs.

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

Sha have a plain coat pattern, generally of an earthy red color with black streaks underneath the eyes and snaking down to the nose. Individuals raised in captivity are often bred to express melanism: that is, they are dark, almost pitch black in their color, especially those of noble pedigree.

Geographic Distribution

• Nbundo River Basin