Lemonbok
Basic Information
Anatomy
The lemonbok is a smaller, thinner cousin to its forest-dwelling Camelbok cousins, thought of as a cross between an antelope and dog. They have four thin legs that tend to look like a strong wind could snap them in half and long thin bodies, as if they were stretched out taffy. Adult lemonboks tend to be between 18-25 inches tall, with no distinction in gender in the height of the animals. Although, female lemonboks are rounder creatures.
Lemonboks have large pointed ears which they will flap over their face during the hottest part of the day to keep themselves cool. They have large hooded eyes, good for keeping blown sand out of them. And pale pink noses with a sandy stripe down the middle the humblebees tend to mistake for the centers of Carroway Flowers.
They are a light sandy color, with little pattern variation throughout their coats, though their back fur tends to have a wave to it. Their hooves and horns are a deeper orange-brown color. Their coloring works very well as camouflage. When the are laying down to sleep, it is quite difficult to spot them; their bodies blend into the sand and their slender, pointedly curved horns resemble the dried brush in the area.
Growth Rate & Stages
The lemonbok have an abbreviated lifespan, living up to 10 years in the wild in large, traveling packs.
Gestation lasts six months, with most babies born right before the rainy seasons. Lemonboks are always born in pairs, with more than half being identical twins. Infants spend their time leaning against their mother’s legs, learning the lemonbok’s distinctive leaping hop, before they are weaned from the mother by the father at 6 months. Lemonboks spend two years in a juvenile phase before they reach full adulthood. Once male lemonboks reach adulthood, they leave the pack for another at the end of the rainy season.
Ecology and Habitats
Lemonboks thrive in drier environments like the Umbragelb Desert and the surrounding planes. They prefer the hotter environments, and the large packs will move south to north, fleeing the cold air streams coming off the mountains during the winter months. During the rainy seasons, packs of lemonboks that have separated into smaller packs during the drier seasons, will all meet up together into larger packs numbering in the thousands. Seeing these larger packs run across the desert, it looks like the whole desert is moving.
Dietary Needs and Habits
Lemonboks are big foragers, constantly moving towards the next food source. They'll eat grasses and the leaves off tangleweeds (a big contributor to keeping this invasive plant at bay). They meet their water need through the consumption of these plants, and can go the dry season without drinking any additional water. They will also eat the bugs off succulent plants, especially when they are in their juvenile phase of life.
Scientific Name
Mammal
Lifespan
10
Average Height
18-25 inches.
Average Weight
40-60 pounds
Average Length
27-35 inches
Geographic Distribution
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