Turokaw

Invisible in the day, stalking the shadows in the night. Intelligent, sly, and hungry.

Basic Information

Anatomy

Turokawiz are lean, muscular creatures with thin black fur and one very long tail. They have six limbs, with four limbs attached in a similar way to most quadrupedal animals and the two other limbs attached to the back. Their skeletal structure is very similar to a wood wolf's (and, subsequently, an Earthen wolf's), but the bones themselves are more similar to a Canles'iz, made with an extremely strong and durable material and supplemented with specialized nutritious blood. Their muscles are tough and would be inedible if anyone bothered to try and hunt a turokaw for food. This is because the wood-hardened muscles from wood wolves were passed down to the turokawiz. Like other species of animals, turokawiz have two breathing passages, but unlike other animals, they inherited the strong lungs and backup breathing passages in the skin from Canlesiz. They have two rows of teeth, the front being sharp and the back being flatter, more like a cow's teeth. This is because, technically, turokawiz are omnivores. Their tails are just a few inches shorter than their entire body, and have extremely strong muscles, so they use they use their tails to catch prey. Due to the pigment-changing cells in their very early ancestors, turokawiz can change the color of their fur and skin instantaneously, although adolescents must learn and train this skill to use it well. They have four eyes, with one set placed facing forwards and the other facing slightly to the side, but they do not have any ears.

Genetics and Reproduction

They reproduce like Canlesiz do, with seed sacks placed on the back of their necks. Seeds take less time to grow than Canlesiz, however, and the flower takes less time to produce offspring. Their way of genetics sharing is also the same, although it's less personal and has a larger radius.

Growth Rate & Stages

Turokawiz develop much faster than any other species on the planet, developing from a baby to a fully functional adult in just two months (granted, months are much longer on Romnuchic than on Earth). As they grow from a pup into an adult, they grow the seed sack on their necks. Pups also do not have the ability to change the color of their skin, but they do not have the extra two limbs on their backs, so they are often mistaken for mangy dogs rather than a new species, which works to their advantage. At around one month, they gain both of these abilities, in which they have entered the adolescent stage of their growth. This is around the time that their parents are teaching them both how to hunt and how to use their new abilities, specifically their camouflage. At two months, the seed sack develops, along with a kind of biological desire to go populate the species (like most animals have on Earth, and even on Romnuchic). They can now live on their own, although they often stay with their pack for protection. Some will even form packs of their own instead of adding their children to their current pack.

Ecology and Habitats

While they truly thrive in the dark forests in between settlements, Turokawiz are highly adaptable and can survive in any location or environment. They mostly populate the Nuren Aza Settlement and the lands around them, particularly the forests and caves. Turokawiz leave little trace of their existence in the habitats they live in, due to their penchant to eat every part of their prey.

Dietary Needs and Habits

Turokawiz will eat almost anything, including Canlesiz, if they're hungry enough, but they prefer to hunt medium sized animals and birds. While they can eat fruits, berries, and vegetables, these do not provide as much nutrition as meats, and thus they are mostly avoided by turokawiz unless there is a famine or the creature is very desperate. They hunt in small packs on most occasions, but will sometimes hunt alone if desperate. Turokawiz have no form of storage for their food, because they eat the entire thing - and that means the ENTIRE thing, bones and all - as soon as they've killed it. One medium-sized prey item can last one Turokawiz an entire month, because of their ability to use almost every bit of their meal as energy.

Additional Information

Social Structure

Turokawiz live in small packs of five or six, made up of mostly the children of one or two parent Turokawiz. Sometimes a Turokaw will join a pack it is not related to, but this is rare. There is no innate social structure within these packs, besides the minor changes between the strength of the Turokawiz, although this affects nothing more than which Turokawiz go hunting.

Uses, Products & Exploitation

No one hunts Turokawiz at the moment, since the general public doesn't really know they exist, but they were originally intended to be exploited by the military as weapons of war. That didn't turn out so well, as Turokawiz aren't too keen on being controlled.

Facial characteristics

With the general face structure of a wolf, they have an unnaturally large mouth with many, many teeth, and four eyes.

Geographic Origin and Distribution

They only live inside and in the area around the Nuren Aza Settlement, although they are beginning to press past the boundaries and even find their way into new settlements.

Average Intelligence

Turokawiz are extremely intelligent, due to their Canlesiz ancestors, which has helped them to stay in relative hiding for the past dozen or so years.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Due to their extra eyes and the wide range of view that they have because of their placement, turokawiz have a great sense of sight, able to see for very long distances with surprising detail. Their smell is also enhanced, letting them smell the blood of their prey from miles away, along with different types of fruits or berries. However, they do not use either of these as their primary method of hunting prey. Instead, they sense vibrations in the ground, and use this to track whatever they're hunting, similar to how sharks can sense movement in the water. This is because, while their sight is good on regular terms, they can't see that well in the dark, and need quite a bit of light for their vision to work well due to the anatomy of their eyes. And since they often live either in dark forests or alleys of cities, this sixth sense is both how they navigate and how they hunt.

Genetic Ancestor(s)

• Canlesiz

Lifespan

20 years

Average Height

3-4 ft.

Average Weight

90 lbs.

Average Length

6 ft.

Average Physique

While relatively lean, Turokawiz have strong muscles, creating a weird effect with their physique, where they are bare-bones in some areas and much larger in others.

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

Their thin fur is usually light tan or brown, and they do not have any markings.

Related Myths

• Shadow Dogs