Kochulo

Basic Information

Anatomy

Skeleton:

• Fourth trochanter: knob on the femur that serves as a muscle attachment for the main retractor tail muscle that pulls the thighbone to the rear.

• Uncinate process: hook-shaped projections on the ribs that connect them together, strengthen the ribcage and serve as muscle attachments.

• Hollow bones: large bones are filled with air sacs but remain strong with a network of criss-crossing struts.

• Quadrate: four-sided bone of the jaw connecting the lower mandible to the skull.

• Sclerotic ring: bony ring on the interior of the eye which helps it keep its shape.

Digestive system:

• Esophagus (oesophage)

• Crop (jabot): stores food, produces crop milk

• Proventriculus: produces digestive enzymes

• Gizzard (gésier): crushes and grinds food with the use of gastroliths

• Intestines: absorbs nutrients

• Ceca: absorbs moisture

• Cloaca: exit point of the digestive system

Kochulo speak thanks to their syrinx and tongue. The syrinx is located at the base of the trachea and produces sounds by vibrating some or all of the membranes between several cartilage rings as the air flows through. This sets up a self-oscillating system that modulates the airflow creating the sound. The muscles modulate the sound shape by changing the tension of the membranes and the bronchial openings. Unlike the larynx of mammals, the syrinx is located where the trachea forks into the lungs. Thus, lateralization is possible and some trained singers can produce more than one sound at a time.

Genetics and Reproduction

Kochulo women lay unformed eggs when their hormones are triggered or due to environmental factors.

Growth Rate & Stages

Hatch cycle: The egg is conceived and the mother carries it for approximately a months. Once the mother lays the egg both parents take turns of keeping it warm with their body heat. In preparation for when the egg hatches, both parents eat as much as possible and build up their fat reserves, often with the help of their relatives. Four months later a a deaf, blind, featherless baby hatches from the egg and is immediately in need to food from its parents and the parents thus stop eating, focusing entirely on feeding the baby crop milk for the following three months. Thanks to their fat reserves and the help of their relatives, the parents are able to entirely devote themselves to the baby during those crucial first months. After the three months the hatchling is able to move around more freely, has developed its sense of sight and hearing and is covered in downy feathers. Parents will usually start to introducing small amounts of solid food around that time. After another three months the baby will be able to eat mostly solid food with the parents occasionally feeding it crop milk. This will continue for another two years until the baby's down falls out, after which the parents present it with its first gastrolith and its first proper name, an important coming of age ceremony.

Additional Information

Facial characteristics

A Kochulo's appearance varies depending on their place of birth. Kochulo from Tsunglai in central Yansaka have black and blue feathers with iridescent tips and small red beaks. In some of the southern provinces the plumage becomes much more colourful with Kochulo exhibiting turquoise, red, green feathers, some of them with black iridescent tips. They resemble Taiwan Blue Magpies (Urocissa caerulea) or Indochinese Green Magpies (Cissa hypoleuca). To the west, the Kochulo of Khirtsen have alternating black, white and iridescent blue-green feathers. Their beaks are black and show less of a downward curve. They resemble Eurasian Magpies (Pica pica). To the north, in Shojun, Kochulo have black, blue and dark red feathers and long white beaks. They look like Amami Jays (Garrulus lidthi). In the East in Ekoro, the plumage is typically black and red with white tips or occasional white feathers. Their beaks are black and are more curved than other Kochulo. They resemble Lowland peltops (Peltops blainvillii). All kinds of plumage will typically include feathers that reflect ultraviolet light.

Civilization and Culture

Relationship Ideals

If a married Kochulo couple are unable to procreate, their marriage will often end in divorce. However it isn't unusual for the wife to sleep with one of her husband's male relatives (generally a brother or a cousin) in order to produce an egg and maintain the bond between her family and that of her husband.

Culture and Cultural Heritage

Doctors believe that different stones have different properties that affect the body. Experts on gastroliths are highly prized.