Skorpolith
The massive Skorpolith's of Desolation are one of the most wondrous and horrifying creatures to inhabit the oversized desert. They are most known for their dazzling shells that come in an array of colorse, as well as, their oversized pincers, capable of crushing an adult Tyranasaur with ease, and deadly stinging tails. They are fearsome apex predators that fear no opponent and will defend their territory with lethatl force.
Basic Information
Anatomy
Dern things look like a scorpion humped a tortoise and made something that's so damned ugly it's beautiful.
The main body of a skorpolith is protected by a tortoise-like shell. Four thin, hairy legs protrude from each side of the shell with two oversized pincers at the front and a tall stinging tail from the rear. The legs and tail can be fully retracted into the shell for protection or while resting. The pincers, however, only retract part way, positioning them to act as armor at the front of the shell and protecting it's head and mouth.
Their thick flat shells are covered in a swirling array of greens, blues, and reds, often chipped and damaged from territorial battles with others of the species.
Genetics and Reproduction
Skorpoliths give birth to forty to fifty young at a time. Unlike smaller scorpions they give live birth. Upon hatching the young will burrow themselves into the protection of their mother's shell where they will only emerge to eat for the first thirty years of their lives. The next twenty years are spent in near proximity to their mother, still living within the same burrow until they are capable of surviving on their own. Once the young reach fifty ears of age they are typically abandoned by their mother to fend for themselves.
Behaviour
Male skoroliths are known to live in colonies of five to ten, seeking strength in numbers to fend off aggressive females. Females prefer solitude, only seeking out males for mating or easy prey. Some females are known to tolerate small packs of compys or troodons who clean small parasites from the skoroliths soft inner skin in return for access to easy leftovers.
Comments