Dart Bird
The dart bird (Enkhorhynchus apteros, roughly "wingless spearbeak") is a species of hematophagous bird found only in the Great Fissure to Sunscald's northwest. The bird possesses no visible wings, and is reliant on the 'physical unreality' of the Great Fissure for flight. The name 'dart bird' derives from their behaviour of flying beak-first into their prey 'like a dart' in order to extract blood from the resulting wound.
Description and Behaviour
Likely emerging from rapid mutagenesis in the Great Fissure, dart birds are realtively small birds that bear some resemblance to the myna birds common in Sunscald. They tend to average between 15 and 20 centimetres in length and between 80 and 100 grams in weight, and have largely unassuming brown plumage. Their most bizarre feature is the complete lack of any visible wings - while they do retain vestigial wingbones there are no actual wings formed. Instead, the species relies on the 'unreality' of the Great Fissure to simply ignore the inconvenience of gravity and simply fly anyway. As with most phenomena in the Great Fissure it is uncertain how exactly they can harness this unreality, but it is a fundamental part of their movement - specimens taken out of the Fissure are incapable of flight and mostly helpless. The dart bird is known for its hematophagy, that is, living off other species' blood. It is unclear if the birds consume other sources of food in their natural habitats, as they have largely only been observed by humans they have attacked. The dart bird's pointed beak is extremely sharp, and it is capable of swooping down at impressive speeds in order to puncture a hole in its prey, which it may then lap up the blood from. Attacks on humans, at least by explorers' and treasure hunters' accounts, are extremely painful but rarely fatal on their own - multiple attacks may cause rapid blood loss, however. While dart birds are very fast when swooping and are capable of piercing tough hide, they are somewhat lacking in agility. If their initial attacks miss, they can have difficulty recovering and occasionally slam into the gravelly ground of the Fissure.
Scientific Name
Enkhorhynchus apteros
Average Weight
80 - 100g
Average Length
15 - 20cm
Geographic Distribution
Comments