Mocking Bird

I swear to all the gods that have ever existed, if that bird insults my mother again, I'm going to tear its head off. - Angry Man

Many creatures exist with the Isles of Refuge that are both terrifying or astounding to gaze up. Still, nothing can comprehend the nature of the Mocking bird or, to others, the Mockatiel. Its very name often confuses people who have never seen one in a person believing it has a beautiful voice. While its colorful appearance is a sight to behold, its personality is far from it as it can mimic the voice of Humans and Elves alike, only it says insults and swearing for some reason. Making it almost unbearable to deal with when in the jungle or having one locked up in a change when it starts to say the most terrible things to you, things you wouldn't even think of saying until you hear them. This is why most of them have been hunted to extinction, not for their feathers; they are just a bonus, and they just kill them to shut them finally.

Basic Information

Anatomy

Small bipedal animals covered with colorful feathers. With a body that is light enough to allow it to fly. Their talon is long and strong enough to grip the branches that they rest on even when strong winds or tremendous force.

Biological Traits

Colorful Feathers: While this may seem to be disadvantageous to some animals, the feathers of the Mocking bird blend in well with the colorful plant life around them, and in the trees, they live them to keep themselves hidden from predators.
Voice Mimicry : These birds can copy the voice of people they here, often being able to repeat what they say almost perfectly.

Genetics and Reproduction

They lay eggs that take two days each to come out often two to five eggs in total. It takes twenty to twenty-three days to hatch.

Growth Rate & Stages

It takes out five to nine months for them to fully grow with them being featherless when just hatching and growing fuzz around them to stay warm. When they get older they will begin to grow their feathers to allow them to leave their nest.

Ecology and Habitats

Mocking Birds often live in flocks amongst trees where they make their nests and protect one another from predators, often swarming together and using their colorful bodies and voice to scare off any threats by making themselves look bigger.

Dietary Needs and Habits

They are omnivores eating seeds, bugs, and berries that they can get in their beaks. Eating them as quickly as they can to avoid being attacked by predators. They have also been known to use their voice mimicry to scare off small animals and steal their food.

Behaviour

These birds are often on friendly terms with one another, but they will see all other animals as threats, especially ones that are bigger than themselves. Often using trickery to make themselves look bigger and more threatening.

Additional Information

Social Structure

The Mocking birds live in flocks with no real leadership, allowing them to do what they want freely. This allows them to build where ever they want to build their nest and with who they want to make with unless the males are fighting over a female. However, the flock stays close together to act as a defense against predators working together to scare them off with their voices and their colorful bodies to look like larger animals.

Domestication

These birds can be trained to speak and retrieve things for their owners, even when they are adults. However, they will still bad-mouth them if they are not fed often.

Uses, Products & Exploitation

The colorful feathers that the birds have are often used to decorate clothing such as hats and dresses. But most people just stuff them as trophies in taxidermy often having signs under them to mock them for annoying and insulting them.

Geographic Origin and Distribution

They are found on many islands found on the Isles of Refuge. With at least twenty six being recorded to have them. But since the have become endangered they have been only spotted on eleven now and are harder to find on them.

Average Intelligence

These birds are able to build nests in any part of a tree they live in with twigs and any other loose object they can find. The ability to replicate the voices of Humans also allows them to trick other animals into believing they are bigger. But their ability to use their talons to help build their nest allows them to adjust them and aids in making them safe to stay in.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Hearing: Good
Smell: Good
Sight: Excellent

Scientific Name

Class: Natural

Lifespan

20 - 40 years

Conservation Status

The Mocking Bird is considered endangered from hunting; they don't help themselves when they give their positions away every time they insult a hunter's mother.

Average Height

27 - 30 cm

Average Weight

60 - 80 grams

Average Length

24 - 27 cm

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

Red, blue, green, orange, and yellow patterns

Geographic Distribution

• Isles of Refuge

Bad Mouthed Bird

You take that back, you dirty little rat; my mother was a saint, and I'll have you mounted on my wall for that insult - Explorer

Unlike most birds that can pick up voices, such as its more decent cousin, the cockatiel, the Mockateil, appears only to pick up words that are insults or swears. Making many believe that the birds themselves are egotistical or just spoiled rotten to the core. But those that have researched the bird have made a surprising discovery. While most bird mick the voices of the people they hear just because they can, the Mocking Bird uses them as a means of protecting itself from predators. Considering that insults and swears are often spoken loudly, this can startle some animals, making them believe that a large animal nearby might attack them. Allowing the birds to remain safe from being eaten and live in relative safety, people just have not to take the bird's word to heart; it's nothing personal.

Means of Torture

Make it stop, just make it stop; I’ll tell you anything if you’ll tell the bird to stop insulting me. - Tortured Man

While many people see these birds as a menace, some with twisted minds see other uses for them. Some people got the idea that the birds can be used as a method of torture due to their nature and regularly use them to confess to crimes or get information out of them. It doesn't take much to do as they are just near their cell or chained up, being forced to listen to them for hours or days of being bombarded with insults and foul language. The mental state is often questioned after the torture, with some becoming depressed or just going mad to that point. Physical pain can be managed by the strong-willed, but if it is a war of the minds, this is the bird for which to use it.