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Description
Argo Study Trip, Entry 16
Day 45: Mortal Struggle
One thing I did not expect with regards to our study trip to Argo was that the route would be so complicated. I initially thought we were going to visit each continent one at a time, observing the wildlife discovered there. However, new developments indicated that some areas would have to be visited more than just once.
I was eager to return to Meta for a different reason than what Stash proposed, but I'll get to that later. Midsized predators are not common on that continent, but Stash wanted to investigate rumors of a Quetzin population near the western coastline. I thought that once we confirmed or disproved these rumors I could head off to conduct my own research, because I did not think that the search for the Quetzin would be any more interesting than that for any of the previous dragons.
Boy, was I wrong.
While we were looking for a campsite, we ended up smack in the middle of a Quetzin hunt. Luckily they were not after us but rather a small herd of Dahes in the same area. Unlike Pyrods, Quetzins are more adapted for agility and power than speed. This is because, like birds of prey, they use their legs and feet to restrain their meals before eating them. This means that Quetzins rely on ambush when hunting. This group in particular had been perfectly concealed by their body color in the same scrub we had been trekking through, until one unsuspecting adolescent Dahes ventured too close to the bushes. The pack became a blur of green and purple, and as the rest of the herd scattered, the young Dahes tried to bolt as well - only to be intercepted by a large male Quetzin, presumably the alpha.
Like deinonychosaurs and modern hawks, dromaeodracids such as the Quetzin have an enlarged claw on the second toe. This claw is not used for slashing - its shape and lack of a sharp lower edge would prevent this - but rather like a grapple or a meathook, allowing the creature to impale and then latch onto its prey. Leaping onto the back of an animal, the Quetzin will maintain balance using its wings which, although too small for flight, are nonetheless useful as stabilizing organs. As the creature's panicked struggles open its own wounds, the dragon speeds up the process by savagely tearing at the prey with its razor-like teeth, until eventually, the victim expires from shock and blood loss. It has been previously observed that a somewhat modified version of this technique, consisting of multiple dragons locking onto the principal areas of a larger creature while their serrated teeth do their deadly work, is used by other Quetzin populations for larger prey items in other native areas.
Surprisingly, the alpha male of this pack was not the one we tagged for studying. A few moments after the poor Dahes perished, I was ambushed by a female Quetzin that had stayed behind for some reason and was promptly tranquilized when she jumped me and tried to take a bite out of my face. Thanks to Stash's lightning-fast reflexes, I escaped with only minor head injuries.
Drawing 8 of 12 for ~The-Great-Stash.
The main inspiration behind this picture was a certain paper from last year or so, detailing the predatory ecology of dromaeosaurs (which the Quetzin resembles by way of convergent evolution). The "ripper" model they describe has been repeatedly illustrated with Terran deinonychosaurs before, as seen here:
[link]
[link]
[link]
[link]
[link]
Quetzin, Dahes (c)
Day 45: Mortal Struggle
One thing I did not expect with regards to our study trip to Argo was that the route would be so complicated. I initially thought we were going to visit each continent one at a time, observing the wildlife discovered there. However, new developments indicated that some areas would have to be visited more than just once.
I was eager to return to Meta for a different reason than what Stash proposed, but I'll get to that later. Midsized predators are not common on that continent, but Stash wanted to investigate rumors of a Quetzin population near the western coastline. I thought that once we confirmed or disproved these rumors I could head off to conduct my own research, because I did not think that the search for the Quetzin would be any more interesting than that for any of the previous dragons.
Boy, was I wrong.
While we were looking for a campsite, we ended up smack in the middle of a Quetzin hunt. Luckily they were not after us but rather a small herd of Dahes in the same area. Unlike Pyrods, Quetzins are more adapted for agility and power than speed. This is because, like birds of prey, they use their legs and feet to restrain their meals before eating them. This means that Quetzins rely on ambush when hunting. This group in particular had been perfectly concealed by their body color in the same scrub we had been trekking through, until one unsuspecting adolescent Dahes ventured too close to the bushes. The pack became a blur of green and purple, and as the rest of the herd scattered, the young Dahes tried to bolt as well - only to be intercepted by a large male Quetzin, presumably the alpha.
Like deinonychosaurs and modern hawks, dromaeodracids such as the Quetzin have an enlarged claw on the second toe. This claw is not used for slashing - its shape and lack of a sharp lower edge would prevent this - but rather like a grapple or a meathook, allowing the creature to impale and then latch onto its prey. Leaping onto the back of an animal, the Quetzin will maintain balance using its wings which, although too small for flight, are nonetheless useful as stabilizing organs. As the creature's panicked struggles open its own wounds, the dragon speeds up the process by savagely tearing at the prey with its razor-like teeth, until eventually, the victim expires from shock and blood loss. It has been previously observed that a somewhat modified version of this technique, consisting of multiple dragons locking onto the principal areas of a larger creature while their serrated teeth do their deadly work, is used by other Quetzin populations for larger prey items in other native areas.
Surprisingly, the alpha male of this pack was not the one we tagged for studying. A few moments after the poor Dahes perished, I was ambushed by a female Quetzin that had stayed behind for some reason and was promptly tranquilized when she jumped me and tried to take a bite out of my face. Thanks to Stash's lightning-fast reflexes, I escaped with only minor head injuries.
Drawing 8 of 12 for ~The-Great-Stash.
The main inspiration behind this picture was a certain paper from last year or so, detailing the predatory ecology of dromaeosaurs (which the Quetzin resembles by way of convergent evolution). The "ripper" model they describe has been repeatedly illustrated with Terran deinonychosaurs before, as seen here:
[link]
[link]
[link]
[link]
[link]
Quetzin, Dahes (c)
Image size
1264x964px 929.48 KB
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Comments3
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AWESOME!! Nice to see an alpha pair working together whiel the rest of the pack waits. Poor prey item, didnt even see it coming. Oh well, that's nature.
(btw, the family is called 'dromaeodracid', not dromaeodraconid, but that's an easy typo to fix, other than that.)
Other than that, uve done a fine job, my bro!! Btw, note me when u can, cuz i do need ur help in deciding on what u want me to do with Vi's spy outfit thingy. I'd rather it suit ur taste than my own, cuz i dont wanna mess it up.
Also, can't wait to see Pod and his pack. Keep in mind that their legs and face are darker than the Quetzins.
(btw, the family is called 'dromaeodracid', not dromaeodraconid, but that's an easy typo to fix, other than that.)Other than that, uve done a fine job, my bro!! Btw, note me when u can, cuz i do need ur help in deciding on what u want me to do with Vi's spy outfit thingy. I'd rather it suit ur taste than my own, cuz i dont wanna mess it up.
Also, can't wait to see Pod and his pack. Keep in mind that their legs and face are darker than the Quetzins.