Southern Fauna

These creatures can be found in the Western region and specifically in the cities of Augiery, Desnind, Niomyr, and Quacia. Unless specified, these animals and monsters can be self moderated.

Ditos

Created By: Nymph

Weight: 1500 pounds

Height: 5 meters

Length: 7 meters

Purpose: Occasionally used as a food source

Population: The Naerikk suspect there are only 25-30 of these creatures left within the cavern.

Habitat: The ditos live in the underground caverns beneath the Southern Region. They claim large areas of the cavern. Anywhere from 2-4 dito will live in the same territory at any given point. This group consists of the mated pair and their growing offspring. When the offspring are old enough, they will journey through the cavern to establish their own territory and create their own family. Within their territory there are often large "farms" of fungi that the dito ingest.

Lifespan and Development: Mothers tend to give birth to one or two eggs every 50-60 arcs. A female dito will give birth to 2-3 clutches before passing on. Once born, the dito will remain in the egg for a full arc. A young dito will emerge from the egg, hanging around its mother as it grows. It takes approximately 30-40 arcs before the creature will be fully grown. It relies on its parents to provide for most of its life. A grown dito will then leave the nuclear family to make room for the mother's next clutch. It will seek an area within the cavern to call its own. After establishing its territory, the dito will seek out a mate. These beasts mate for life; the loss of their loved one often causes severe depression of the one left behind. It is not uncommon for a dito to pass on due to starvation after losing its mate because they choose not to survive. It is a peculiar trait the Naerikk have noted.

The ditos are blind despite having large black eyes. Having been in darkness for many arcs, the creatures have not found use for sight. Instead, they have long tendrils that waves back and forth in front of their face. These tendrils act like fingers, sensing objects in front of their face. It is suspected that the creature can sense nutritional substances and moisture through these finger-like projections.

Diet: Ditos eat fungus and small plants that cling to the roof of the cavern they preside in. They are mainly fungivores, it is not unheard of for them to suck a bat or two into their mouths during a meal.

Temperament: A dito is a very peaceful creature when not provoked. They simply exist, choosing to occupy with drinking, eating, and sleeping. When provoked, they tend to attempt flight. Fighting is difficult for them as they are large, slow, and do not have physical features to use as weapons. If push comes to shove, they will attempt to smack a creature with their tail to buy themselves time to get away.

Abilities: The fungus that the dito normally feed on are toxic to mortals and most other creatures within the cave. They have a special fermentation process within their hindgut that allows them to destroy the toxins and gain nutrients from the meat of the mushroom. Once enough fungus has been ingested, ditos will produce a pellet in their feces that is edible to mortals. These pellets are soft, spongy, and may be harvested. Known as "dito loaves", this form of food is often seen on Augierian naval ships during extended voyages due to the high calorie content.

Icraphern

Created By: Avrae Kyric

Locations: Desnind, Magani (Captive)

Pronunciation: Ick-Ra-Fern

Height: 2 feet

Length: 3-4 feet

Weight: ~25 pounds/11.5 kg

Native to: Southern Idalos

Appearance: Icrapherns greatly resemble the modern day deer, but they're also very different. They're very small, delicate creatures, only growing to about two feet tall at their torso (or three feet if you count their extremely long neck and antler), and being around three to four feel long in length. With four very slender, fragile legs, Icrapherns are often shaky when standing and prefer to be sat down. Therefore, they're not very active creatures except when they have to be, running almost like they're on stilts. Icrapherns have a single white antler in the middle of their head. Their head is fairly small and elegantly pointed, with usually beautiful, dark eyes that range in colors of brown and green. An Icraphern's neck is exceptionally long and tall. The Icraphern's ears are delicate and leaf-shaped, pointed backwards. However, the biggest diferential of an Icraphern from a deer is their pelt. Icrapherns have a base pelt of white, but their fur gets longer and changes color- the tips and long strands are a pale green color. The fur on their skinny legs is also very long and a grayish color. The Icraphern's tail is long, white, and short furred, often curling at the tip.

Temperament: There's no hazard to them. Icrapherns are peaceful creatures, who won't fight or become aggressive. They lean heavily towards fleeing when there's danger, and have no offensive attributes.

Other Information: The Icraphern are a herbivore species, they don't eat meat. They've been said to lay in soft, hidden spots and poke their head up with their long necks through the foliage to observe their surroundings. Icraphern meat is a delicacy, but they're more prized for their incredibly soft pelts. Their shaky, weak bodies make them easy prey, and if it weren't for the Icraphern's keen senses, ability to fit into small hiding spaces, and tendency to breed like that of rabbits, they might be a more rare species because of poaching.