Turquoise-Helmed Lizalope

As steppe lizalopes relied on running away from threats, it made perfect sense that they would further specialize for running faster and longer until they would split off and become a distinct taxon in their own right. Known as the turquoise-helmed lizalope, this species has longer legs, which in turn give it a much greater stride than their ancestor, which compliments their slightly larger size as this means it covers larger amounts of ground and is thus faster when fleeing from predators. This was particularly important for the species since they had to contend with predators that keep up a pursuit such as the racing rainbowtail and predators that attack from the air like the sprawlaclaw. If something is getting too close, the turquoise-helmed lizalope can utilize its agility to dodge and jinx a pursuer, relying upon their slightly longer tail for balance to make these sharp turns.

The turquoise-helmed lizalope still travels in small groups, which means the chances of a single individual being singled out by a predator goes down since they are more likely to target other members of the group. In these groups, turquoise-helmed lizalopes are always on the move, feeding on what vegetation they can before moving on to another area. They do occasionally travel alongside larger herbivores for the indirect protection given by their presence. The long legs of the turquoise-helmed lizalope do also provide another advantage in the form of them being able to look over taller flora to better scan their surroundings for threats, going back to foraging if they do not see any. Like their ancestors, the turquoise-helmed lizalope will use their forelimbs to dig up nutritious roots and tubers, with the fangs being no longer visible when the mouth is closed and being pretty much identical to the other teeth in their mouths.

In colder parts of their range, the turquoise-helmed lizalope can still remain warm, as it retains a fuzzy coat of setae to trap air against their skin, though it's not as dense as their ancestor (who lives in even colder areas).

Much like their ancestor, the turquoise-helmed lizalope will only dig a mound for their eggs, adding vegetation to keep the eggs warm through their decomposition. After the eggs have been laid and the nest is fully complete, the mother will abandon the eggs to their fate. When the young eat their way out of their egg casings and dig their way out of the mound in about 10 or so minutes, they are capable of fending for themselves from the get-go. These young turquoise-helmed lizalopes will travel together, relying on their numbers in a similar fashion to the adults. If they come across an adult herd, these youngsters will tag along and settle into the herd, as the larger adults do deter some of the predators that would try to tackle the young, but they won’t go out of their way to actively protect them.

As they ate a wide variety of flora, the turquoise-helmed lizalopes would in turn spread about several kinds of flora and have them colonize new areas. This included a few species colonizing the mamut biomes of the continent, which beforehand was only home to genus groups. As such, the flora that colonized this biome would proceed to flourish and become highly numerous.

Species Spread

 * Snow Puff is spread into Drake Steppe and Drake Mamut
 * Windbulb is spread into Drake Steppe and Drake Mamut
 * Arid Ferine is spread into Drake Steppe and Drake Mamut