Leafplate

The leafplate split from its ancestor the dusty spelunkhoe. It is now a surface dweller and no longer digs underground. it has grown to twice its ancestors size and has developed hard photosynthetic plates on its body. This helps it get an energy boost from the sun as well as protect it from predators; the development of these leaf plates is one of the main reasons it returned to the surface.

Its eye sight is a bit better than its ancestor however it is poor compared to other fauna it lives with. Males have developed a large horn on their wooden beaks. its is to fight over females. But also works well to fend off predators. Females do not have horns on their beak. Their front digging claws are now hoofs which help them walk and even run. They eat a wide variety of black and purple flora but cannot digest glass flora, so they avoid eating it. They also avoid eating the twin-tail orbibom due to its mild toxin.

They are semi-colonial in that they live in large herds lead by a dominant male. Males who are not dominant live in a bachelor herd and frequently challenge the alpha male for rights to take over the herd of females and juveniles. Females will make conical dirt nests in which they give birth to their 2 to 3 offspring in. After 2 to 3 months the offspring are old enough to leave the nest and then the herd travels around migrating for the rest of the year. The nesting grounds tend to be in Dixon Rocky even if they normally live in other biomes.