Russet-Ridged Pasakerd

With the spread of prairies and scrub over the continent of Drake, it was only a matter of time before the pasakerds, who were already generalistic grazers, would rapidly spread their range and diversify. A general trend was for the pasakerds to rapidly grow in size, eventually splitting off from the rest of the species to become a distinct taxon of their own right.

At a casual glance this new species, known as the Russet-Ridged Pasakerd, is pretty similar to their ancestors in terms of anatomy and habits. This is due to having a pretty similar lifestyle, where they live their lives as generalistic grazers that hoover up whatever vegetation they come across. The teeth of these herbivores are relatively simple for the most part, being simply used to grab foliage so it can then be swallowed whole. If the flora is too big to be swallowed whole, the Russet-Ridged Pasakerd will then use its powerful jaws to rip it apart into chunks that can then be swallowed. Because there is almost no chewing at all, Russet-Ridged Pasakerds have an enlarged digestive tract to extract as much nutrients as they can from what they eat. This is also partially the reason why these pasakerds have become much bigger, as a larger size means they can house those guts. The large size of this species additionally helps them retain heat more efficiently, which alongside their dense coats of setae allow them to handle the especially cold winters of Drake’s interior.

Much like their ancestor, Russet-Ridged Pasakerds do not form social bonds with others of their kind, merely traveling together as they head towards the same sources of food. These “herds” can often be hundreds if not thousands strong, being constantly on the move as they mow down any low growing vegetation. While Russet-Ridged Pasakerds will generally eat whatever vegetation is available, they will go after higher nutrient bits of flora like fruits and berries when they can. This can result in scuffles between individual pasakerds as they fight over these choices bits of flora, which in turn are selected for brighter colors and more elaborate crests on their heads to intimidate one another. These small moments of conflict favor the larger individuals with more colorful crests, as they can push and shove their way onto these higher nutrient meals. The powerful forelimbs of these pasakerds still help with digging, whether this relates towards them digging out energy-rich roots or for reproduction-related tasks.

Because of their greater size, Russet-Ridged Pasakerds can’t really dig out burrows anymore so they instead will make a shallow pit in the ground. From there, they will generally produce around a hundred eggs in a single batch before burying them. After the eggs are buried, the parent will abandon them and rejoin the herd. Many eggs are often eaten by small nest raiders, and the young that do hatch and dig their way to the surface are still vulnerable to predators. These youngsters will stick together for mutual protection, until they find a herd of adult Russet-Ridged Pasakerds and join them. Life for these youngsters is hard, as they may get accidentally trampled underfoot by the adults and will be pushed away from ideal feeding sites. Additionally, their small size means they are vulnerable to social carnivores like Sprinting Bubbleskins and Feral Tuskents who mob the herds, leading to a good portion of the youngsters dying before ever reaching sexual maturity. To combat this somewhat, Russet-Ridged Pasakerds grow extremely fast, reaching their adult size in a matter of two years though they can start breeding after just one.

Although the adults are too big for things like the Sprinting Bubbleskins and Feral Tuskents to tackle, they do have a couple regular predators. The first is the Tyrant Crested Limbless, a giant ambush predator whose powerful jaws and gigantic tusk-like teeth mean they can easily take down an adult Russet-Ridged Pasakerd if they catch it off guard. The relative rarity of this limbless, however, means the most prevalent threat for adult Russet-Ridged Pasakerds is the Polar Baron. These giant snappers will regularly follow the herds, picking off individuals who lag behind or get separated and lost. If a Russet-Ridged Pasakerd is threatened by a Polar Baron, it will rely on both its sharp crests and powerful jaws to defend itself. The fangs of their ancestors, once used to help aid in digging, have now become large tusks that can leave a nasty bite to any potential threats, even a Polar Baron. A head on confrontation can thus be quite dangerous for both prey and predator, and as such Polar Barons prefer to catch the pasakerds by surprise when possible.