Ornithere: Difference between revisions
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Their namesake are their eyestrils. Derived from the scent pits found in all beastworms, they are used for both sight and smell. The pupil is open to allow air in, and as this constraint prevented them from evolving lenses, they instead focus light using mirrors at the back of the eye. In effect, the entire eye is a highly efficient tapetum lucidum which reflects and focuses light into a photoreceptive patch on the inside next to the pupil hole. This causes them to appear to have white pupils, and if one were to look into a jewel-eyed sauceback's eyes, they would see exactly what it sees reflected back at them. The eye itself is stretched and squashed to focus and to push out old air, and the external part of it is featherless and rubbery. As having an open eye makes it prone to particles and small fauna becoming trapped inside, jewel-eyed saucebacks produce tears which they then remove from their eyes using the centrifugal force generated by shaking their heads like dogs. |
Their namesake are their eyestrils. Derived from the scent pits found in all beastworms, they are used for both sight and smell. The pupil is open to allow air in, and as this constraint prevented them from evolving lenses, they instead focus light using mirrors at the back of the eye. In effect, the entire eye is a highly efficient tapetum lucidum which reflects and focuses light into a photoreceptive patch on the inside next to the pupil hole. This causes them to appear to have white pupils, and if one were to look into a jewel-eyed sauceback's eyes, they would see exactly what it sees reflected back at them. The eye itself is stretched and squashed to focus and to push out old air, and the external part of it is featherless and rubbery. As having an open eye makes it prone to particles and small fauna becoming trapped inside, jewel-eyed saucebacks produce tears which they then remove from their eyes using the centrifugal force generated by shaking their heads like dogs. |
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In most jewel-eyed saucebacks, the spiracles and microlungs are supported by chitinous shells called ceres. These are inherited from their harnessback ancestors and allow them to breathe more strongly than most other saucebacks. |
In most jewel-eyed saucebacks, the spiracles and microlungs are partially supported by chitinous shells called ceres. These are inherited from their harnessback ancestors and allow them to breathe more strongly than most other saucebacks. |
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===Legs and Hips=== |
===Legs and Hips=== |
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Jewel-eyed saucebacks lack the lips that are present in other saucebacks, as their jaws, so much larger than the pincer-like jaws of more basal saucebacks, completely took over the role of closing the mouth; the lips only got in the way. This comes at a cost; some species cannot close their jaws fully because of secondary adaptations, so their mouths are exposed to open air and more prone to water loss. |
Jewel-eyed saucebacks lack the lips that are present in other saucebacks, as their jaws, so much larger than the pincer-like jaws of more basal saucebacks, completely took over the role of closing the mouth; the lips only got in the way. This comes at a cost; some species cannot close their jaws fully because of secondary adaptations, so their mouths are exposed to open air and more prone to water loss. |
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===Reproduction=== |
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All jewel-eyed saucebacks lay eggs with hard chitinous shells. Basal flightless species ancestrally have legless worm-like larvae, while the flying lineage hatches comparatively well-developed chicks. |
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==Locomotion== |
==Locomotion== |
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