Ravager Wolverback: Difference between revisions

In many ways, the ravager wolverback acts much like its ancestor and relatives, indeed having virtually identical larval stages. The larvae are still small burrowing ectotherms, though they start their lives at ten millimeters in length rather than just one. Their diet primarily consists of other burrowing ectotherms such as [[vermees]] and the larvae of teacup saucebacks, though as they get bigger they become strong enough to tackle more difficult game such as tiny [[kruggs]] and [[mudfish]]. Detritus only makes up a small part of a larval ravager wolverback’swolverback's diet, with the larvae typically only feeding upon such a resource when meat is unavailable. The larvae will readily feed upon carrion as well. When they get to around 30 centimeters in length, the larvae will look like fat hairy sausages due to the presence of gigantic fat stores; which will provide the ravager wolverback larvae energy during their metamorphosis into an endothermic adult so they do not starve to death. Much like their direct ancestor, ravager wolverbacks continue growing even after metamorphosis, tackling larger and larger game as they continue to grow.

In a trend started by their direct ancestor, the ravager wolverback’swolverback's metabolism has slowed down even more, to the point where the species has fully lost the ability to hibernate. This is because the species’species' feather coat and larger size provides enough insulation that the species can remain active throughout the cool night. Indeed, the species is primarily nocturnal, taking advantage of the darkness to stalk its prey. Since the majority of its prey are able to listen for sounds themselves, the echolocating abilities of the ravager wolverback have seen some modifications. Firstly, the ravager wolverback lowers its amount of clicks when actively hunting, to minimize the chances of it getting detected before it can launch an ambush. Another change is that the ravager wolverback now primarily echolocates at higher frequencies, with the majority of its clicks being out of the range their prey can hear. With their large mohawk along the tail lowered to minimize the chances of it being spotted, the shrewback will get as close as it can to a target before lunging towards them.

Particularly small game like teacup saucebacks and minikruggs can often be killed by the initial grab, but larger game such as the [[Great Ruddy Pinyuk|great ruddy pinyuk]] or [[Tongue Flapper|tongue flapper]], such game making up the bulk of a ravager wolverback’swolverback's diet, often require far more effort to take down. The barbed mandibles have become shorter and deeper than their ancestor, making them better suited at handling the stresses of struggling prey of large size while also dealing significant damage. The neck of the ravager wolverback has also developed thicker skin, as the shrewback will often have to take bites and scrapes in that area as they wrestle their target to the ground. Once the victim has been properly restrained, the ravager wolverback will go for the head or neck to make a quick kill. The whole killing process can be quite bloody, which is why the face of the ravager wolverback has become mostly bare so their feathers do not get matted and thus lose their thermoregulatory efficiency. As the species will often hunt in wetter environments than their ancestor, to the point where they can be wading in water or mud, the feet of this sauceback has lost their feathery covering so they don’tdon't get soaked or matted with mud.

The large feathery mohawk running along the tail of the ravager wolverback is designed for display, both for intraspecific and interspecific interactions. While interspecific interactions are simply just acts of intimidation, like a ravager wolverback unfurling their mohawk to scare off something that has gotten too close to them, intraspecific interactions are much more complex. Since ravager wolverbacks are completely blind, like the majority of saucebacks, they do not notice things like the coloration of the mohawk. Instead, it’sit's the overall size and shape of the mohawk that matters amongst the ravager wolverbacks, both when it comes to individuals challenging each other over the rights of a territory or a male displaying his fitness to a female during mating season.