Dry Forest and Scrubland
The southernmost reaches of Teratopia are the dry forest and scrub areas that reach across the semi-arid zone geographically. Rains are infrequent here, but still often enough to nourish various drought and arid resistant plants. Various conifers, like Monkey-puzzle, make up the dry forest, whilst the low scrub is a mixture of ferns, podocarp and some hardy angiosperms.
The southernmost reaches of Teratopia are the dry forest and scrub areas that reach across the semi-arid zone geographically. Rains are infrequent here, but still often enough to nourish various drought and arid resistant plants. Various conifers, like Monkey-puzzle, make up the dry forest, whilst the low scrub is a mixture of ferns, podocarp and some hardy angiosperms.
The southern dry forest and scrub is populated by various hardy kinds of tree, including the Sauroposeidon Pine. This large tree has a slender, neck-shaped trunk which opens out into a large umbrella-like crown. The cones are typical of pine trees and the seeds are quite edible. This tree in particular provides browse for many larger herbivores such as sauropods and other dinosaurs.
Dynammosaurus is the most fearful and dangerous dinosaur in all of Teratopia. Measuring 13 metres long and 10 tons in weight, it is the largest carnivorous dinosaur anywhere. Indeed, it preys mostly on large and medium sized dinosaurs, such as Hawkins Iguanodon and even Trunked Diplodocus, but it will also consume large hoofed mammals like Pelorovis and Afrochoerus. Being so large, it must balance its huge body in a tripod-like pose in the manner of a kangaroo, with the tail on the ground. Its stance is brought forward, tail above the ground, when it gives chase. Their backs are armoured with a covering of large scutes, much like a crocodile, the main purpose of this is defence against others of its kind. Such huge ferocious predators require huge territories, and they often fight viciously to defend them. The main weapon of this animal is its huge toothy jaws, able to rend flesh and crush bone, often killing large prey in a single massive bite. Courting is brief and aggressive, and females lay a compost-mound nest of up to 30 large eggs.
Xuanhanosaurus is a 5 to 6 metre long carnosaur dinosaur that is unusual in that its grasping forelimbs are so large, that they also serve as legs for quadrupedal walking. It is possible that its low body-shape aids it in concealment during hunting, and certainly its large forelimbs are also cruel killing weapons. Frequenting scrubby areas predominately, it feeds mostly on medium sized creatures like other dinosaurs. Juvenile or half-grown Hawkins Iguanadon is a favourite prey, as are Afrochoerus of any size, preferably the small-tusked females or young. They produce a loud barking noise to aid in proclaiming their territory, since they are solitary except when breeding. Though they normally prowl on all fours, fast chasing is done on their back legs alone.
The 1 metre long Megadontosaurus is a very odd looking theropod dinosaur. Being only turkey-sized in most respects, its heavy, large-jawed head seems rather an anomaly. The purpose of this weaponry is three-fold. These small creatures can tackle and consume creatures as large as or even slightly larger than themselves thanks to their impressive jaws, as well as catching smaller animals, that are dealt with very easily. Its jaws also serve a role in mating season, though both sexes have them, the males lock jaws and wrestle for the right to mate, much as some large lizards do. Females tend the hatchlings, and will carry large amounts of bedding or food to the nest in her large mouth.
The scrubland and dry forest is well known for dangerous predators, and perhaps one of the most formidable is the Great Claw. Great Claw are huge, 11 meter long predatory dinosaurs related to some kinds of smaller coelurosaur, their most notable feature being the huge claws mounted on long powerful arms. A solitary hunter, it will overwhelm large prey by making an ambush, slashing huge wounds with those fearsome claws. Large dinosaurs such as Iguanodon and Diplodocus are its most frequent prey, in which case their bellies or flanks are often ripped wide open. These dinosaurs are generally hostile towards each other outside the breeding season, and even during courting they are usually tense and aggressive. Females will lay up to 5 large eggs, and young are cared for until they are about a quarter of adult size. Calls are mostly harsh roars and growls, though the male will make a booming sound to attract females.
Bradycneme is a very large, powerful owl-like bird found in the scrub and dry forest, which feeds commonly on young dinosaurs and Afrochoerus piglets. Being 2 metres tall, with an enormous wingspan and huge claws, it is a fearful sight to behold. It usually sits concealed in the branches of a tree, or on a similar high perch, waiting for prey to come past, when it will swoop down and snatch it. The killing is normally done by the foot claws, but with larger prey, the owl will knock the creature over with the impact of its descent, before dealing the final blow. As with most owls, they mate for life and one pair will usually produce quite a few young in their lifetimes. Clutches generally consists of 2 to three large eggs, though usually the weaker chick will be killed by its siblings. Bradycneme produce a variety of calls, the alarm or defensive call is an ear splitting screech, and moonlit nights in the dry forest are usually accompanied by their deep hooting.
The largest creature of the dry forest and neighbouring scrubland is the Trunked Diplodocus, a huge but slender sauropod dinosaur commonly reaching 25 metres long and weighing almost 20 tons. Physiology is rather typical for a long-necked sauropod, except for the large nasal proboscis that aids in feeding. It is a mixed feeder, using its long neck both to graze ferns and shrubbery over a large radius low to the ground, and also to reach the leaves or needles of tall trees. The slender, elephant-like “trunk” is mainly used in grasping branches so they can be stripped of leaves by the teeth; but it also serves a social function. These large dinosaurs travel in small family groups, and the orientation of the trunk can be used to denote various states of emotion, a raised tall, sniffing trunk denotes caution either of predators or adverse weather, a trunk tightly curled near the lip is a sigh of aggression, and a swaying or wiggling trunk generally indicates a relaxed, even playful manner. Females will lay large clutches of eggs, sired by the herd leader, in a communal nest covered in a thick mound of composting vegetation and manure, after this, the herd departs, showing no further parental care. The hatchlings are about as large as small dogs, and are commonly eaten my various predators until they reach a significant enough size to repel them.
Another large herbivore of these areas is the Hawkins Iguanodon, a primitive dinosaur that goes on 4 thick legs. The beaked jaws are filled with many lobed, lizard-like teeth for breaking and chewing vegetation, they are generally low and mid-level feeders, making a significant impact on ground cover and shrubs. Its small nasal horn is mainly a visual signal, and can be brandished and waved about to show irritation or excitement. Unlike the rather daintily-feeding Trunked Diplodocus, the Hawkins Iguanadon will uproot and consume whole small trees and shrubs, as well as ferns, which are pulverized in its powerful chewing jaws. Destructive feeding generally causes smaller creatures like insects and lizards to be flushed out, so smaller inoffensive predators often follow the herds. Socially, they generally travel in large groups of up to 25, consisting of a few dominant males and their harems of females, disputes between males are generally resolved by posturing as well as pushing and shoving around the shoulders and sides. Breeding season sees the herd’s females make individual nests in colony, laying about 10 eggs each. The young are quick enough to follow the herd, and seek protection among the legs of the adults.
The southern scrub forest plays host to perhaps the most unusual of Teratopia’s Afrotheres, the Andrewsarchus, which is a tenrec reaching the size of a bear. This fierce creature is an opportunistic feeder that will eat smaller creatures whole, or eagerly crunch up carrion, even bones that have been picked clean. It will occasionally overpower larger creatures when it is especially hungry, as well as consuming fallen fruit. Though solitary and unpretentious, they will react fiercely if harassed, and make a loud guttural snarling hiss. Females give birth to up to 10 babies, which take a few years to mature, and constantly accompany their mother until the reach half adult size.
Agnostus is a kind of beetle about as large as a grain of rice, it feeds on the stems and seeds of various scrubland and dry forest plants. These insects are ubiquitous and commonly form crawling swarms of hundreds, many small animals will consume these beetles. The elytra are fused into one piece, and they seldom fly despite having functional wings.
The Majungatholus is a kind of Pachycephalosaur up to 1.4 meters in length, with an unusually shaped cranial dome. These scrub-dwelling dinosaurs feed mainly on low-growing shrubs, bark, herbage and large seeds, and though they are mostly solitary they will occasionally cluster into small groups in the breeding season. Courting males will ram and push each other with their thick skulls, usually until either they or their opponent tires, winners of such fights are able to breed with the most females. Females lay a clutch of 10 to 13 eggs in a small mound nest, and the young are independent from birth.
A prominent herbivore of the scrub is Pelorovis, a wild sheep as large as a bull, but possessing enormous horns in the males. The huge curled horns are smooth-surfaced and are used in a ritualised fashion during the breeding season, males do not butt heads or lock horns, but simply pose and posture, the females being won by the male with the most impressive headgear. However, the males will use their horns aggressively when they defend themselves from predators, though females do this perfectly well with much smaller horns. Although they are sheep, their diet is more reminiscent of a goat, feeding on grass, herbs, weeds and the leaves from bushes and shrubs; even bark is eaten in times of famine. Being a hoofed animal, they are social in much the same way as cows and antelopes, living in herds of 20 or so. Lambs are well-developed and well able to follow their mothers by the second day.
The most common herbivore of the scrub-lands is the Afrochoerus, a wild pig that can grow as large as a small cow, feeding mainly on shrubs and ground cover. Males of the species grow particularly impressive tusks, which are useful in defence, as well as fighting amongst themselves, most often the sight of a well-adorned male will end a fight or confrontation before it has begun. Females and piglets are more commonly killed by predators, as they have much smaller tusks. They travel in fairly large sounders of up to 20, much like a wild boar does, and the dominant male or “boss hog” will keep subordinate males in line through posturing and fighting. Males usually have at least a few scars, or even chipped tusks. Females come into season fairly frequently, and build nests to rear their piglets in secluded areas such as under large bushes or in dense thickets. Unlike most pigs, rooting and digging behavior is absent, probably because of such obtrusive tusks in the males.
Scelidosaurus is a medium-sized (4 meters long, 700 kilograms in weight) browsing dinosaur found in the dry forest, most commonly feeding on low and medium-height growth such as podocarp and the leaves of hardy broadleaf trees, fruit and nuts are also commonly eaten. They are most often solitary, only congregating to court and breed, individuals are nomadic for the rest of the year, constantly searching for the best patches of growth. Males produce a strong glandular smell in the courting season, the strength of the smell is an indicator of vigour, stronger smelling males inevitably attract 4 or more females. Mothers lay a clutch of about 20 eggs in a secluded compost-mound nest, usually concealed among shrubs and ground cover. Both males and females are usually mute, but when annoyed they can produce a guttural hiss.
Megatherium are a very large, heavy sloth-like mammal, almost as big as an elephant. The arid southern scrublands contain many bushes and low growing plants which produce extensive root systems and tuberous vegetables to help conserve moisture; these form the bulk of the Megatherium’s diet, though they will also feed on the leaves and twigs. As such, these animals spend most of their time digging for their food with their oversized claws, often leaving noticeable holes and scrapes in the ground. Megatherium’s back is covered in bony rectangular plates which serve to protect it from attack, though they can just as easily retaliate with their huge claws. In the wetter part of the year, males pursue female to mate, and females give birth to a single large cub.
The Nummulites Bean plant is a medium-sized tree that grows in the southern scrublands, reaching a height of up to 8 meters. It provides a reasonable amount of shade during the heat of the day, and a variety of herbivores consume the leaves of this plant. The beans produced by this tree are broad and flat, growing to the size of a large coin; numerous small animals eat these legumes, including insects, birds and small mammals.
Megalania is a 4 meter long agamid lizard which is much like a gigantic thorny devil. Unlike their smaller cousin, they are herbivores, with toothless jaws, feeding mostly on low growing shrubs and herbage which they crudely chew and swallow whole. Indeed, they must spent most of their lives eating in order to remain active, and they also commonly bask in exposed areas to warm themselves in the sunlight. The covering of spiny scales serves as a deterrent to protect the beast from roving predators; and the head is particularly well-armed with long projecting bony horns. When moving from place to place, they are fairly cumbersome and slow, with a rocking gait that sometimes allows them to blend in with low shrubbery swaying in the wind. Mating is done during the dry season, and the female lays around 20 to 30 eggs.
Macrotherium is a big-clawed edentate mammal, related to both Pangolins and Aardvarks, which reaches the size of a small horse. It feeds mostly on termites, and will tear into their sizeable mounds with its enormous claws. When confronted with a predator, it will rear up and make swipes with its large foreclaws. Being an opportunistic breeder, they will mate on the occasion of finding a suitable partner, and after a gestation of 6 months, a fair sized single cub is born live.
Nuthetes is rather common in dry scrubby areas, a large-ish predatory lizard measuring up to 1.7 meters long. It has a coat of pointed, spiny osteoderms, which afford it some protection against predators. Having large, bladed teeth, it feeds most commonly on small vertebrates. Mating occurs in the wet season and females lay a clutch of around 15 eggs which are left to themselves.
Thecodontosaurus is a fairly large herbivorous lizard which is common in the dry forest and the southern reaches of the savannah. As long as a man, they are preyed upon fairly often by carnivorous dinosaurs and mammals of many kinds. They mainly eat herbage and softer grasses, but will also consume flowers and the fruits of small shrubs. Females bury their clutches of eggs in the soil to be incubated by the sun.
Teratopia’s scrublands and dry forest are so densely populated with ants and termites that there is more than one species of large animal that feeds exclusively on them. Kish’s Claw is a large segnosaurian dinosaur, 7 meters long, which feeds entirely by raiding large termite mounds, ripping them open with its huge claws. They are generally the most active depending on how active the termites are, when the mounds are less densely packed with soldiers, the Kish’s Claw will feed. Sometimes, it will dig so far into a mound that it inserts its long neck most of the way inside, to get the nutritious larvae. Its jaws are relatively weak, with a row of slightly built leaf-shaped teeth, and a long sticky tongue for lapping up termites. The only sounds these creatures will make are a sort of snorting murmur as they lope from place to place. A female will lay a nest of about 10 eggs in the dry season, and takes care of the young until they are a third of adult size.
The bane of ground nesting birds and dinosaurs is the Oviraptor, a 2 meter long theropod with a particular taste for eggs. These dinosaurs are able to snatch eggs from nests with their nimble clawed hands, and crack even the toughest egg with their powerful parrot-like beak. Most active around dawn and dusk, Oviraptor is adept at sneaking up near-silently, quietly uncovering eggs from nests, and creeping off again. In the event that an angry parent notices them, they are able to sprint quickly away on their ostrich-like hind legs. By necessity they are solitary when hunting, but are by no means antisocial, forming small groups that sometimes even share their food each other, as well as resting and socialising during the heat of the day. Females lay a nest of around 10 large eggs, sometimes communally, which they themselves must defend from interloping hungry Oviraptors. Their chicks grow fairly quickly, and are independent within a year and a half.
The Irritator is suitably named for its rather annoying honking and bill-clacking calls. This 3.5 meter tall, flightless pterosaur is impressive to look at, and can be quite dangerous too. Mostly solitary, they will walk methodically along through the scrub or undergrowth, searching for prey such as small mammals, large insects, dinosaur hatchlings, snakes, and even young Afrochoerus piglets. Prey is snatched in their large, toothed beak, and dashed against the ground to kill it. They will not turn down even very small prey, and feed constantly through the day. They are also opportunists, and will gladly consume carrion; in fact any carcass will usually attract quite a few Irritators. Fallen fruit and nuts are also eaten in the productive parts of the year, which often sees them congregate beneath dry forest trees to feed. One large egg is laid in the wet season, and the young are able to walk, run, and feed themselves soon after hatching, though they will follow their mother in order to gain some protection.
Much like a hyrax in many respects, Adapis is a primitive ungulate that clambers among the rocky outcroppings and bushes, browsing mainly on the tips of scrubby growth. About as large as a rabbit, they dwell in groups of up to 15, scattering at the slightest sign of danger. Their call is a small grunting gurgle. Kits are born mainly in the wet season.
A rather stout, 1.6 meter-long dromaeosaur, fiercely endowed with 2 sickle-claws on each foot, Balaur is one of the more pugnacious predators of the dry forest. Relying heavily on ground cover in order to stage an ambush, they will pin their prey to the ground, making crippling stabs with all four talons at once. Mainly solitary, they form pairs and even small packs when prey becomes scarce, during which they can bring down larger prey. Mating occurs in the dry season, and males attract females by producing a loud booming groan. Clutches of eggs contain up to 7 eggs.
Colubrifer is a short-legged burrowing lizard about 20 centimetres long. Spending most of its days pushing itself through the soil, it feeds mainly on beetle grubs and crickets. During the breeding season, females take on a strong odour which attracts multiple males. Most clutches of eggs have young from multiple fathers.
Criorhynchus is a medium-sized pterosaur (wingspan of about 2.5 meters), which is common over most of southern Teratopia, including the savannah, dry forest and scrubland. Having stout powerful jaws, it feeds mainly by snatching small and medium-sized vertebrate prey, from fish, to birds, to small mammals, but it will also scavenge. Prey is killed swiftly with a crushing bite. Mating occurs in certain areas of the scrub-forest, where breeding colonies form in the crowns of tall conifers, each female raises a clutch of about 4 eggs. Usually silent, they produce a gurgling chirr when angry.
Sphenacodon is a rather fierce, 2 meter long relative of the Tuatara, found commonly in the scrublands of Teratopia. Relatively inactive, it most often sits in ambush waiting for hapless prey to wander past. It commonly preys on small and medium sized animals, such as mammal calves, young dinosaurs, lizards and birds. Mating occurs sporadically throughout the year, and females lay clutches of about 30 eggs. As with typical tuataras, Sphenacodon can live for upwards of 100 years, thanks to their slow metabolisms.
Scolosaurus is a very rotund armoured dinosaur, reaching 5 meters long, and being very wide across the back. Crawling on splayed legs, it is very slow-moving and must defend itself with swings of its mace-like tail. It feeds mainly on low-growing ferns, woody shrubs and bushes; spending its days trundling stoically from one scrubby cluster to another, leaving neat mounds of dung in its wake. Breeding season involves the males locating receptive females by scent, one male will generally try to mate with several females. The female lays a clutch of about 30 eggs in a compost-mound, after which she will take no further part in rearing the young. Calls are generally a murmuring grumble when feeding, or a barking gurgle when alarmed.
Mcloughlin's Styracosaur is an unusual kind of horned dinosaur which commonly reaches 5 and a half meters long. Unlike most other ceratopsians, the frill is submerged in the muscle of the neck, providing an anchor for the muscles of the jaw. They feed mostly at head level, on various coarse woody bushes and shrubs, which they chew to pulp in their powerful jaws. When faced with a large predator, they are able to thrust with their long nasal horn, or even bite fiercely. Unlike many other kinds of horned dinosaur, they are solitary and only come together in the breeding season. Males compete for the affections of females by posturing and bellowing loudly. Females will make a nest of up to 30 eggs, young are well developed at birth, and stay with the parents until they reach about half of adult size.
Only as large as a sparrow, Ptenodracon is a common sight in most parts of Teratopia, but is most densely populated in the scrublands and dry forest (this is where they breed). Feeding on seeds, insects and berry pulp, their beaks are short and toothless. They form fair sized flocks of up to 50, able to fly swiftly and with great agility when chased by aerial predators. Most of these flocks migrate to the scrublands and dry forests during the wet season, in order to breed; during this time trees and shrubs are laden with masses of tiny mud nests, each containing up to 10 eggs. Calls are a high, barely audible shriek or a twittering chirr.
Ornithomimus minutus is one of the smallest of the ground-dwelling kinds of dinosaur, only reaching 50 or 60 centimetres. They forage amongst the shrubs and ferns in search of insects, lizards, seeds, fruit, eggs, and in the wet season, young leaves. Forming small flocks of around 15, they fan out some distance from each other, but always have a sentinel to keep watch for predators. Contact is maintained with constant clicking and piping calls. Mating and nesting occurs in the wet season, each female lays up to 15 eggs, which hatch into fairly precocial young.
Eoceratops is a 4 meter long horned dinosaur that feeds mainly on low shrubby growth, including woody stems and bark, which it processes with its powerful beak and dentition. They mainly travel in pairs or threes, but groups of up to five are sometimes seen. Able to defend itself with its three horns, they can also bite fiercely. Males often mark their territory by rubbing the bark off exposed parts of the wood of bushes and trees. Mating happens in the wet season, and females lay a clutch of about 20 eggs. Eoceratops tend to only vocalise when alarmed, with a coarse bark.
Dollo’s Iguanodon is a 10 meter long ornithopod dinosaur that inhabits the scrubland and dry forest, feeding from ground-level to as high as about 20 feet. Having a powerful grinding dentition and strong jaws, it can to pulverize most kinds of plant growth, from woody branches, to leaves, to conifer cones, bark and stems. These Iguanodons are able to defend themselves from predators with powerful blows of their spiked thumbs. They move mostly in loose family groups, staying relatively close by to each other, their feeding groups can leave large patches of denuded and destroyed plants. During the breeding season, males posture and thrash the vegetation in an effort to attract unrelated females; the most vigorous male will usually father the most young. Clutches of up to 20 eggs are laid in large mound nests, located in fairly secluded places, where the mother can remain attentive. Contact calls between herd members are a sharp cough, and alarm calls are a resonant squeal.
Alvarezsaurus is a rather lightly built, bird-like theropod that reaches 2 meters long, including its very long tail. This dinosaur feeds mainly on insects and small vertebrates such as lizards, and usually hunts at dawn and dusk. They travel in small, loose family groups of up to 5, usually consisting of a mated pair and their adult young. Such a long tail serves partly for balance when they run, and indeed they are very quick and agile, but the tail is also used for signalling. When one individual spots danger, the tail is twitched quickly back and forth. Vocalisations consist of a high hissing noise when angry, and a plaintive chirp when scared.
Eoanthropus is the most intelligent species of near-human found in Teratopia, reaching 70 kilograms on average. They can fashion very precise stone tools for butchering meat, their most commonly used weapon is a broad bat-like club used like bludgeon, large anvil-like stones are also used. Most often they are found in the scrublands, though they will wander far afield into the savannah at times. Family bonds are very strong in this species, where the wives care for the young, as well as gather forage, and the males form hunting parties. Prey which is hunted is most often no larger than a goat or calf, as these people most often rely on bludgeoning prey at close quarters, as opposed to throwing spears. Mating occurs throughout the year, as the females have reproductive cycles much like humans. Speech is formed by a combination of simple words and sentences, as well as hand signs and grunts.
With a wingspan of 20 meters, and a height greater than a giraffe, the Ziz is a creature of truly mythical proportions. Sparsely populated over most of Teratopia’s landmass, these huge pterosaurs soar over huge distances in search of fertile feeding grounds. They descend to the ground in order to hunt, much like a stork, and with their enormous beaks they can subdue and consume animals up to the size of a cow, though usually they fare on smaller prey such as young dinosaurs, mammal calves, carrion and fish. Mating instinct compels them to migrate to the southern reaches of Teratopia each year to mate, after which the female will lay a clutch of 20 large eggs.
Coastal Tundra
The coastal tundra is a cold, sparse micro-habitat that occurs along the southernmost coast of Teratopia, it borders the scrublands, but occurs in an area where the winds and salt-laden air prohibit the growth of scrubland plants. These coasts are swept by cold, dry winds that render the soil relatively poor and dry. It is here that we see a ground cover composed mainly of thick blankets of lichen, fungi and microbial mats.
The coastal tundra is a cold, sparse micro-habitat that occurs along the southernmost coast of Teratopia, it borders the scrublands, but occurs in an area where the winds and salt-laden air prohibit the growth of scrubland plants. These coasts are swept by cold, dry winds that render the soil relatively poor and dry. It is here that we see a ground cover composed mainly of thick blankets of lichen, fungi and microbial mats.
Dickinsonia is by far the most common ground-dwelling lichen on the coastal tundra, and it is remarkable in that it grows in large oblong patches that vary from as small as a coin to as broad as a doormat. Commonly growing in close association to others of its kind, it is not unremarkable that one patch will dry and be blown away by the wind, leaving an oblong indentation.
Tribrachidium is a small, stem-less mushroom that grows commonly in the sparse soils of the southernmost parts of Teratopia. Unlike the lichen and microbial mats that form most of this thick mat, Tribrachidium is relatively nutritious, and relies on wandering animals to distribute its spores as they messily consume it.
Rugoconites is a kind of microbial colony that grows sporadically amongst the mat like growths in the far south of Teratopia. It is unable to form the thick crusts that other growths do, growing only in scattered arrays.