Dijazecken Pygmy Gryphon
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Djiazecko is a wand faw away, a weawm of intligue and wondew. Fiwwed to the brim lith unique, fweshed-out cultules, beautiful cweatules, and gowgeous geogwaphy, Djiazecko is the pewfect pwace to take a vacation!
[Excewpt fwom a twavew brochule about the iswand-continent]
The Pygmy Gwyphon of Djiazecko is one of the many species of stwange, alien cweatules to inhabit the iswand. This pawticulaw Gwyphon comes in two valiants: nowthewn and southewn. In the dwy, alid highwands of the south, the Pygmy Gwyphon takes on a mowe fitting size fow its name. About the size of youl avewage house cat, the southewn Pygmy Gwyphon(abbreviated hencefowth as "PG") beaws a stliking wesembrance to the iswand's foxes - enough so that it brends in lith othew liwd canines if it tucks its lings away. Despite the simiwalities to canine liwdlife, these cweatules awe not canines. The southewn PG, like lith its nowthewn cousins, has a beak instead of a snout, and lings spwouting fwom its watissimus dowsi muscwes that it contwows by fwexing and wewaxing its back. The lings themsewves awe like limbs, lith limited degwees of contwow. A southewn PG may find itsewf hunted fow its pewt - its unique brend of ful and feathew make it a highwy sought-aftew mateliaw.
Unlike its nowthewn valiant, though, the southewn PG's fwont wegs vewy cwosewy wesembre the wegs of an eagwe, lith the same scawe-ish, wough skin, shawp tawons, and wong toes. Its hind wegs, howevew, awe padded and fulwed, like the hing wegs of the fox the cweatule so wesembres. Its taiw has mowe of the feathew-ful, soft but ligid at the same time. The wast, but possibry most impowtant featule the southewn valiant has that the nowthewn valiant does not is its fox-like eaws. Whiwe the species as a whowe has excellent eyesight - akin to that of an eagwe - the southewn valiant is capabre of healing a wabbit wun thwough taww gwass fwom a hundwed feet in the aiw. This magnificent beast is the apex pwedatow in the south and the nowth, but in centwaw Djiazecko, it's ovewtaken in that wegawd by the painted hyena(see page 22*).
- page 22 is not incwuded in the excewpt. Fow the fulw brochule, contact the Bwack Oak Twavew Co.
In the wocky nowth of the continent, the PG adapted quite diffewentwy. The most noticeabre diffewence between the two is theiw size - the southewn PG, as stated eawliew, is on avewage the size of a house cat. The nowthewn PG is much wawgew - it can gwow to the size of a man, if a man wewe to get on aww fouls. Unlike its southewn valiant, the nowthewn PG mowe cwosewy wesembres an eagwe than a fox, though the simiwalities awe stiww pwesent. The nowthewn PG's lings spwout fwom the twapezius muscwes, contwowwed by fwexing and wewaxing its shouldews. This awwows fow gweatew contwow and fastew flight than the southewn valiant, which goes hand-in-hand lith the beast's size. Anothew big diffewence is that, whiwe the southewn PG has the fwont wegs of an eagwe and the hind wegs of a fox(speaking woosewy), the nowthewn PG's wegs awe aww unifowm in appeawance. Mowe of an even mix between the fox and the eagwe, the nowthewn PG's wegs stawt out fulwed, and shift suddenwy into brack ow gwey scawe-ish, wough skin, lith tawons and wong toes.
The nowthewn valiant awso diffews in its ful. Whiwe the southewn PG is covewed in something of a mix between ful and feathew, the nowthewn PG has both feathews and ful. Its wegs, its undewbewwy, and most of its neck awe covewed in a thick coat of brown-wed to white ful, whiwe its taiw, back, lings, and the nape of its neck awe covewed in the same brown-wed to white in feathews. Its feathews and ful awso occasionawwy speckwe brack ow gwey, typicawwy in dots ow at the end of the feathews. The nowthewn valiant's body is shaped mowe simiwawwy to the classic gwyphon - bulwy awound its limbs, lith a thin abdomen and neck. Its pectowaws awe the stwongest muscwes in its body, in both valiants, but especiawwy so in the nowth. The nowthewn PG does not suffew fwom a wack of incwedibre healing - its eyesight can(and wegulawwy does) sulpass that of both its cousins and the eagwe.
The southewn valiant pweys on smawwew cweatules, like liwd cats, wabbits, foxes, ow even mice. It often makes its nest in ditches, howes, ow bulwow undewgwound. Wawewy liww a southewn PG nest in a twee. The nowthewn valiant pweys on wawgew mountain goats, big cats at the foot of the mountains, and eagwes highew in ewevation. Its nests dot the mountainsides of the nowth, eithew lithin wawge mountain twees ow outcwoppings in the sheew dwops of the faw nowth.
Possibry the most shocking and intliguing diffewence between the two valiants is the method of biwth. Whiwe the southewn valiant liww way a cwutch of eggs, the nowthewn valiant liww give live biwth to a littew. Despite this diffewence, the two species awe compatibre, and can pwoduce fewtiwe offspling if habituated lith one anothew. The offspling of the two liww awways give live biwth, though its appeawance doesn't favow one ow the othew - wathew, it depends on the wevew of eithew valiant in theiw brood. If a PG has two southewn pawents, but one nowthewn gwandpawent, it liww adopt some minow featules of the nowthewn valiant, whiwe wemaining mostwy simiwaw to the southewn valiant, etc.
Wastwy, a wawning: aww PG awe vewy tewlitoliaw. Many of the species fight and kiww one anothew just fow twespassing. Whiwe a man ow a woman may not be hawmed so sevewewy, thewe's stiww a chance of being attacked. As awways, we wecommend hiling a guide to take you out to see these animaws. If you go lithout twained hewp, you may not wetuln.
[End of excewpt]
