Lyangcane Green Dragon
The world of Lyangcaneis beautiful by most human standards. A garden world with almost perfect Terra-like conditions, it is essentially the breadbasket for the core worlds of the Firstfall Collective. But, as in apparent paradise, dangers lurk. And few worlds possess a danger like the one that rules the broad, grassy plains and rich forests of Lyangcane: the Green Dragon.
The green dragon's body plan is quite similar to that of the Terran feline family - except for the second pair of hind legs they - and all viricrinids - possess. These "extra" limbs serve a variety of purposes in various species; for the green dragon, they are generally kept folded tightly against the body to allow swift quadripedal running, but can be employed rapidly to enhance leaping ability.
The green dragon is the largest known viricrinid; some specimens tagged in the wild have measured over 2.5 meters in length from tip of snout to base of tail (with the tail itself adding another 1.5 meters of overall length). Large specimens can weigh up to 800 kg.
Description
The Lyangcane Green Dragon is a member of a variety of animal life called viricrinid which have evolved on Lyangcane. Like all members of this phylum, the dragon's body is mostly covered by a thick, bristly fur-like coating. Photosynthetic microbes in the fur provide the sugar energy which the dragon relies on for metabolic fuel. As this photosynthesis requires sunlight, the green dragon, like most viricrinids, is diurnal.The green dragon's body plan is quite similar to that of the Terran feline family - except for the second pair of hind legs they - and all viricrinids - possess. These "extra" limbs serve a variety of purposes in various species; for the green dragon, they are generally kept folded tightly against the body to allow swift quadripedal running, but can be employed rapidly to enhance leaping ability.
The green dragon is the largest known viricrinid; some specimens tagged in the wild have measured over 2.5 meters in length from tip of snout to base of tail (with the tail itself adding another 1.5 meters of overall length). Large specimens can weigh up to 800 kg.
Habitat
Green dragons seem to prefer the broad, open grassland regions of Lyangcane. They may occasionally wander into the edges of forestland bordering their savanna-like homes, but are not known to penetrate deeply into the jungle-like places.Activity
Green Dragons are voracious carnivores that tend to hunt in packs - and a hunting pack of six or eight dragons is capable of bringing down essentially any prey it comes across - including humans in vehicles such as hovercars.VIricrinid Biology
All viricrinds exhibit at least a partial body covering with a thick, bristle-like fur tinged in some shade of green. Unlike the fur of Terran mammals, this covering is composed of living cells which obtain their nutrients via tiny tubules running the length of the fur and connect to blood vessels in their "follicles". These cells are infested with chlorophyll-bearing microbes that exist in a symbiotic relationship with their host. Most researchers would explain that this makes viricrinid fur more akin to a growth of grass than a growth of hair.The photosynthesizing microbes produce simple sugars which provide the basic metabolic fuel to sustain the viricrinid. As a result, the digestive systems of these creatures have evolved to a state where they exclusively focus on protein, vitamin, and essential mineral extraction from consumed foods. The microbial symbionts absorb any such materials they require, thus completing the symbiotic loop.
Because viricrinds rely on the photosynthetic activity of their symbionts, most are diurnal, though a few species have developed the ability to store sugars by day and release them at night to permit a nocturnal activity cycle.
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