Devil In A Tight Dress
- Intent:To add to the already well documented world of Tatooine.
- Image Credit: Face Full Body Wingspan
- Canon: N/A
- Permissions: N/A
- Links: Tatooine
- Name: Desert Shrike
- Designation: Non-Sentient
- Origins: Tatooine
- Average Lifespan: 7-8 years
- Estimated Population: Rare
- Description: Brown and white feathers cover this small but mighty bird. If you see it coming your way, it is likely too late for you or your pet.
PHYSICAL INFORMATION
- Breathes: Oxygen
- Average Height of Adults: 0.52-0.7m
- Average Length of Adults: 1.8-1.9m
- Skin color :Grey
- Hair color: Feathers are white and brown
- Distinctions: Shrikes are burrowers, they use their very sharp claws to burrow into the sand during the harsh days, choosing the fly around at dusk and night to collect their food. They can be seen during the day but it is exceedingly rare. They are almost never seen anywhere near Humans or settlements.
- Races: N/A
- Force Sensitivity: Non-Sensitive
Strengths:
Powerful Talons: The talons on a Shrike are able to tear through the hides of most of the animals on Tatooine that do not have natural armor. They can be used for hunting or self defense. Most of the creatures on Tatooine know not to mess with a Shrike nest.
Bird of Prey: Shrikes are hunters, which means that they have adapted their senses to be able to see small things from far in the air at night, and to sense danger when it is coming. They are often unseen and unheard while hunting, and can strike at a whim.
Nests: Shrikes have complex nests that they burrow into the sand on Tatooine. They use materials from the desert to pad the nests so there is an air supply all hours of the day, even with the sand covering them. They cover the nest during the day by blending it with the environment around them. They dig far enough down that even a traveling Bantha wandering above them wouldn't disturb them. Then at night they claw their way back out to go hunting. Only Shrikes with young will burrow, however, single Shrikes will not.
Low-light Vision: Shrikes are adept at seeing at night in the pitch black deserts. They are able to use this vision to track and hunt in near absolute darkness.
Weaknesses:
Environment: Living in the desert is harsh, and even with years of evolutionary traits to help, a Shrike can still starve to death, it can still be eaten by something bigger, and it can die of thirst. They have to work very hard to survive on the unforgiving surface of Tatooine.
Population: Given that Shrikes only reproduce once in their lifetime leads to there being a small number of them at any given time. The vast size of Tatooine coupled with their small population leads to some Shrikes going their entire life without mating once. If there were any change to the carefully balanced biome of Tatooine, their entire species could find themselves eradicated.
Nocturnal: Shrikes are usually only seen at night. If there is one seen during the day, they are very easily noticed in the sky, leading them to be easy prey to other, larger animals.
Disease: Shrikes, because of their carnivorous diet are known to carry many diseases. They can pass these diseases to other species if they were to be eaten or touched. The Tuskens have build a tolerance to most of these diseases as they have eaten most of the same species that the Shrikes have. That being said, most humans or other species should be very cautious when interacting with a Shrike, beyond the previously mentioned reasons.
CULTURE
- Diet: Carnivore, primarily eating small Jakrabs, Scurriers, and other rodents. They also eat any bugs that may be writhing through the sand. Have been known to be able to kill newborn Eopies.
- Communication: Deep chirps and caws.
- Technology level: None
- Religion/Beliefs: None
- General behavior: Nocturnal hunters, Shrikes tend to burrow with their young, mothers staying with the nest to defend it and fathers going out to hunt for food. When a nest is cleared and the young are gone, most adults will not breed again, instead they part ways and live solitary lives. This has lead to the population being very small. They are considered very rare, almost cryptid level sightings on Tatooine. The Tusken Raiders are the only species known to be able to track the Shrike. They have almost a symbiotic relationship, the Tuskens sharing water with Shrikes and the Shrikes keeping rodents out of their camps. Shrikes are very violent toward every other species on Tatooine.
HISTORICAL INFORMATION
Since recorded Tusken history on Tatooine, the shrikes have lived in the desert with the Raiders. Outside of the Tuskens, however, little has been known of the species of carnivorous bird. Most of their gruesome killings were often contributed to other species, and their calls can sometimes be mistaken for Tusken howling late at night. There have been a few sightings of Shrikes, but most of them are hard to confirm. The bird stays far away from settlements and moisture farms, instead sticking to the unending desert to make their homes.
They have lived in sync with the Tusken Raiders for millennia, ridding their encampments of rodents in exchange for water and other small snacks. There has been at least one written record of a Tusken chieftain training a Shrike to become his personal pet. Though, there is almost no way to dampen their violent natures.
