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On Kleptoparasitism in the Harpia Stryx

~an observation by the esteemed naturalist Virginia Bubo~

The Harpia subtype of the dracostryx species has long been regarded in society as the preeminent predator of large aquatic game; indeed, they are renowned hunters of cetaceans, sea serpents, and the like. It was therefore much to my surprise that I made the following observation early one morning while studying the behavior of stryx in the wetlands.

I was perched in a blind, the pungent aroma of algae and the droning buzz of mosquitoes all around me. Sketchbook in one hand, I held my monocular up to my eye with the other and scanned the horizon. In the distance, I spied a snow corva. Female, judging by the tone of her caw. She stood utterly still atop a muddy embankment, her eyes fixed at a point just below the water's surface. Her behavior was very much like that of the great white stork-like egrets I have observed along the southern coasts. Those elegant avians--whose feathers are very much in fashion in lady's hats nowadays--will hold one position for hours, so that you begin to doubt whether you are looking at a real bird or have perhaps been duped by a very lifelike statue. Then, in the blink of an eye, they will suddenly spear their beak into the water and emerge with fish wriggling.

In the same way, the snow corva plunged her beak into the water. She lacked the precision of an egret, scrambling and snapping in the shallows for several seconds before emerging muddy with her prize: a hefty salmon! Thrashing her beak to and fro to dispatch the fish caught the attention of a nearby corva. A brown male I had not seen before lifted his head above the reeds in the distance and gave an inquisitive caw. The female responded with a contact call of her own, seeming to invite the male to join her feast. The two were most likely pair-bonded, as untamed wild stryx are generally competitive over food sources.

Unfortunately, the pair's communication attracted the attention of another stryx in the area. When the shadow of the massive Harpia fell over the landscape, I must admit I gasped aloud. Harpia stryx are not as common as the smaller subspecies and I never expected to see one on this expedition. What luck (for me, not for the poor corvas as you shall shortly read) that one should descend a mere 100 meters from my carefully concealed blind! This particular Harpia specimen was the finest, most fearsome stryx I had yet encountered over the course of my studies. He was a dark brown--almost black--with white wing patches and a white rump. An enormous yellow beak with a wicked hook and black talons the size of longswords made the danger he posed to the smaller corva self evident.

Bellowing, the Harpia landed right before the snow corva, mantling her fish as his own. I watched in awe as the little female stryx set up a raucous caw in protest. She let her agitation be known to the beast as she flapped and squalled in front of his face, refusing to back down. Her mate took to the air warbling with distress, but was too fearful of the larger predator to do more than hover anxiously at a distance.

Alas, the snow corva's protest was in vain. The Harpia ignored her outright, knowing the little stryx could do nothing to reclaim the prize he had stolen as his own. He dug into the fish, gulping down large mouthfuls of flesh, skin, bone and all. This was, to my knowledge, the first academically recorded instance of kleptoparasitic behavior in Harpia stryx. Kleptoparasitism is a behavior common to the great sea eagles this dragon superficially resembled, but has not been recorded by any of my forerunners in the study of dracostryx.

Within minutes, the Harpia finished off the choicest parts of the salmon. He cleaned his beak with a few quick flicks in the water, then spread his wings and departed. The two corvas converged on what remained. I watched them pick at the bones and organs for several minutes, then opened my sketchbook to a fresh page and began to commit the scene to paper.

I love old-timey naturalist's accounts, which is what I tried to emulate here. Full of excessive wordiness. purple prose, all kinds of anthropomorphism and inaccurate assumptions, they are nonetheless entertaining as anecdotes and snapshots of a different time, and different mentality towards animal behavior.

By the way, if you enjoy old-timey naturalist's accounts and also enjoy dragons (if you're a member of dracostryx, I'm going to assume you're into dragons), I recommend the Memoirs of Lady Trent series by Marie Brennan: www.goodreads.com/book/show/12… They have lovely illustrations and are a different take on your typical fantasy dragon novel.

AP Count for Willet 1592 :
Full body-1
Colored-2
Shaded-1
Background-2
Added member stryx-2
Personal art bonus-1
Literature (702 words)-3.5
Total: 12.5

AP Count for Whimbrel 1602 :
Full body-1
Colored-2
Shaded-1
Background-2
Added member stryx-2
Personal art bonus-1
Literature-3.5
Total: 12.5

AP Count for Yaroslav 1867 :
Full body-1
Colored-2
Shaded-1
Background-2
Biorhythm bonus-1
Literature-3.5
Total: 10.5
28.5/50 AP done for comixqueen

Stock paper textures used:
old paper stock 03
029 Parchment

Description

On Kleptoparasitism in the Harpia Stryx

~an observation by the esteemed naturalist Virginia Bubo~

The Harpia subtype of the dracostryx species has long been regarded in society as the preeminent predator of large aquatic game; indeed, they are renowned hunters of cetaceans, sea serpents, and the like. It was therefore much to my surprise that I made the following observation early one morning while studying the behavior of stryx in the wetlands.

I was perched in a blind, the pungent aroma of algae and the droning buzz of mosquitoes all around me. Sketchbook in one hand, I held my monocular up to my eye with the other and scanned the horizon. In the distance, I spied a snow corva. Female, judging by the tone of her caw. She stood utterly still atop a muddy embankment, her eyes fixed at a point just below the water's surface. Her behavior was very much like that of the great white stork-like egrets I have observed along the southern coasts. Those elegant avians--whose feathers are very much in fashion in lady's hats nowadays--will hold one position for hours, so that you begin to doubt whether you are looking at a real bird or have perhaps been duped by a very lifelike statue. Then, in the blink of an eye, they will suddenly spear their beak into the water and emerge with fish wriggling.

In the same way, the snow corva plunged her beak into the water. She lacked the precision of an egret, scrambling and snapping in the shallows for several seconds before emerging muddy with her prize: a hefty salmon! Thrashing her beak to and fro to dispatch the fish caught the attention of a nearby corva. A brown male I had not seen before lifted his head above the reeds in the distance and gave an inquisitive caw. The female responded with a contact call of her own, seeming to invite the male to join her feast. The two were most likely pair-bonded, as untamed wild stryx are generally competitive over food sources.

Unfortunately, the pair's communication attracted the attention of another stryx in the area. When the shadow of the massive Harpia fell over the landscape, I must admit I gasped aloud. Harpia stryx are not as common as the smaller subspecies and I never expected to see one on this expedition. What luck (for me, not for the poor corvas as you shall shortly read) that one should descend a mere 100 meters from my carefully concealed blind! This particular Harpia specimen was the finest, most fearsome stryx I had yet encountered over the course of my studies. He was a dark brown--almost black--with white wing patches and a white rump. An enormous yellow beak with a wicked hook and black talons the size of longswords made the danger he posed to the smaller corva self evident.

Bellowing, the Harpia landed right before the snow corva, mantling her fish as his own. I watched in awe as the little female stryx set up a raucous caw in protest. She let her agitation be known to the beast as she flapped and squalled in front of his face, refusing to back down. Her mate took to the air warbling with distress, but was too fearful of the larger predator to do more than hover anxiously at a distance.

Alas, the snow corva's protest was in vain. The Harpia ignored her outright, knowing the little stryx could do nothing to reclaim the prize he had stolen as his own. He dug into the fish, gulping down large mouthfuls of flesh, skin, bone and all. This was, to my knowledge, the first academically recorded instance of kleptoparasitic behavior in Harpia stryx. Kleptoparasitism is a behavior common to the great sea eagles this dragon superficially resembled, but has not been recorded by any of my forerunners in the study of dracostryx.

Within minutes, the Harpia finished off the choicest parts of the salmon. He cleaned his beak with a few quick flicks in the water, then spread his wings and departed. The two corvas converged on what remained. I watched them pick at the bones and organs for several minutes, then opened my sketchbook to a fresh page and began to commit the scene to paper.

I love old-timey naturalist's accounts, which is what I tried to emulate here. Full of excessive wordiness. purple prose, all kinds of anthropomorphism and inaccurate assumptions, they are nonetheless entertaining as anecdotes and snapshots of a different time, and different mentality towards animal behavior.

By the way, if you enjoy old-timey naturalist's accounts and also enjoy dragons (if you're a member of dracostryx, I'm going to assume you're into dragons), I recommend the Memoirs of Lady Trent series by Marie Brennan: www.goodreads.com/book/show/12… They have lovely illustrations and are a different take on your typical fantasy dragon novel.

AP Count for Willet 1592 :
Full body-1
Colored-2
Shaded-1
Background-2
Added member stryx-2
Personal art bonus-1
Literature (702 words)-3.5
Total: 12.5

AP Count for Whimbrel 1602 :
Full body-1
Colored-2
Shaded-1
Background-2
Added member stryx-2
Personal art bonus-1
Literature-3.5
Total: 12.5

AP Count for Yaroslav 1867 :
Full body-1
Colored-2
Shaded-1
Background-2
Biorhythm bonus-1
Literature-3.5
Total: 10.5
28.5/50 AP done for comixqueen

Stock paper textures used:
old paper stock 03
029 Parchment