Name: Gark

Appearance: Like a gray wolf crossed with an armadillo. Very canine-appearing in nature, with its back covered in a hard shell, complete with spines on the back. In order to compensate for this top, the gark’s stomach is small and curves upward to allow efficient flexibility and running. Garks are typically spotted as well, but in any striking colors. they are mostly varying shades of gray, white, and black.

A gark is a carnivorous predator and lives in the more mountainous regions. Given the hardiness and strength of its prey, it is necessary for the gark to have its hard shell for protection against the defensive blows of its prey - easily lethal otherwise - and other predators. As a defense mechanism, garks can roll up into their shells for the most part. The shells also allow them to further blend in with their typically rocky surroundings.



They live for about fifteen to twenty years and can be four feet at the shoulder, spanning even longer in length.

The Gark is a unique creature. What is its prey? And what predators are a threat to it?

That is very cool. Sort of like an armored wolf Is it as fast as a normal wolf? Or does the armor slow it down somewhat?

eru

Garks have a preferred diet of mountain sheep, deer, moose, elk, buffalo, bears, and various creatures I have not made yet. However, practically, their diets consist of largely hares, beavers, and other small animals. They can obtain the mountain sheep more commonly when it is time for the sheep to give birth. The sheep in the area are exceptionally large and possess a threat to the gark with the males' large horn and even the females' smaller, pointed horns. When they hunt sheep it usually is for a female or an immature juvenile. If not, their prey is either old or sick.
The larger hoofed animals of the area are also difficult to obtain, requiring a decent-sized pack of garks to kill them. Likewise, these animals are quite a bit larger, and for their mountainous environment, very strong and hardy. If the gark is not fast enough in its attack or defense, it possesses the risk of getting its ribcage crushed by a single hoof.
The hares, beavers, and other small animals also bring a small risk to garks. While it is not a risk big enough to endanger their lives, it is enough to temporarily hurt them and allow the animal to escape. Even the smaller animals possess sharp fangs, which can inflict a painful, albeit not terribly dangerous wound to gark extremities. Seasoned garks are not as surprised by these wounds as young garks. Older garks typically do not lose prey because of these small injuries, however it is common for surprised youths to be temporary shocked and allow for the prey to escape in their shock.
Garks have a unique addition to their diet, which is bears. This prey is more typically of extremely nomadic garks. In the upper regions of the mountains, the bears there are incapable of being hunted by the garsk. However, in the southern region, where conditions are much less extreme, there are slightly smaller bears who do not possess the qualities of protection that the bears up north do. Essentially, they are slightly smaller than the northern moose. These are easily obtained by a pack of garks.

Garks are threatened by several northern predators. Territories occupied by garks and taliloes (large mountain cats with horns, spikes along their backs, and a mace-like tail) present much fighting between the two. They are formidable predators and enemies. Garks have a slight advantage, as they are normally in packs while the taliloes are typically solitary beings. However, were the taliloes to form a pride, they would be a match to the garks.
Northern bears are dangerous for garks as well. These bears are known as the wampus and are massive. They have spiked shoulders and there is a smaller shell going along their backs, but a larger one that protects their vulnerable stomachs. The garks do not even attempt to hunt or confront these creatures. Luckily, it is rare that garks come in contact with the bears and that the wampus are of a more docile nature. However, if the garks came in too close a proximity of a mother wampu and her baby, an entire pack could easily be killed in the mother's raging defense.


Also, garks can run quite fast. To compensate for the shell, they are typically more lean in other areas and their stomachs make a hollow inward to allow for more mobility. In nature, they run more akin to a rabbit or cheetah than a wolf.

Taliloes and wampus sound interesting. Why do some garks live alone and some run in packs?

Most garks run in packs. The ones who don't are typically old or sick, preferring to be solitary. Like African Buffaloes.

I like the similarities between the taliloes and garks, I think it makes it more realistic to have multiple animals with the same types of qualities in the same region. In other words, why would it be necessary to have armor when nothing else in the region does? Though, I do have a question: Why do beavers and hares seem more of a threat to the garks (who have armor) than to wolves in our world (who don't)?

They're not really more of a threat. I'm just highlighting that there are difficulties in hunting them down and it aids to describing what type of a region that garks inhabit. Also for the sake of beavers, rabbits, etc. there needs to be a factor that aids in their survival in an environment where they are hunted by almost everything. Like with regular wolves, catching a rabbit is fairly difficult. With garks, they are a bit bigger and faster than the average wolf, so a rabbit is easy prey unless it provides some sort of difficulty with being hunted. They are not dangerous per say, they just take advantage of the un-armored extremities of the gark and bite, which startles the juvenile garks more than anything, while it is merely an annoyance for larger garks, and with experience, bites do happen less.

*loves the picture! *

Very cool. And well developed, I might add.

Fascinating! Where do the Garks usually live? Do they usually come out at night like normal wolves do?

Thanks.

Garks live in the highly mountainous regions and they are primarily out during the day. They camouflage sufficiently enough to where visibility is not an issue for them and prey. They are not incredibly well equipped for night hunting as normal wolves are, because of the region they live in, and the predators competing with them, as hunting at night would prove more dangerous because of this.

Very nice! So, do they have a pecking order in the pack and if so, do the different garks have different duties to the pack? What color eyes do they have?

Thank you for clearing that up! How do they kill their prey exactly? Do they use claws? Their teeth? Both? And also, do they hunt their prey or lure it?

Gark packs are much like wolf packs in nature and hierarchy. However, the role of an alpha is usually not fought over. Once garks reach a certain age, they tend to leave the pack. They become too old to compete with the younger garks and take their leave to either live out the rest of their lives by themselves, with other old garks, or with their mates.
Garks tend to have yellow, amber, brown, and occasionally a light blue-gray/gray.

Garks hunt their prey in two main ways. The first being the packs typical hunting efforts, like chasing, cornering, surrounded, etc. There is also another way they do this, and this is typically used during famine or in extreme cases where the garks may not have the energy to hunt as vigorously as they usually do. This includes them using their shells and curling up for the most part, so that their shells make them appear more like the rocky mountain terrain. While in this state, their metabolism slows much like a bear's would during hibernation due to the fact that they can stay in this quite a long time.
When prey approaches, the garks go unnoticed until they are able to quickly jump out and catch the animal. If the prey is small, they quickly break its neck by grabbing the area with their teeth and shaking it. If the prey is large, they surround it and proceed to attack. They still attempt to grab the neck in hopes of biting through vital blood vessels. If they cannot do this, the animal may die of blood loss due to other injuries or simply survive after being wounded.

Wow...you seem to have this creature very well developed! I have no further questions.