- Introduction
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This text is dense in biological terminology.
In case you encounter unfamiliar words in the text, most of them have hyperlinks or hover text.
Additionally, I have created a separate glossary file that you can refer to as you read.
Lacertocyon plumocrista, also known as feather maned dragon or simply maned dragon, is a distinctive member of the Lacertheridae family that has unique morphology and exhibits traits similar to modern canidae and felidae.
The Latin genus name Lacertocyon literal translation is lizard dog, while the species plumocrista means feather crest. This results in the literal name feather crested lizard dog.
Although the name suggests similarities to reptiles and canines, many of these traits are a result of convergent evolution.
The order Lacertheriformes diverged from Eutherians and evolved parallel with modern mammalia, including carnivora.
Lacertherimorpha is a clade that includes Lacertheriformes and their closest relatives, forming a monophyletic group similar to Carnivoramorpha.
Temporal range: Pliocene to present
| Rank | Clade |
|---|---|
| Kingdom | Animalia |
| Phylum | Chordata |
| Class | Mammalia |
| Order | Lacertheriformes |
| Family | Lacertheridae |
| Genus | Lacertocyon |
| Species | plumocrista |
- Height: 100 cm at the withers; weight: 45 kg
- Sprint speed: 60 km/h; sustained run speed: 30 km/h
- Lifespan: 25 years; maturity at 3–4 years
- Warm-blooded
- Placental Mammal
- Predator
- Omnivorous
- Venomous
Maned dragon similarities to other species are largely coincidental due to the same environmental pressures that they faced.
- Maned dragons are covered in thin fur, and they have a feathered mane that reaches from their head down to the tip of the tail. The feather-like keratinous strands in the mane evolved from fur to act as protection and showcase.
- The mane can puff up to appear bigger under a threat, and it helps with protection and heat regulation on cold nights.
- Their fur color is a mix of yellows, browns, and greens with lighter countershading. The colorization varies regionally, mostly due to selective breeding and migrating individuals finding success in certain foliage. Seasonal changes can also affect the coat's thickness and color.
- Their whiskers are as wide as the front profile of their body. When traversing narrow pathways, these whiskers will indicate when a gap is too narrow to fit.
- Maned dragons have long ears to keep their bodies cool. The tufts at the ear tips help communicate with conspecifics and feel what's above their head, similar to whiskers.
- Maned dragons have long digitigrade legs, which enable them to see in tall foliage, making their gait akin to maned wolves.
- They have five 3-segmented fingers and four 2-segmented toes, which are closer to reptilian hands than canine paws by appearance. Their dexterous hands allow them to grab onto the prey and make climbing easier.
- Their skull is streamlined, similar to reptiles, with external nares positioned like crocodiles. They lack a rhinarium, but smell receptors are still in the nasal cavity. The nasal cavity is wet to help with sensing scents.
The dental formula of maned dragons (Upper: 3.1.4.3; Lower: 3.1.4.3) is similar to that of Creodonta.
- Their incisors and prominent canines are similar to those of modern canids.
- The first two premolars have a shallow cusp, becoming steeper with the third premolar, while the fourth premolar functions similarly to a carnassial tooth.
- The molars are robust and capable of breaking up bones, with distinctive cusps except the last upper molar, which is rounder.
Maned dragons share hunting strategies with big cats and behavior with maned wolves.
- As solitary hunters, they can hunt animals up to 60 kg, but their preferred prey is 20-40 kg.
- Maned dragons rely on ambush tactics and endurance to outlast prey, as they are neither the fastest nor strongest predators.
- Maned dragons are omnivorous, often foraging and consuming various types of vegetable matter.
- Maned dragons are diurnal. They have trichromatic color vision, which is more advantageous in foraging, but this comes at the cost of poorer night vision.
- When food is scarce, they can resort to scavenging. Their stomach acid is strong enough to partially digest bones.
- They regurgitate any indigestible material, such as fur or large fragments, in compacted pellets.
- Their preferred habitat is dry tropical forest and semiarid desert, and they are most active around temperatures of 10-25 C. These sparsely vegetated openings allow them to have some cover and utilize their sprint speed to full extent.
- Maned dragons can thrive in wet seasons and near bodies of water. Their remnant semi-aquatic traits make them adequate swimmers and capable of traversing marshy terrain.
- Maned dragons can stalk prey below the surface of the water unless they are outcompeted by more sophisticated species, such as crocodiles.
- While maned dragons may share overlapping territories, they are rarely aggressive against other maned dragons unless food is scarce.
- Maned dragons communicate via howls and barks or roars like maned wolves. Under a threat, they express distress by hissing or growling.
While maned dragons don't form packs, they form bonds between individuals. They often form monogamous pairs due to the significant investment required for raising offspring.
- Maned dragons don't have a particular mating season, as this depends more on food abundance. They give birth to a litter every two years, after the previous one has become independent.
- The female gives live birth to a litter of 2 to 6 pups with a gestation period of 130 days.
- During the nursing period, the male may share the territory and assist with raising the offspring by hunting and providing protection. They don't necessarily share the same living space until the late stage of the gestation period.
- Juveniles become independent at 1-2 years of age. They reach sexual maturity at the age of 3-4 years old.
- Maned dragons exhibit gradual senescence, showing few signs of aging until they reach around 20 years of age. In the wild, they live on average 25 years, but in more favorable environments, some individuals may live far longer. This extended lifespan results from their adaptability to diverse environments, reducing the evolutionary pressure over generations.
The genitals of maned dragons are similar to those of some aquatic mammals, such as cetaceans, with a few differences.
- Unlike female cetaceans, which have a mammary slit, the maned dragon's anus is outside their genital slit, positioned near the root of the tail.
- Both male and female sexual organs are internal, and the underside is normally featureless.
- In males, the penis and testes are internal, with the penis extending during mating.
- They have six teats hidden under the fur, arranged similar to canines. The mammary glands in nursing females become prominent only during lactation.
- Outside the reproductive organs, maned dragons have very little sexual dimorphism.
Maned dragons have venom glands in their lower jaw, and some of their bottom teeth have grooves to help inject the toxin into the target.
- Their venom is especially useful when the prey is so large that it can't be subdued by teeth and claws alone. In such cases, maned dragons may continue stalking the target until the venom takes full effect.
- As defense mechanisms, maned dragons can use their venom to inflict pain and discourage any attackers.
The maned dragon evolved a unique venom composition with effects similar to these components. The exact composition remains undetermined.
- Pain activation: Bradykinin, Capsaicin
- Muscle paralysis: Dendrotoxin, Fasciculin, Conotoxin
- Spreading factors: Phospholipase, Metalloprotein
Lacertheriformes diverged from Eutherians before the emergence of Carnivora and convergently evolved alongside them, developing a unique set of traits.
| Clade | Divergence (mya) |
|---|---|
| Amniota | 330 |
| Cynodontia | 259 |
| Eutheria | 145 |
| Palutherium | 100-66 |
| Palusaurictis | 66 |
| Lacertherids | 34 |
| Lacertocyon | 5.3 |
Late Cretaceous 100-66 mya
Genus: Palutherium (Marsh beast)
- Early Lacertheriformes split from the Eutheria clade during the late Cretaceous.
- Palutherium was a small semi-aquatic otter- or shrew-like species that had a mixed diet, consisting of insects and fruits.
- Their venom developed from modified salivary glands, making them poisonous if eaten by a predator.
- Like many small mammals, the early predecessors of Lacertocyon were nocturnal to avoid competition with dinosaurs.
K-Pg extinction event 66 mya
- As a result of the extinction event, the species couldn't have been more than 25 kg in size and likely much smaller.
- In this period, the species took shelter in bodies of water, and their omnivorous diet was beneficial as many plant and marine life died.
Early Paleocene 66-50 mya
Genus Palusaurictis (Marsh-reptile otter)
- Many species diversified rapidly after the K-Pg extinction event.
- The ancestral species of Lacertocyon grew in size to fill niches after the extension event.
- When dinosaurs became extinct, the species shifted toward a diurnal lifestyle.
- Other semi-aquatic features evolved further, such as webbed fingers, skull structure, and tail shape, to aid swimming in water.
- As other species increased in size, Palusaurictis' claws, teeth, and venom became more sophisticated. Venom grooves formed in lower teeth.
- This semi-aquatic ancestral species stalked prey in water similar to crocodiles.
Eocene 50-34 mya
- Proto-Lacertherids transitioned from a semi-aquatic lifestyle to a more terrestrial one due to environmental pressures.
- The species quickly adapted by evolving digitigrade legs, longer ears, and improved eyesight to better suit outside water.
- As the species became fully diurnal, they developed better trichromatic color vision for foraging, though this came at the cost of poorer night vision.
- Outside the water, the fur didn't need to be as dense, but the fur strands on the back grew in width and length and eventually started to resemble feathers. This eventually evolved into the characteristic mane.
- Advanced Lacertherids became fully terrestrial and further adapted to semi-arid and dry tropical environments.
- Competition from other carnivores resulted in adaptation of diet and behavior.
- As the gestation period lengthened, taking care of offspring became more important.
- Socializing with conspecifics enabled them to stay competitive with other predators and maintain territories.
Pliocene 5.3 mya to present
- Modern maned dragons emerged from the Lacertheridae lineage.
Lacertherids inherit many ancestral traits from their semi-aquatic lineage.
These features have either proven beneficial or haven't posed significant hindrance. Therefore, there hasn't been a reason to eliminate these traits.
- Venomousness
- Skull and tail shape
- Finger arrangement
- Dexterous hands and limbs
- Genital slit
- Rib cage flexibility and structure
- Nostrils have the ability to close when submerged in water
- A nictitating membrane in the eyes
- Hand and foot bones are elongated and flattened
The concepts are derived primarily from real-life examples, using Wikipedia as the main source.
- Adleisio cetacean reproductive anatomy
- Early concept art of "lizard dog"
- Concept art of fantastical maned dragon (There will be more accurate illustrations in the future)
- Anthropomorphic illustration of fantastical maned dragon