Black Rock Mer

Basic Information

Anatomy

They have a sleek mer build made to hunt. They maintain a humanoid upper half and are propelled by a shark like lower body. They maintain spots along the entirety of their body and most often have dark brown or black hair. Their lower half have two major pectoral fins, two pelvic fins, two anal fins, two dorsal fins, and a caudal fin.

Genetics and Reproduction

They reproduce sexually and are an ovoviviparous species. This means that eggs form inside the carrier and hatch their as well. The pups stay within the mother for 12-14 months depending on how many pups there are. A typical pregnancy will have 5 to 10 pups that are typically 10 to 15 inches long, with some pregancies being as large as 20 pups. Their size at birth allows larger pregnancies, less down time for their parent, and makes it easier for their parent to support them during their short infancy.

Growth Rate & Stages

Black rock mer mature fastest in their beginning years. These newborns double in size, reaching lengths of 25 to 35 inches by the end of their first year. From then until the age of 5 they are infants and are 50 to 60 inches long they come into their adolescence. Adolescence lasts until they are around 10 to 15 years old, ending when they become sexually mature. Then for the next 5 years they are taught explicitly on how to survive and raise children. Young adults are usually 60 to 75 inches long and continue to grow for the rest of their lives.

Ecology and Habitats

Black Rock Mer live on the western coast of The Black Sands in the lush kelp forests. They settle in outcroppings and in underwater cliffsides.

Dietary Needs and Habits

Black rock mer typically eat bony fish, crustaceans, and various other creatures they can find since they are opportunistic carnivores. Unlike real sharks they do not have multiple rows of teeth, however, if they lose a tooth, it will be replaced. They have triangle like teeth meant for grasping slippery prey and a wider range of jaw flexibility, allowing them to open their jaws wider and have a higher chance of grasping prey. They are also predominantly nocturnal, allowing them many forms of sensing their prey. This makes them adapted to both hunting and foraging for food. They store food on their person typically in pouches made of a variety of materials. When rearing pups they will store food in an area near their home, normally in a cave or burrow that they dug out.

Biological Cycle

Adult Black Rock Mer will migrate once per year to meeting grounds. They will find partners, adult groups, old family members, and celebrate together.

Behaviour

Social Groups Once a Black Rock Mer reaches maturity and migrates for the first time, they will typically find a group that will become their new family. They will still meet with their carrier and siblings during migration, but they will live with this new group for the rest of their lives. These groups will usually be close in either age, the same gender, or simply complimentary personalities.
Courtship and Rearing Once per year Black Rock Mer go to a place to find partners. Carrier Rock Mer will be courted by multiple bulls and choose up to 10 partners, usually spread out through many seasons. A female rock mer will find an outcropping or clearing and then wait for males to approach. They will circle the carrier, attempting show off their body and if the carrier likes how they look, they will bring back the bull(s) to their current group to be judged by the member of their family. Once a carrier finds bull(s) they pair with, they will leave together to hunt and live together for typically a year before they have pups. Normally this is because there are not enough bulls in the group yet, or just personal preference. Once the carrier decides to have pups, they will travel to shallow waters to rear their pups and create a home their. During most of the pregnancy the carrier will be fine to take care of themselves, however, with the number of pups they can have at once, it can be hard to keep up with the nutrients required to support them. Especially later in pregnancy, they will depend on their partners. Once they are born, the bulls will take care of the pups until the carrier recovers. Until the pups are old enough to start learning to hunt for themselves, one partner will watch them in whatever shelter they have created while the other members will hunt for their family due to the voracious appetite of pups.

Additional Information

Social Structure

Once a Black Rock Mer reaches maturity and migrates for the first time, they will typically find a group that will become their new family. They will still meet with their carrier and siblings during migration, but they will live with this new group for the rest of their lives. These groups will usually be close in either age, the same gender, or simply complimentary personalities.

Facial characteristics

They typically have rounder eyes, flatter noses, and an angular face shape. They can have patterning on their faces that include varrying sizes of spots and possibly stripes. Unlike humans they lack eyebrows, but maintain their hair to keep in heat.

Geographic Origin and Distribution

They remain mostly along the southern coast of The Black Sands where the water is warm.

Average Intelligence

They possess sentient intelligence.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Night vision 60ft Blindsight 25ft Their olfactory capability is so acute they use it as a guidance system. They are able to smell and distinguish the smells of currants, animals, and many other things. They can hear noises with frequencies ranging from 10 hertz to 800 hertz, with their normal range being below 375 hertz. While humans can hear sounds 25 hertz to 16,000 hertz. They can also use geomagnetic cues to navigate their world. they guide migration and are very useful when catching prey and avoiding predators in the ocean.

Civilization and Culture

Naming Traditions

During their infancy they have short names usually consisting of two syllables or less to identify the child but without having the parents getting too attached to them. After one year of age, they get their true name. Normally it is an extension of the child's existing name, but renaming the child completely isn't unheard of.
Their first last name is determined by their mother's current family group. Then they will keep adding group last names for each group they live with throughout their lives as a marker of their families.

Beauty Ideals

Black Rock mer value thick black hair and sharp black nails. They find yellow or green eyes very attractive and prefer a body pattern with high contrast and a pale underbelly. They think that symetretrical patterning is also very attractive.

Gender Ideals

They value strong carriers who are agressive hunters. They think carriers should be strong leaders who protect their children and their group.
Bulls should be dedicated and supportive of their groups. They should be polite, nurturing, and good at physical tasks.

Courtship Ideals

Since they are polyamorus, courtship can varry greatly, however it is common to give gifts. Some examples would be jewlery, food, or other personal items. It is simular to human dating but most of the time it is more about convincing their paramor's group rather than just the one that caught their eye.

Average Technological Level

They are nomatic people who have created tools from rock, bone, plants, and

Genetic Ancestor(s)

• Aquatic Humanoids (Tails)

Scientific Name

Homo aquatis semifasciata

Origin/Ancestry

Fukai Ocean

Lifespan

40 Years

Average Height

They are less than 1 meter tall when propped up on their arms but typically reach lengths of 1.5 to 2 meters.

Average Weight

160-200 Pounds

Average Length

1.5 to 2 meters

Average Physique

They are normally thin by human standards with little fatty tissue. This is furthered by the fact that they are not mammals, but instead a different kind of aquatic humanoid that falls closer to fish.

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

They have a mixture of grey, brown, and black in their patterns that cover their whole body. They have paddle like spots and banding that camouflage them. They also have lighter underbellies due to counter shading.

Geographic Distribution

• Fukai Ocean