Catoblepas (katɔblɛpas)

To one never having been to the Karnica Stretch, the catoblepas may seem strange and unnatural. It’s massive horns, huge shoulders, low hanging head, and unusual skin make it seem as though it is a supernatural entity. However, one who knows the stretch, or reads up on the region, will quickly find the catoblepas to be a perfectly natural, if unusual, mammal, not unlike a buffalo.

Basic Information

Anatomy

Catoblepones are massive, husky animals, with short stocky legs ending in four-toed, rhino-like hooves. They have massive, humped shoulders, with the front of the hump being neck muscles and the back of it storing fat, and a shaggy, scruffy mane. Their heads are low slung and are topped off by gigantic, swooping horns that connect at a bony boss. Their skin is dense and almost rhinocerine, giving it a form of natural armor and a scaled appearance.

Biological Traits

Catoblepones aren’t creatures of variation. Many look very similar to each other and there are only differences that one can see up close (one may have slightly larger horns, or be a slightly different color, etc.). The only major differences are between genders: bulls are larger, have larger horns, and are all around more aggressive, while cows are smaller, with smaller horns, large udders, and tend to be more docile.

Genetics and Reproduction

Catoblepones reproduce via intercourse of a bull and cow, as most mammals do. Since catoblepas females are normally only fertile in the fall, bulls are incredibly defensive of them, with the fall being their respective rutting season and the season where the most fights occur. During this season, bulls become unnaturally aggressive, attacking anything other than a cow or one of their calves. Despite the fall being the breeding season, however, bulls mate with cows whenever they please, often multiple times a day, to minimize the chance of rivals sneaking in to mate.
Catoblepas cows have interesting pregnancies because, unlike most hoofed animals, they give birth to two calves after a 291-day period of gestation. They trade off is, to lessen the amount of time of pregnancy, catoblepas calves are less developed compared to thoughts of most grazing animals. While they are still able to walk and run, they require protection from the herd longer than most herd animals. As a result of the longer growth period, catoblepas cows engage have two important adaptations to counteract this: the first is milk that is ultrarich in proteins and fats, helping to encourage rapid growth rates; the second is cooperative breeding between females in a herd. The reason they can do this is because most of the females are sisters and therefore the offspring of the other females are related to their own offspring.

Growth Rate & Stages

As mentioned earlier, catoblepas calves are more vulnerable than those of other grazing animals, not being weaned until 9-10 months and growing to maturity after a year and a half. As a calf reaches between 12-14 months, their changes into adulthood begin to express themselves: males begin becoming beefier and their horns begin to grow at a rapid pace, while females start to grow udders. They will either leave the herd or be chased out of the herd by the bull depending on if the calves are female or male respectively. Adolescent cows tend to stay together even after leaving their natal herd, meaning that most herds are comprised of sisters and half-sisters while the bulls either form bachelor herds until they reach adulthood or roam alone.

Ecology and Habitats

Catoblepones inhabit the Stretch’s dry, inner grasslands and occasionally shelter in the scrub forests. They have adapted along with the grasses unique to those regions and thus are only found there, in the wild. It is the nominal large grazer of the region, traveling across the land for any grass available. Here’s have been known to strip 100 ft. areas clean of grass.
These ungulates have such a massive impact on the ecosystem, due to their generalist habits and ability to consume grass on mass, that they restrict the diversity of grazers heavily on the Stretch. With catoblepones around, most grazers are restricted to small sizes or extremely specialized for a single grass species, which also restricts their size greatly due to the availability of that grass.

Dietary Needs and Habits

Catoblepas are grazers and grazers alone. They are dependent on grasses for nutrition and any other food source is usually a dietary supplement. Their mouths are equipped with massive molars for grinding the tough, nutrient-lacking plants and their incisors are specifically designed to take in as much grass, in one bite, as possible. They also have massive guts, with a four-chambered stomach to get as much nutrition from their grassy diet as possible. As stated, catoblepones are extremely general in the grasses they can eat. Basically, if it's grass, it can be eaten, and it will be eaten in droves. During the breeding season, cows will venture into woodlands feed on nuts they knock out of trees with well-placed rams: the reason for this is for the fat content that will go into their milk. Owners of domesticated stock make up for this by feeding them legumes during the milking season.

Additional Information

Social Structure

Catoblepones travel in herds, generally ranging between 30-40 individuals. These herds are a harem of cows, followed by their calves and lead by a single bull. The bull jealously guards this herd, fighting off any bulls who would challenge him, and breeding furiously with every cow he hasn't birthed. Bulls are also known to raid other herds for females, killing any male calves the previous bull fathered and leaving the females to grow up so he may breed them as well.

Domestication

The catoblepas is the dominant form of livestock in the Karnica Stretch, with depictions of domestication going back thousands of years to paintings on the walls of caves. Herders highly prize these animals for their utility and certain cultural reasons.
The way to tell the difference between domestic and wild catoblepas is in the manes and horns. Unless they are a fighting breed, domestic catoblepones have smaller horns than their wild cousins, as well as universally longer manes.

Uses, Products & Exploitation

The usage of catoblepones by the people of the Stretch depends on the culture and beliefs of the herder in question. The Vulegin value the animal as a gift from their god, ensure their survival, and their Church of the Broken Mountian make special cleansing meals out of their meat, but those of the Ulagiin faith believe the animal to be holy and forbid consumption of it.
Many cultures use the catoblepones as a food source, with their meat being a common meal for folk of all walks of life. As mentioned above, the Church of the Broken Mountian uses catoblepas meat to make special steaks that are said to cleanse the body of dark forces. The Vulegin and Klobën also value leather made from catoblepas skin, as their hides are incredibly durable and tough. Regardless of beliefs on killing the animal, however, all the cultures of the Stretch value catoblepones as pack animals, often using them to pull carts, farming implements, and even carcasses of killed animals, and for the milk the cows produce, which is said to be healthier than the milk of cattle.

Facial characteristics

Catoblepones have faces that look almost like a cross between that of a rhinoceros and a hippopotamus. The head is rectangular, with a mouth almost shaped like a flat shovel, to grab as much grass as possible. They carry their heads perpendicular to the ground, and their horns swoop under their chin, similar to that of a bighorn sheep, and connect at a bony boss on the top of the head, like a Cape buffalo. Their muzzle is actually, when looking at the skull, not very deep and is convex on top: this is to make room for a fleshy resonating chamber, used to amplify their sounds, which is bigger on bulls than on cows.

Geographic Origin and Distribution

The catoblepas is unique to and adapted specifically to the Karnica Stretch, and thus can only be found there. Their native distribution is the grasslands of the northern edges of the peninsula, and portions of the scrublands to the south.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Catoblepones have poor eyesight, being frightened and agitated by sudden movements. As such, they rely on their senses of hearing and smell, both of which are strong. A catoblepas is, however, more likely to smell you than to hear you, being able to smell from up to two miles away.

Symbiotic and Parasitic organisms

Catoblepones are often followed by birds, known as Coblën ( Vuleginian word meaning “hitchhiker”) birds, which sit upon their backs and peck parasites out of the catoblepas' skin and alert it of danger.

Origin/Ancestry

Artiodactyl

Lifespan

50-70 years

Average Height

Bulls-6’11” at the shoulder
Cows-5’8” at the shoulder

Average Weight

Bulls-2,268 lbs.
Cows-1,587 lbs.

Average Length

Bulls-11 feet
Cows-9 feet

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

Catoblepones are various shades of grey or brownish-grey.

Geographic Distribution

• Karnica Stretch

Cultural Significance

All the cultures of the Stretch consider catoblepones to be a very holy animal, thinking it to be either given to them by or closely related to the gods. Depending on the specific area and religion, as the Ulagiin religion and the Church of the Broken Mountian have different views on this, slaughter of catoblepones is forbade as a serious crime, while others consider their meat to be holy. Their milk is also holy and is used in both special and everyday occurrences.