Metsakko
Basic Information
Anatomy
- Metsakko share a lot of the physical characteristics of frogs, although they are bipedal and roughly half the size of an average human.
- Their eyes are protruding, and located toward the outside of their heads.
- Their hands and feet are webbed.
- Their hind legs are extremely powerful, and the metsakko are capable of leaping quite long distances.
- Their skin is smooth, rubbery, and is mostly muted shades of brown and green.
- There is no separate nose, simply slits above the mouth.
- The tongue is long and sticky and actually quite strong, catching small prey quite easily.
by Bing AI
by Bing AI
Genetics and Reproduction
They migrate to seasonal pools in the spring where they breed and lay their eggs. Males travel to the pools during the first rains of spring and begin calling to females with a distinctive quacking call. Their mating call has often been described as 'ducks in the woods'. Some metsakko are so loud they can be heard a mile away. After they meet, they find a suitable spot to mate and lay their eggs. In the sexual embrace, the male clasps the female from behind and extrudes sperm over the eggs as they are ejected by the female.
Their egg masses contain hundreds of eggs. The eggs then float off in clusters, strings, or sheets and may become attached to the stems of water plants. The egg masses often turn green from algae. Unlike
Sammakko egg masses, metsakko egg masses are not enclosed in a firm matrix that helps the egg mass retain its shape. Metsakko egg masses are large, soft, and shapeless. Often metsakko will deposit their eggs in communal nesting areas, creating large expansive egg masses.
After that the eggs are on their own, to survive and become tadpoles. The eggs develop for roughly 20 days, dependent upon temperature. Tadpoles are in the water for 80 to 115 days.
Growth Rate & Stages
 by Bing AI |
Metsakko eggs floating in a pond: these clusters of floating eggs are called "egg masses". Mestakko lay hundreds of eggs at one time. Many metsakko may lay them in the same place making one large egg mass. |
 by Bing AI |
Tadpoles hatch from the eggs and live in the pond. |
 by Bing AI |
The tadpoles turn into juvenile metsakko. The body shrinks, the legs form, the lungs develop, limbs appear, the tail is absorbed, and the mouth becomes like a typical metsakko. |
Ecology and Habitats
As the temperature drops below freezing each winter, the metsakko bury themselves and go into a deep hibernation. They stay in burrows or under leaf litter beneath the snow. They increase glucose production to high levels, which acts like an antifreeze that keeps them from freezing solid. Their breathing and heartbeat stop and as much as 65% of the water in their body gradually turns into ice. They spend two or three months of each winter frozen, with its body temperature ranging between -1°C and -6°C. When spring finally arrives, the ice melts, heartbeat and breathing return, and the metsakko are as good as new.
Biological Cycle
Metsakko spend the winter months hibernating.
Additional Information
Average Intelligence
Metsakko are a sentient species. They are of moderate intelligence, living mostly simple lives with no real use for technologies.
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
Metsakko have large eyes, which provide them with excellent eyesight. They also have a very keen sense of hearing.
Civilization and Culture
History
Metsakko are a species of sentient, humanoid frogs. They are descended from the Sammakko. Around the time that the portals were built, there was a group of sammakko who wished to travel out and explore new areas of the world that they had not seen. They traveled quite a bit, seeing many places that were new and interesting. One day, they traveled through to an unnamed outpost in a cold but beautiful landscape. During the nights, they were gifted with the sight of the aurora polaris lighting up the night sky. They decided together that this was a place that they wanted to stay. As the days approached winter, this army of Metsakko found that the cold weather was starting to become a problem, but they wished to remain. They had brought along with them a large collection of Umbra Lapis. Using the native species as a guide, they changed themselves, bringing their skin to muted colors, removing the sticky pads on their toes, reducing their size, and allowing themselves to hibernate. These transformations used up the supply of umbra lapis that they had brought with them, making it nearly impossible to change back to their original form. Using their newfound traits, they grew accustomed to the area and grew the outpost into a quaint little settlement known as Maa Sammakkot.
Interspecies Relations and Assumptions
Metsakko are friendly toward other species. They often come in contact with other sentient creatures during the summer months when they are not hibernating.
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