Gonkbamu

Often affectionately referred to as "gonkies" or shortened to "gonks" the Gonkbamu is a fixture in any humanoid settlement both new and old. They are the most available and readily kept mounts in most non-farming populations, especially cities as they take up less space than quadrupeds and are easy to feed and exercise. Gonkbamu are versatile in their uses but they have one thing that is particularly important: these emu-like, incredibly fast, hard running birds can be used as both mounts or beasts of burden based on their sheer durability and desire to G O F A S T.
Wild Gonkbamu are social to varying degrees with flock membership being just a father and last season's children to loosely related individuals over two dozen strong. Flocks over a count of six are referred to as mobs. During times of famine or severe drought mobs of gonkbamu have a tendency to converge and pluck greenery and seed from the land like a swarm of locusts. While the gonkbamu is viewed with nothing but affection now they used to frequently appear in macabre art.

Excited gonkbamu have a tendency to indulge in sproinking, an affectionate term for the hyper-active dances where they flail, hop and flop themselves in to a flurry of, much like binkying in rabbits or popcorning in rats. This species-specific stim involves a lot of leg kicking. Exercise is especially important for domestic gonkbamu kept in smaller stablings as getting too excited could lead to a broken leg in a confined space. Since gonkbamu are more likely to become excitable than afraid it is theorized this behavior actually helps protect them from themselves. A foolishly excited gonkbamu facing down a predator or threat like a venomous snake may very well destroy the threat by stimming in this manner to deal with the giddiness.
At their top speeds a gonkbamu can hit up to 80mph in short bursts (between 10 and 12 seconds) but can maintain a running speed of 30 mph for most of a riding day if allowed to stop for water and not weighed down by luggage. Over-heating is the problem more than exhaustion, as is oxygen delivery to the muscles- avian lungs don't allow for rapid enough oxygen exchange and while gonkbamu are capable of "bellow breathing" (forcing their muscular throats to pump oxygen faster while mid-run) they can take multiple hours to recover from a flat out run. Gullar fluttering, the bird equivalent of panting, is almost reflexive. Gonkbamu kept in exceptionally cold climates need collars of warm materials to stop them from making the blood going to their brain dangerously low in temperature.

Basic Information

Anatomy

The vast majority of the gonkbamu is built entirely for speed. The small wings of the gonkbamu have especially stiff primary feathers different from those on their body, and they use these when running at top speeds as a bit of a rudder, in combination with their few stiff tail feathers. The flexible rolling hip joints let them turn on a dime. The claws on their fingers are typically only used against rivals in the breeding season, be it males fighting for mates or females fighting for nesting spots.
Females and males are very similar but sexually mature individuals can be easily distinguished by looking down on their torsos: females are wider at the back to facilitate the large eggs they clutch, and males are wider at the front to allow for better musculature to both boom louder and use their tiny wings in courting displays and endurance battles against other males. Younger gonkbamu require DNA sexing.

Genetics and Reproduction

Gonkbamu begin their elaborate singing and dancing courtships just before the beginning of the dry season. This way when the males enter the torpor-like state of nesting it isn't as if they're missing much. It takes the eggs the entire season to incubate, and they hatch just as the more plentiful wet season begins.
While some females will brood for the full term and remain, or even chase away a father, the males are typically the ones to raise a clutch alone. Male pairs sometimes bond with one another during courtship rituals rather than remaining rivals and are known to not only adopt wayward chicks but have even been observed chasing small males off of nests just to take over the nesting duty. This behavior is more common in larger flocks where individuals are more likely to be related to one another. Hatchling gonkbamu are fluff-coated and both striped and spotted to break up their form hiding among grasses. They are born with fully developed whiskers and primary feathers however, and are ready to run as soon as they've had their first rest after hatching. It is an effort for dad to keep track of his babies, so he calls for them with a unique whistle he taught them while they were still in the egg.

Growth Rate & Stages

Chicks are born with developed primary feathers and the ability to run and keep up with their father hours after birth. They are thus considered superprecocial. A female gonkbamu reaches sexual maturity at about 2 years of age. Males may begin attempting to reproduce as early as the age of 2, but they are unlikely to successfully rear a nest until the age of 3 or even 4.

Ecology and Habitats

Vast, open grasslands or sparse dry forests are the preferred natural habitat of the gonkbamu, though some island subspecies (pending classification) take to more tropical and much heavier growth than their mainland cousins.

Dietary Needs and Habits

They are able to stomach a great deal of foods but are primarily granivores. Captive diets are readily available based on life stage and if the keeper prefers to feed mash, pellet, or crumble. They are also provided grit in the form of inert rocks, though some feed their gonkbamu semi-precious stones as "gizzard polished" stones are seen as a kitschy novelty. Captive gonkbamu will attempt to eat just about anything, from overly investigating small rodents to stealing pies off window sills to making one shoe of a pair go missing.

Additional Information

Domestication

They aren't truly domesticated as they are born rather fearless and extremely social with a tendency toward friendly flock cohesion. There wasn't much to really breed away.

Geographic Origin and Distribution

Wild Gonkbamu are native primarily to the southern province. They can be found as far east as the cat paw archipelago, and as far west as the western border of the grassland strips around the tendrils. Gonkbamu of smaller size are present on some islands in the cat tail keys and are pending investigation for classification.
Domestic gonkbamu are found in nearly every humanoid settlement on the continent and its surrounding islands.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

The long whiskers at the front of their face are incredibly sensitive and help them sense oncoming obstacles. They will also sleep with their heads against the ground and whiskers spread to try and sense any oncoming vibrations, or assume a similar position to sense the booming subsonic calls of their flock mates. These are not their only vocalizations but they communicate over long distances almost moreso than the trills, beeps and honks they deploy in proximity.

Communication
Some have tried to argue gonkbamu have genuine language, but this is rudimentary and not beyond the capability of many avians, such as chickens. Domestic gonkbamu in particular learned to adapt certain mannerisms, sounds, and "ways of speech" to better get along with their humanoid handlers as a replacement flock, so they have a few extra that aren't seen in wild gonkbamu. Those raised alone tend to develop accents because they are learning through doing and not via playing telephone with a parent/flock. This can create a language barrier that makes mixing domestic flocks or pairs not raised together difficult at first. Sometimes integration is impossible, with the "accents" being too heavy for the other birds to learn.
Known Gonkbamu Verbal and Body Language
Vrrrm Vrrrm: A sound like trying to start a lawn mower. Also known as a greeting purr. This is an inquiry for the bird to receive a unique sound that might be considered a name, though it is most often answered with the unique call the entire clutch is taught in the egg. This is endearing to humanoids since they will respond to any sound instead of just whistles, so they can introduce themselves when asked. The birds do seem to have an excellent memory for these sounds, on a level akin to kenku learning core vocabulary, though they don't seem to have a particular amazing memory for sounds not made in response to the greeting purr.
Excitement Beat: An over-excited domestic gonkbamu expecting something good to happen will thrum with excitement like a far-too-quick heartbeat broadcasted through the earth. Wild gonkbamu tend to grow out of this behavior as they grow to independence if they do not remain a part of a flock. Domestic gonkbamu hold on to the expression.
Whisker touching: Gentle taps with the whiskers explore items presented to the gonkbamu as well as features of creatures. No one is sure what exactly the whiskers read when trying to determine the identity of others. It is possible gonkbamu have names said only in vibration as well, but this is difficult to test because of their gregarious nature. In both blind and deaf individuals, whiskers grow longer.

Scientific Name

Corydonceler ghonkus

Lifespan

20-25 wild, 40+ in captivity

Conservation Status

The gonkbamu is not threatened in the wild and is classified as Least Concern.

Average Physique

Gonkbamu used to come in a variety of breeds meant for certain tasks, with the bulk of them actually being fancy birds that look good to ride around on and show off a level of wealth. Breed recognition was abolished almost 150 years ago when concern was raised about the Standard of Perfection possibly creating birds that are ill, inbred, poorly documented, or problem behavior animals. As a result the captive gonkbamu population has a variety of different traits floating around making recognizing individuals based on size, sound, and feathering easy. While not true breeds, documented bloodlines are important when it comes to racing gonkbamu. There are a few color varieties that mostly affect colors of the shanks, beak and plumage