Wyvern (why-vurn)
Wyvern are the smallest Draconidae as well as the most numerous and they inhabit much of the known map. They are carnivores and have a strong inclination to eat carrion whenever it is available. A wound from a scratch or bite will almost certainly become infected, and this has led to the myth that they are poisonous creatures.
Like all dragons, wyverns do not stop growing. With each molt they can be expected to grow as much as a foot. As they are the species of dragon that is most dependant on flight for survival, once they reach a size where they cannot become or remain airborne, they are unable to feed themselves and eventually waste away. Many consider this stage of their life the most dangerous to encounter them in, as they are desperately hungry and almost constantly in pain but are still capable of real violence even if they cannot fly. They are able to run for short distances on two legs, but not enough to provide a steady means of feeding themselves.
As the smallest (on average) dragon species, they are far more common than their larger cousins and still very valuable at market when harvested. Wyverns (like all dragons) produce Dragon Oil but only the oldest and largest specimens have glands large enough to harvest. What is especially prized by hunters and collectors are wyvern blood, as this is a vital and valuable component of many healing potions and poison antidotes.
Basic Information
Anatomy
Wyverns are dragons whose forelegs have developed into wings, while their hind legs are fully capable of supporting their full weight standing or running. They have long necks that often extend as far as 8' beyond their shoulders. Males tend to be slightly smaller than females, but both sexes can reach lengths of more than 14' nose-to-tail.
Biological Traits
Wyverns have the rather infamous habit of either vomiting up the contents of their stomachs as a defense against attack, or by the explosive evacuation of their bowels. Either of these range attacks are able to produce a highly toxic and are literally over-powering in their stench. Any contact with the vomit or feces of a wyvern is the equivalent of a high potency poison on the affected area, and the danger lingers for days. Injestion is typically fatal within three days.
Genetics and Reproduction
Females can lay as many as four eggs at a time, and both males and females will sit and protect the eggs. Eggs are produced four times a year, and take 45 days to hatch. Young wyverns are hatched with a length of about 3' and weigh as much as 25 lbs. Young are able to feed themselves after about three weeks, and flight capable after 5 weeks.
Growth Rate & Stages
Wyverns reach full maturity roughly 18 months after hatching, but this process is faster if the wyvern is able to eat more often. They will shed their skins for the first time at 2 years, and will shed again every 2-3 years after that, adding a foot or more to their length with each shed. Wyverns can be expected to live for as long as 20 years or more, but once they are too large to fly, they are unable to feed.
Dietary Needs and Habits
Wyverns are carnivores and excellent hunters, but are also scavengers when the opportunity presents.
Behaviour
Thought by many to be methodical instictual hunters rather than capable of any rational cunning, they do have a limited ability to speak if exposed to language enough. Several examples are known to have been able to communicate simple but guttural language with a very limited vocabulary. Wyverns are known to demonstrate an amazingly accurate memory for places, scents and faces. Encountering people or places again even after more than a decade produce an instant recall of the previous encounter for the beast, whether past experience was good or bad.
Their instinctual drive to keep and guard a hoard seems to be connected to their memory. Wyvern hoards are wildly varied in their content, with no seeming rhyme or reason to what a wyvern might keep, other than the items typically are associated with distinct moments or experiences in the wyvern's life. They also have a tendency to keep a collective hoard while living in a brood, pooling their "treasures" into a collective hodge-podge of memorable items and trinkets.
Additional Information
Social Structure
Wyverns live in family broods, with a mating pair living with their offspring until the offspring venture out to find their own mates. Broods of as many as 12 wyverns are not uncommon.
Domestication
No known examples of a domesticated wyvern exist, but stories are told all through the known world of individual wyverns that were raised as companions or pets. The wyvern's known and well-documented memory attributes lead some scholars to believe that the stories could be true. A young hatchling has a strong propensity to imprint images of protective places and faces on the amazing memory of the beasts, and if this trait were utilized at an early enough age, the hatchlings could very well see another creature as its "parent" and protector. They are also known to display a tendency to stay in family groups well beyond the young age when other species of Draconidae abandone the nest entirely.
Uses, Products & Exploitation
Wyvern blood is a very valuable component in potion making for both its healing and poison-combating properties. Bones, teeth, claws, hides and wing leather are all valuable commodities, and the tail of the beasts is considered a delicacy in all cultures. Exceptionally large wyverns can have Dragon Oil glands large enough to harvest, and the oil is a very valuable component in medicinal and magical applications. It has been supposed that a wyvern's oil is the only possible cure for toxic exposure to wyvern excrement, preferrably from the same beast.
Geographic Origin and Distribution
Wyverns can be encountered almost anywhere where prey can be had. They are known to migrate significant distances to find new feeding grounds, and will usually remain in an area until the food source is depleted or the wyvern population grows too large.
Average Intelligence
Comparable to a young human once mature, with a long and quite accurate memory.
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
Excellent eyesight, exceptional ability to smell (especially dead flesh) at great distances, poor hearing.
Genetic Ancestor(s)
Scientific Name
Draconidae Alatus Parvus
Lifespan
20+ years
Average Weight
Adults average about 800 lbs, with particularly large specimens exceeding 1,000 lbs.
Average Length
12' to 16'
Average Physique
Very strong and very fast, both on the ground and in the air.
Geographic Distribution
