Faintwing

Faintwings are a small passerine species native to Ecela, a continent on Osao. They get their name from their delicate natures, as the most fragile bird species that can barely fly more than a mile in a single go.

Anatomy

One of the smallest passerines on the planet, faintwings reach no more than six centimetres in length and weighing just four grams. They have needle-shaped bills, a very round appearance, short wings and short legs. Their colouration is rather bright, the majority of their feathers a light yellow colour with streaks of blue and pink on their wings and crowns. Their short tails fan out with a wide end, and can be fanned out further and raised when the birds become territorial.

Female faintwings are much larger than males, with a difference of about a centimetre. Females typically grow to six centimetres in length while males only five, and the males have much shorter wings and cannot fly as far as females, or as reliably.

Diet

Faintwings are omnivorous and their diets consist of seeds, nuts and small grasses, as well as tiny invertebrates. As a coastal species, their diet comprises more of small crustaceans than anything else. Faintwings that inhabit forested coastlines have a more plant-based diet, seen more in the Ecelan population. Faintwings have small hooks on their bellies that help them climb up trees.

Due to their miniscule size and incredibly fast metabolism, these birds have to be feeding constantly. They cannot go more than an hour without feeding or they will starve to death. Even when incubating eggs and nest building, the birds will stop to find food roughly every ten minutes.

Reproduction & Growth

Faintwings nest in small branches, out of reach from large predators. They create nests of leaves and branches, laying three to five spherical brown eggs. The females incubate the eggs for three weeks, since they're larger and can better incubate. Males will spend the entire time running back and forth, gathering food for not only himself but for the female.

Once the eggs have hatched, the chicks will spend several days figuring out who is the weakest, kill and eat it while the parents gather enough food to store for the time that the chicks spend in the nest. This food is stored in tree cavities on the same tree as the nest, so the parents don't have to climb and run far to get food.

Habitat

Faintwings live along coastlines around Ecela and the Epystal Islands. Building nests in treetops, these birds don't fly often and instead scale trees using the hooks along their bellies. To evade predators, faintwings will hide within tree cavities and scream.

Epystal Islands Colonies

Several colonies of faintwings exist on the islands in the Epystal Islands archipelago. These faintwings arrived on the islands thousands of years ago, which puzzles scientists because they must have migrated from Ecela, much too far for any faintwing to fly.

Nevertheless, due to an abundance of food and a lack of predators, these faintwings have thrived, even reaching a similar population to their Ecelan counterparts.

Scientific Name

Regulus languidis

Lifespan

4 years

Average Weight

4g

Average Length

6cm

Geographic Distribution

• Ecela
• Epystal Islands
• Osao

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