Saikkot
Saikkots are sapient reptilian bipeds that thrive best in hot climates.
Basic Information
Anatomy
Saikkots walk on two digitigrade legs, balancing with their two arms and a long, tapering tail. A set of frills runs down their back, from the crown of their head to the halfway mark of their tail. The tip of their tail has a barbed stinger on it, releasing venom when agitated.
On each foot and hand, they have five digits. Their feet have three talons facing forwards and a raised digit nearing the back of their ankle. The innermost talon on each foot is enlarged like a raptor's claw. Their hands have three fingers and two thumbs, one on each side of the palm. The outermost thumb (in place of the pinky) is raised closer to the base of their fingers.
Scales
Saikkots have unique scales, more akin to feathers. Each scale is diamond shaped, with a tapered base. They stick out and layer over each other like fish scales, but can be angled at the base to stick out more and express emotion. Scales continue growing until they naturally fall out, or are removed during preening. New scales will grow in their place, within a few months time. The new scales will remain there for about three fourths of the year, until they are shed again.
Shape and Color
The typical saikkot has a lithe form. Their body has an hourglass shape—broad shoulders and chest, small waist, and wide hips. Their legs and arms are long, somewhat muscular to carry them when they run and climb. Most of their fat is stored in the neck, legs, and tail.
Scales have a diverse spectum of color: a light cream, a muted purple, reddish black, burnt umber, or anywhere inbetween. A vine-like pattern crosses their scales like soft sunshine, but it is typically invisible due to being a similar color as the rest of their scales. Eyes are even more colorful, appearing in all hues of the rainbow except green and blue. Yellow, pink, and lavender are the most common eye colors. Black eyes are an uncommon occurance, typically found in lighter-scaled saikkots.
Genetics and Reproduction
Saikkots are simultaneous hermaphordites: they simultaneously have the organs for both egg-laying and egg-fertilization. A protective system stops their reproduction cells from forming embryos by themselves, but it can occur in extremely rare cases. Saikkots born in this manner have many health issues, and are typically stillborn or die within their first month of life. If they survive their early childhood, such "asexually" produced saikkots will not live for more than 20 years.
Within three to five months after conception, both saikkots will lay 1-3 eggs each, the lesser amount being more common. The eggs are then kept at a warm temperature for three months, when it will hatch if healthy. It's common for eggs to be laid stillborn, or to become stillborn before they would hatch. Moreso, unfertilized eggs are commonly produced and laid months after intercourse, but will not hatch due to lacking the nutrients and embryo formed in a fertilized egg.
Breeding Season
Adult saikkots do not typically experience strong sexual desires throughout the entire year. Rather, they have a yearly breeding period that differentiates based on the length of the wet seasons experienced during an individual's childhood. A saikkot that grew up with an extended dry season will always have a shorter breeding period, even if they move to a location with an extended wet season.
Some special cases have less predictable breeding periods. Individuals that grew up in a perpetual wet season will always be in their breeding period, though it may fluctuate unexpectedly in strength. Saikkots that grew up in a perpetual dry season may experience mini breeding periods monthly or bimonthly. Those that grew up in an unstable mix of wet-dry and dry-wet seasons will typically have seemingly random breeding periods, often repeating a pattern longer than a single year.
Growth Rate & Stages
Hatchlings
Hatchlings, under the age of 2, need the most care. They can't hunt or know to avoid consuming dirty substances, but can eat gifted meals and walk on their own for the most part. Hatchlings will follow their parents close behind. If no trusted adults are nearby, hatchlings will naturally group up together and (poorly) attempt to sustain their needs by themselves.
Unique personalities are nearly nonexistant at this point, appearing as replicas of whoever is interacting with them at the moment. A hatchling that copies an adult's sass will immediately replace it with another's trait as soon as that adult stops interacting with them. Traits can be learned if special care is put into teaching them, but they will often forget before the day's end.
Children
Saikklets begin to act more independent, though still heavily rely on adults. They begin hunting easy targets on their own—such as insects and eggs—but aren't able to reliably sustain themselves on these. This time period is especially important for personalities to develop. Saikklets will begin gaining consciousness early on, starting to branch off from the personalities of adults and other children around them.
Teens are essentially smaller, more sensitive adults, marked by the beginning of puberty between the ages of 9 and 14. Though the body is nearing the end of its growth, the brain is still in heavy development. Teens often struggle with impulsivity and discernment, especially during the individual's breeding season. The newly strong hormones can quickly cloud the mind, especially of younger teens.
Adulthood
Saikkots reach adulthood between the ages of 18 and 24. The brain has finished its childhood growth, slowing down to a pace more for memory and adaptation to what life throws towards them. This period of life is typically considered their prime, as their body is just as strong as it was in childhood, but with a mind more fit for clarity and judgement.
Adults begin showing signs of old age around 36. Their metabolism slows down, and weight is gained much easier. Wounds take longer to heal, as scales take longer to grow back. The brain may begin having troubles, similar to a teen's mind but without the energy. They may struggle with adapting to change. Saikkots are considered elders when their mind and body have grown weak, and no matter how much they fight it, they can't return to the healthiness of their youth.
Ecology and Habitats
Saikkots thrive best in hot climates with a wet season and a dry season. They are highly sensitive to the cold, finding it much harder to survive in cooler environments than humans. Some groups are more adapted to wetter climates, struggling in drier climates such as deserts. Conversely, some groups that have adapted to arid climates will struggle with high humidities.
Dietary Needs and Habits
Saikkots are mesocarnivores, requiring half of their daily intake to be meat. They typically prefer seafood over poultry and eggs, but prefer both over red meat. The rest of their diet consists of a more balanced mix between fruits, vegetables, and grains. Saikkots do not drink any form of dairy, as they can't digest it properly and usually find it distasteful.
Additional Information
Social Structure
Saikkots typically live alone or in smaller familial groups of 2-10 people. These families are then parts of the larger clan groups, which can reach many hundreds in numbers. They require less social interaction then humans, and so usually only meet up once a week. Leading members, or those who feel a higher importance in the clan, will usually meet up more often or directly live together in larger villages.
Facial characteristics
Faces are mostly flat, with strong definition around the eye sockets. Their snout is wider than long, with small cheeks aside the corners of the mouth providing more for communication than feeding use. Saikkot eyes cannot rotate like human eyes can. Instead, they use their extended snake-like neck to rotate their entire head.
Geographic Origin and Distribution
Found across the globe, saikkots are an ever-expanding species. The only locations they won't typically be found in are the colder biomes as they are incredibly sensitive to colder temperatures.
Average Intelligence
Saikkots are as conscious, sentient, and sapient as humans are. This intelligence allows them to evolve a society, continously advancing in technology and shared knowledge.
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
With well-rounded senses, saikkots are excellent predators. Their exceptional hearing is mostly caused by the way their frills twist around the back of their head, directing sound to their otherwise weak, inlaid ears. Although their front-facing eyes prevent them from having a wide range of sight, they can focus and distinguish different objects very easily. Their pupils change shape to allow certain amounts of light in, appearing as slits in the light and circles in the dark.
Their sense of taste is much stronger than their nose's sense of smell. They can taste even weak scents in the air by lightly opening their mouth, but require their nose to be nearly on top of the object to smell it. Capsaicin is the exception—their noses are extremely sensitive to the spiciness, making it easy to find the food with the compound in it. They digest the capsaicin into their blood stream, helping to balance their body and provide venom for their stinger.
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