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| Sea Birds; complete with a bird whale...hopefully | |
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| Topic Started: Feb 26 2012, 01:02 PM (208 Views) | |
| trex841 | Feb 26 2012, 01:02 PM Post #1 |
Superhuman
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I think I have come up with a way for birds to get around the hard-shelled-eggs-preventing-them-from-occupying-whale-niches thing, and I created this "world" to show you guys. To start off, mass extinction, birds rule now, bla bla bla, you know how it goes. Anyway, the sea mammals are gone now, and in there place are creatures like gannet whale, to the point that there even descended from gannets, or at least from a Pelecaniforme. The only difference is that these animals have a very special gular pouch, one that is able to filter out water when catching fish, just like whale baleen. Now you can probably see where this is going. Creature gets larger, pouch can filter krill, but that doesn’t solve the egg problem. Here’s where that is explained. In my world, only one species of these birds has evolved whale size. And that’s only in the females. The males are still flying, meaning that this species evolved this kind of sexual dimorphism early on in their history. The 2 genders live 2 separate lives, males live like pelicans, and the females live like whales. It’s only during the breeding season that there world’s meet. They will meet in shallow waters, where the act is easier for both genders, after a long period of fat build up. The females will surface, fill there lungs, which are large, of course, given there life style, and then roll over onto there backs, leaving there bellies exposed. The males, who have been flying overhead, then swoop in, fighting amongst themselves for the right to mate. The winner is the male that successfully mounts and mates with the female. After that, neither male nor female will mate, thus showing why competition amongst males is so fierce. The male will stick as close as he can to the female for the next few days, until she flips back over, indicating that she is ready to lay her eggs. The male will land on her belly and scoops up the eggs, which are small for a creature so big, in his pouch. He will then transport the eggs to the on shore nest he has prepared and incubate them himself. A typical brood usually consists of one female and the rest are males. After the eggs hatch, the young will continue to develop until their waterproof coats form, which doesn’t take long. The male will transport the females back to the water, where the female has been waiting, and their paths split once more. The female will take care of the daughter and the male will take care of the sons. Well that’s about it. Sorry if it looks a bit haphazard. Please tell me what you think; Questions concerns and ideas are all welcome. |
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| JohnFaa | Feb 26 2012, 02:21 PM Post #2 |
Adveho in mihi Lucifer
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The sexual dimorphism is a bit too extreme, but it is a good idea. Maybe the males don't need to be volant, just small enough to be able to go ashore and incubate the eggs. |
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| dragontunders | Feb 26 2012, 02:46 PM Post #3 |
Adult
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I thought once in a type of seabird that could lay their eggs on land, even if they could not return. The technique used by the female to lay eggs on land is to get the most Cerano to the coast without being barada, then, using a modified sewer to extend several meters to near the safe area. Then he puts the eggs quickly. |
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| trex841 | Feb 26 2012, 02:59 PM Post #4 |
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Superhuman
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johnfaa: could the male get on the belly? i'm assuming underwater transfer is to risky. dragontunders: um...i'm sorry , i can't tell what your saying. could you post it in...Salvadoran so john could translate, please. i'm bad with other languages, i'm sorry. |
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| JohnFaa | Feb 26 2012, 03:13 PM Post #5 |
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Adveho in mihi Lucifer
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One way to maximise the survival chances of the young could be the male having a cloacal pouch where the female lays the egg. The pouch itself, filled with oxygen deposited by blood vessels, could sustain the egg long enough to be deposited on land...or actually be kept permanently by the male until it hatches. |
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| trex841 | Feb 26 2012, 03:21 PM Post #6 |
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Superhuman
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well i had them lay a smaller brood, 1 female and a few males, but now i'm not 100% possitive. do you think that the gular pouch could do all that? the idea is that they don't eat during this time, to protect the offspring. |
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| dragontunders | Feb 26 2012, 03:53 PM Post #7 |
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Adult
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perdone si no lo entendio, soy malo aun con el ingles yo pense una vez en un tipo de ave marina que podia poner sus huevos en tierra, incluso si no podian volver. La tecnica que usa la hembra para poner los huevos en tierra es de ponerse lo mas cerano a la costa sin quedar barada, en ese momento, utiliza una cloaca modificada para que se extienda varios metros hasta acercarse a la zona segura. Luego pone los huevos rapidamente. |
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| jasonguppy | Feb 26 2012, 04:49 PM Post #8 |
Überdino
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I like the idea, but i share John's concerns. Also, how would the males ensure that another male wouldn't come and steal and break the eggs? Pelicaniformes already steal fish, so why not eggs? |
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| jasonguppy | Feb 26 2012, 04:51 PM Post #9 |
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Überdino
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I like the idea, but i share John's concerns. Also, how would the males ensure that another male wouldn't come and steal and break the eggs? Pelicaniformes already steal fish, so why not eggs? |
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| trex841 | Feb 26 2012, 04:57 PM Post #10 |
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Superhuman
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i'm going to say instinct to not risk the safety of the next generation. |
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