Skern | |||
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Naming | |||
Binomen | N/A | ||
Morphology | |||
Body type | Avian | ||
Intelligence | |||
Sentience | Sentient | ||
Sapience | Non-Sapient | ||
Ecology | |||
Place of origin | Southern Ocean | ||
Habitat | Volcanic islands | ||
Diet | Piscivore | ||
Locomotion | Crawling Swimming | ||
Behind the Scenes | |||
Universe | After Man | ||
Created by | Dougal Dixon | ||
Designed by | Dougal Dixon |
The Skern is a wingless oceanic bird species which inhabits the world of 50 million years in the future. They can mostly be found in the seas surrounding the small volcanic islands which are scattered through the Southern Ocean.
Biology[]
Unlike penguins, Skerns cannot walk bipedally, instead using their feet to awkwardly crawl on land. Naturally, they are far more agile underwater, as they propel themselves with their large membranous feet and hunt for fish. Their bodies are covered in oily-green plumage.
Most notably, Skerns are characterized by their curious parental behavior. Rather than incubating their eggs like most birds, they head towards volcanic islands just when the volcanoes start showing signs of activity. Probing the sand with their temperature-sensitive beaks, they find the spots where the soil is sufficiently warm and then bury the eggs circa ten to twenty centimeters deep, leaving the area soon afterwards. After hatching, the young Skerns need to survive on their own.
Appearances[]
- After Man: A Zoology of the Future, by Dougal Dixon (1981)
Notes[]
- This is one of the few species featured in the book which is not given a scientific name by the author.