#pesthries

[enbyartblog]

Pesthries

Part 1

Pestheries are the largest mammal on Gethen, bar humans. They are sought after for their warm, weatherproof fur and are also used for their meat and eggs. An adult pesthry averages 40cm/15.7" from nose to tail tip, and their colouration ranges between solid white and an appearance of solid grey. A pesthries fur is always white at the base, with only the distal half of the hairs being pigmented.

With no natural predators, the pesthry is ubiquitous. As with all life on Gethen, its fight for survival is against the harsh climate. The abundance of the pesthry is a testment to its array of adaptations against the cold.

The body is stocky and compact, and fat reserves are retained around the neck which are vital for survival come winter. The ruff provides extra insulation for the pesthry to huddle into but will also be called upon for energy reserves if food is scarce.

The wide splay of their paws enable the pesthry to walk easily on even loose snow. The sharp claws are necessary to break through ice and dig into compacted snow for foraging and den maintenance. The paw pads are incredibly tough and leathery, as well as dark to minimise heat loss and cold burns.

The pesthry feeds on most vegetation it can find but nuts, seeds and berries are especially valuable for their high energy or high fat content. It possesses powerful molars to grind the toughest, weather-hardy plants into something digestible. The inscisors are pointed, to assist in breaking through ice and tearing tough bark. The insciors of males are longer, and they will use them in mating season to deter other males away from their chosen female.

Pesthries are solitary, not requiring saftey in numbers due to lack of predators. Keeping resources to theselves is a more valuable way of life in such harsh climates. Only during mating season will they pair, and support each other for up to two months.

[inspiration from Terran mammals under the cut]

Pesthries are described in the novel as ‘fox-like, ovivaparous herbivores’. An obvious basis for a smallish, herbivorous animal would be a rodent, but I felt ‘rodent’ would have been an easy and immediate descriptor that Genly would have used if this were the case. Instead, I have based the pesthry’s general form on a hyrax, giving a more pointed snout and bushy tail that would lead to Genly considering it to be fox-like. Then I just had to add a bunch of arctic mammal adaptations on top. As for breeding and genitlia, as this is an egg laying mammal the biology here would be similar to our monotremes - the echidna and platypus. The pesthry would have a cloaca, and lay round, soft shelled eggs. Pesthries Part 2 will be a sketch of the lifecycle, from nesting to weaning.