#pterosimians

#Pterosimians #WingedMonkeys These support a membrane that runs from the tips of the outer fingers to the hips, not unlike the reptilian pterodactyls of Earth's distant past. Pterosimians have long, finned tails that serve to stabilize and steer during flight. Many species, such as the large White-Kneed Pterosimian pictured here (Pterosimius robustus), have brightly-colored coats that serve to differentiate between members of different species. At ten pounds, the White-Kneed Pterosimian is the second heaviest species, preferring to fly only when absolutely necessary. Smaller species, such as the Golden Dove-Tail (Pterosimius gracilis) and the Green Mariposa (Dermodactylus mariposa), are much more agile flyers. The ape-like Aborigens of the forest floor, which are believed to be distantly related to the Pterosimians, call the Pterosimians "Winged Healers" or "Healers of the Air." At first human linguists dismissed the literal truth behind these names; the gentle and supposedly simple Aborigens had similarly nice, positive names for most forest creatures, even the deadly fan-tigers ("Evening Singers" to the Aborigens, alluding to the predators' sunset mating roars). However, scientific research of the giant trees and the Pterosimians changed these thoughts. The trees' leaves, which are far out of reach for ground dwellers such as Aborigens, contain a variety of unusual compounds and minerals that, when processed by a Pterosimian digestive system, form a product remarkably similar to penicillin. For perhaps thousands of years the Aborigens have been using Pterosimian droppings to cure illnesses and infections. This, along with the discovery of advanced ruins and artifacts in the deep forests, have caused researches to reassess the intelligence of the Aborigen race.

#Pterosimians #WingedMonkeys The Pterosimian Pequeño Verde (Spanish for "Little Green") is a small, moist world roughly five sixths of Earth's size, with correspondingly lower gravity. It's atmosphere is thicker and heavier than Earth's, with higher levels of oxygen and carbon dioxide. These conditions allow organisms to exist that would never be able to survive on Earth. The lifeforms of Pequeño Verde's equitorial forests exemplify this dramatically. Here, árbolisimo trees grow half again as tall as earthly Sequoias, and twice as thick in the trunk. They tower hundreds of feet above the smaller trees of the jungle, and support unique ecosystems unlike any others in all the cataloged worlds. Many tree-dwellers spend their entire lives in a single tree, which can be separated from the nearest arbolisimo by several miles. Distinct subspecies of certain arthropods are often endemic to single trees. The trees' thick barks also support a fascinating ecosystem of bark-borers and burrowers, and their predators. Of course, in addition to species that never leave their trees, several species have evolved that travel between trees, often never coming in contact with the ground during the course of their travels. The best known of these, most likely, are the half-dozen or so species of pterosimians (literally, "winged monkeys"). Primate-like mammals, pterosimians have adapted to both a climbing and flying lifestyle. The first three fingers of their forelimbs have evolved into grasping structures, complete with opposable thumbs, while the two outermost fingers of each hand have fused and grown as long as the creature's head and torso.