Pteresus Info

Lifespan: 60-90 years

Classification: pegasus         Function: flighted cavalry

Best Suited To: messenger

History: Thought to be a scientific hybrid from an extinct winged saurian and a common horse, its true origins are unknown.

Height:  MALE  17hh            FEMALE 19 hh

Weight: MALE   800 lbs        FEMALE 1200 lbs

Build: stocky, somewhat heavy draft look, but slim legs and sleek, aerodynamic body. Pteresi have powerful wings; one downward snap gets them nearly twenty feet into the air.
Pelt: any sort of reptile, from lizard, to snake, to turtle

Head: slim, cat-like nose and mouth, long equine face. Large 'horn' crest swooping backwards from the head that's connected to the nasal passage. Pteresus use this to call to one another in the air, the sound a high-pitched hollow elk call. Mating pteresi sound like caterwauling and are generally avoided.

Eyes: reptilian; colored eyes with a slit pupil

Feet: sharp hooves with thick frogs to enable traction for takeoff and landing. Small heelspurs for mock-fighting/mating displays.

Tail: highly muscled, built like a saurian, rather inflexible, but stiff. Often acts as a rudder for the wings.

Conformation: heavy-looking body, but surprisingly light built. Wings are enormous and the membrane is fully stretchable, enabling a lot of agile movement in the air. Very elegant and graceful on land or the air.

First Impressions: winged horsepower

Disposition: calm, steady if domesticated and highly affectionate. Wild pteresi are more wary and would rather take flight than fight. 

 

Restrictions: through Realm-of-Cecatl and/or DragonPud
Price: 700 sb or 400 for a custom
or wait for raffles/auctions (will only do these if I get enough interest)

Female pteresus are highly picky about who they mate with. Nearly anything can be a reason to reject a suitor, from color, to weight, to wingspan to scars, or no scarring. Cock fighting is a common way to impress a mare, though even that can bore the mare if she isn't interested. Unlike most animals, there is no set mating season or 'in heat' for a pteresus. With the mare being a good 2-300 lbs heavier than any male, its unlikely she'll accept any advances she's not interested in.

Once a stallion impresses a mare, he must continue to keep her attentions. Stallions often hoard things during this time, offering bits and baubles to their chosen mate to keep her interested. Once she is thoroughly impressed, however, the mare will remain with her choice for the entire gestation.

Pteresus can throw up to three foals at a time. They are born hairless, solid white with no markings. The wings are tiny compared to their body mass. The stallion is then responsible for caring for the offspring, leading the small family to safe areas, though the dam is who teaches them to fly and to forage.

After three years, the foals are considered young adults and often will wander off on their own, either forming herds or remaining loners. Pteresus herds are uncommon, and relatively small, with any number of stallions and/or mares. Both genders bicker at one another, not just stallion-to-stallion. The hoots of a pteresus doesn't echo strangely, much like the quack of a duck, though if they wish it, it can carry for nearly a mile.

Energy Level:                                        3/5      

Exercise Requirements:                        2/5      

Playfulness:                                          4/5      

Affection:                                              5/5      

Friendliness toward other horses:        3/5     

Friendliness toward other animals:      3/5     

Friendliness toward strangers:             2/5     

Ease of Training:                                   1/5     

Watchdog Ability:                                   2/5     

Protectiveness/Ability to Protect:        1/5     

Grooming Requirements:                      2/5     

Cold Tolerance:                                     2/5     

Heat Tolerance:                                    3/5