The Nuranaian Sandbeast is a ferocious carnivore known for it's ambushes from underneath the sand. It resides in the region, and is also a cultural 'mascot' for the city of Isunaran.
Description[]
A large quadreped, it is sleek and aerodynamic to allow for quick burrowing. It has a small face, and a cone shaped bodily structure. It's front claws are very large, but front legs very small. The back legs are far larger to allow for pushing off from the tunnel it leaves behind to gain speed, and it has virtually no tail. It is of a sandy yellow or light beige color, with darker spots sprinkled on it's hide, for camoflauge purposes. It's small mouth packs two sets of 46 teeth, seperated into three sub-divisions; 20 'calors', for attacking and slicing, in the front. 16 'nurals' for chewing and squishing flesh in the mouth, and 10 'gunars' for crushing bone and making it into edible chunks. It's claws are also seperated into two divisions, the 'dilers' for actually digging, which are short and broad, and the 'cular' for actually killing another animal, long and sharp.
Behavior[]
The Nuranaian Sandbeast is a very hostile animal. They mark their territory with a 'boundary' of tunnels covered in excrement, to mark their scent. Inside this boundary, they can make as many tunnels and catch as much prey as they so wish. No one is sure how they can sense the boundaries at any depth, but they can. To gain more territory, they engage in a 'duel' with another Sandbeast, where they dig in straight lines in the opponent's territory. The goal is to make the opponent enter one of their tunnels on accident, and catch them and maul them to death. Afterwards, inexplicably, all other Sandbeasts note the defeated Sandbeast's territory as the victors, even if they had no way of knowing this.
Breeding[]
Sandbeasts have an intricate breeding ritual, where the females create a maze of tunnels, and the males must hunt the female through the female's own maze. If they successfully catch the female, they have earned breeding rights. Multiple males may hunt in the same female's tunnel, all searching one girl to win. The males occasionally use methods of breaking tunnels behind them to try to keep their quarry in a smaller area.
In Culture[]
The Nuranaian Sandbeast is regarded as the mascot of the city of Isunaran, for Isunaran is built in the tunnels of a massive Sandbeast of long ago, named Tunarak, which was tamed by the hero of Isunaran, Hinalan. They have statues and merchandise based around the animal, and revere it as a sacred beast, which protects their city. Interestingly enough, Isunarans seem to have an immunity to Sandbeast attacks. There has never been a reported case of an Isunaran being attacked by a Sandbeast, but a few cases of tamed Sandbeasts.
Status[]
Many lobbyists argue the Sandbeast is too dangerous an animal to keep in the wild, for barely anyone can make it across Sandbeast territories, which are impossible to note above ground, without getting killed, except for Isunarans. These lobbyists say that Sandbeasts should be domesticated, and put into reserves, and paths plotted around them. The defenders of the Sandbeast note the immense cost of these project, and validity of the lobbyists statements. So far, 5 bills have been put through Isunaran congress, and all have failed. The status of the Sandbeasts is most likely safe, but none are sure of the outcomes.