Humora

**Humora** is a class of mesothermic, amniotic synapsids. While similar to mammals, Humorans are distinguished by their single middle ear bone, their lesser metabolic control of temperature, their hermaphroditism, and their external hatching of eggs. Humorans are also incapable of growing hair, although many species can develop analogous pilus structures that are composed primarily of rubber. Humorans have a cosmopolitan distribution, being found on every continent and in every ocean, as well as in most major lakes and seas. While rare, some Humorans have developed flight.

The class Humora includes multiple orders, notably *Clouradates* and *Therocephalia*, which vary widely in anatomy, evolutionary strategy, lifespan, and appearance.

## History

The class *Humora* first emerged in the Permian Period, with the earliest known fossils being found in northeastern Cimmeria. These early species had muscular legs which were well adapted to long-distance movement and narrow jaws equipped with sharp teeth, suggesting a scavenging lifestyle. These specimens are notable for their large braincases, with one species possessing an interior-skull volume nearly one-and-a-half times larger than the cosynchronius synapsid *Moschorhinus kitchingi.* The smaller members of the class evidently survived the Permian-Triassic extinction event, but little archaeological evidence from that time remains; by the middle Triassic Period, megafaunic Humorans had once again developed. Their strong paws and sharp talons suggest the usage of kicking for self-defense, or during confrontations over food. By the Jurassic Period, Humorans could be found over the majority of Laurasia, with a lesser (although still sizable) number of species being found on Gondwana.

## Anatomy

While structurally diverse, all Humorans are amniotes with a bilateral, segmental, triploblastic construction: all Humorans develop from fully encased ovum, have bodily segments (head, cervix, thorax, abdomen, and legs), and are centered around an alimentary canal. The majority of Humoran genera are tetropedal, however many orders, such as *Clourodates*, are primarily or entirely composed of bipedal species.

All Humorans have bodily cavities, most frequently three: nasocranial, oropulmonary, and thoracicervicoabdominal. The nasocranial cavity is mainly involved in reproduction in most species, but also plays important roles in circulation of bodily fluids. The oropulmonary cavity consists of a mouth-like oral cavity, where food is masticated and then promptly digested, and a pharynx, which opens into the lafynx and leads eventually to the Humoran's lungs (generally either two or four). The thoracicervicoabdominal cavity is a single, undivided cavity that contains the diaphragm, the heart, the alimentary canal, and other organs. The thoracicervicoabdominal cavity is separated from the oropulmonary cavity by a sheet called the *fascia pulmorisus*. This thick membrane connects the the ribs and plays an important role in thoracic contractions during egg-laying and breathing.

### Reproduction

All Humorans have two sets of reproductive organs. A seminal tract, frequently (but not always) located in the nasal cavity, produces and expulses sperm during reproduction. Sperm is captured in the porous outer layer of Humoran skin, from which it makes its way to the second set of reproductive organs, consisting of a uterus and ovaries. The Humoran ovum is then fertilized, and expulsed from the body in a process known as "oviposition".

While a high degree of variability can exist in this process, certain features of this reproductive cycle are always consistent:

1. Humoran sperm is always emitted externally, often as an aerosal, and is never delivered directly into the mate.
2. Fertilization of ovum is always internal.
3. Eggs are always laid and left to hatch externally; no Humorans are known to give live birth.