Protosmilidae

**Protosmilidae** (meaning **"primitive fang"**) also known by their common name "saw-birbs" are the most primitive and basal family of the Ornithosmilid order. Even if they are the basal-most family, they show great diversity, with multiple tribes and a great number of species.

They all have the basal ornithosmilid condition, with large main wings, four smaller winglets, a long tail and normally sport crests on the head, on the back and a tail fluke commonly for sexual displays or species recognition.

This grouping includes the basal, but highly succesful and resourceful saw-birbs (ornithosmilini). The nectivorous and frugivorous iridescent ivisbans (pictatrichini). And the large marine fish eating skywatchers (lumenspeculini).

Currently this are the most widespread group, with some species even reaching as far as terra septentrionis, tenebris and even in the case or Spectavolans melanomaximus, they have even reached occidentis. They are very colorful, versatile and highly adaptable to multiple types of diets. They are the quintessential ornithosmilid.

## **Ornithosmilinae**

The ornithosmilinae subfamily has what would be known as the quintessential "saw-birb". This subfamily includes two known genera, Ornithosmilus and Protosmilus. This birbs are generalistic, have wide ranges, and are amongst the most succesful species. They have somewhat primitive child rearing behavior, atleast in comparison to other more derived groups.

This subfamily includes the first species of ornithosmilid ever found. *The bi-colored sawbirb***.**

#### **The bi-colored sawbirb**

(Ornithosmilus diplochromas) is one of the most well known species of ornithosmilid. It is strange in comparison to other ornithosmilid species because of its very marked sexual dimorphism. The males being almost twice size of the females and having showy crests. They have a weight range between 0.5 kg and 1.5kg, and their wingspan commonly reaches 45 cm with some males reaching a wingspan of around 60cm. They have a mostly omnivorous diet but they seem to be more piscivorous then other members of their tribe.

This animals have a sort of mating ritual, populations near bodies of water would fly over the water with their mates and copulate while flying. The females have their egg-sacks attached to themselves for around 2 weeks, afterwards the mother would detach the egg-sack and would build a small nest on a branch using mud, sticks and other materials. Both parents incubate the egg-sack until it hatches around a month later.

This species does very limited parental care, they have been seen just feeding the young for a couple of days before driving them away for them to fend for themselves. Their offspring then mostly are well developed, with powerful wings to move around and run. They tend to have around 3-5 babies per egg-sack.

The chicks grow quickly and by 2 months of growth they instinctively start to fly. It might take them around 2 or 3 months more for them to become sexually developed and start to get their crest colors.

#### **The green spectacled saw-birb**

(Ornithosmilus viridius) another very common species of ornithosmilids.

This animals have bright green plumage and brown wings. They have been seen eating animals off of large animals, commonly seen eating spurtlites off of large Gunnaluks. However this behavior seems to be mostly opportunistic, they arent completely envolved into a symbiotic relationship with the animals.

This have a diet that mostly is formed by insect like xenopedans and fruits and nuts from bone trees. They commonly weigh between 500 and 700 grams and they have a wingspan of 30 cm. This animals show very little sexual dimorphism, with males and females looking almost the same. Males only having more vibrant colors on their fins.

The males do very little parental care, they mate monogamically with a single female each wallacian year, but they partake on none of the parental care. Females have a period of "pregnancy" with their egg-sack for around 3 weeks. Their egg-sacks almost always have between 2 and 3 chicks.

Like O. diplochromas, they also do very little parental care, the females care for their chicks for around a week, and the very developed chicks would leave and live together for 2 months. Afterwards they would become volant instinctively and start their adult lives. Young adults commonly have a round crest that hasn't developed completely.

Once their crests have grown and their green pelt has developed, they would join groups of adults that live close to each other and start to find their life long mates.

#### **The spectacular blade birb**

(Ornithosmilus plexippus) a large, common species of saw birb in the tropics, it has a redish pelt of fur, a long muscular tail, and heavily adorned wings, it is the largest of the genus Ornithosmilus. This species has a much more carnivorous diet, still being largely an omnivore, but it is commonly seen catching small dispeculates and eating them with their serrated proboscis.

This species weighs around 1.5 kg and has a wingspang of 60 cm. This animals are highly territorial. Males spread their scent all over their territory so that other males don't come anywhere near them. The males tend to have around 2 to 4 females in a sort of harem, females lack the patterning in the wings and are usually smaller with a wingspan of around 50 cm.

The males never do any type of parental care, with females usually doing all the incubating of the egg-sack. The egg-sack itself only remains attached to the females for 2 weeks and the chicks usually hatch after 2 months. The chicks like the rest of its relatives, are very well developed, and abandon their parents after a few days. Most of the time the parents have 3 to 4 chicks per eggsac.

after 4 months a chick usually starts to develop adult coloration, and starts to develop become territorial if its a male, or starts to find a mate if its a female. females tend to live longer then males, males live around 3 or 4 earthan years, while females can last up to 6 years. This is due to all in fighting males tend to do, many die young before ever attaining a harem of their own.

### **Protosmilini and the Polar Saw-Birb**

Protosmilina is a tribe of Ornithosmilinae that includes a single genus, **Protosmilus polikus**. Previously known as Ornithosmilus polikus, also known as the Polar Saw-birb, it was reclassified due to changes in its anatomy that make it different to its relatives and the discovery that it was much more specialized than the other Saw-Birbs.
This animal is the most northern species, it can live all the way in the tundra of terra septentrionis, while most other saw-birbs simply cant go due to their intolerance of cold. Its also the largest of all the sawbirbs with a wingspan of 1 meter. The way this species manages to survive in such cold environments is by hibernating in enclosed burrows with others of its species. They have strong, muscly front limbs that they use to burrow themselves into while in the winter. A second adaptation that helps them to hibernate is their long fluffy tail that they wrap around them like a scarf. Due to the long tail they arent the best fliers, as such they are also some of the most terrestrial Saw-birbs, using all six of their limbs to walk on land.

Once winter is over they start to copulate and have many chicks.Even if they are highly social as adults, the parents show the same trend of all the other Ornithosmilines of not doing much parental care. The monogamous parents would care for the babies for around 2 or 3 weeks before driving them away for them to fend for themselves. Mortality is high up in these polar regions, so this species tends to have between 5 to 8 chicks.

    They have very heavy fur with two layers of insulation, this has lets them be able to survive in such environments. However they still have their many head crests and the back fins. These are used in sexual displays and interspecies recognition. However this crest commonly get damaged by frostbite, and you can see many older individuals with frostbite scars in them. Its likely they survive this due to their social behavior of hibernating communally. Thats why during most of the winter the crest of males and females stay relatively small, until summer is when they start to grow their crests once they shift into their summer coats. In the tundra summers they can affort to have large crests, which they use to show their sexual prowess to one another in sexual displays. Once winter starts again, the outer keratin layer of the crest falls off and they retain the smaller more beneficial crests during the colder months.

## **Pictatrichinae**

Pictatrichinae, commonly called ibisvans, are a subfamily of colorful iridescent birbs, reminiscent of hummingbirds, birds of paradise and corvids. These animals tend to be nectivorous and frugivorous, having a very different diet to their ornithosmiline relatives. Its common for them to eat seeds, mossgrass and in general are very herbivorous in nature.

#### **Great purple ibisvan**

    (Irisibis purpurachromas) is a large species of ibisvan that lives most of it lives in the trees. It has very bright purple coloration thats very iridescent, they also have bright magenta eyes and crests on their bodies.

This species and other species of ibisvans have their middle proboscis extended, with multiple bristles at the end of their proboscis, allowing them to pick nectar from inside flowers. This shows a great adaptation towards nectivory, however the other mouth parts remain very generic, allowing the animal to be able to exploit a nectivorous niche while also eating other types of food.

Both males and females show very little sexual dimorphism, females tend to be bigger and males tend to be slightly more slender. They both weigh between 1.5kgs

and 2kgs and while not the best fliers, they are excellent climbers. The males are polygamous, having many partners and helping each of the partners manage their parental care. A single male can have up to 6 to 8 mates. The females remain pregnant only for the first 3 weeks of the process, and the chicks may not hatch for up to 2 months more. By the time the chicks are born they are very well developed, though the parents will keep them for up to 2 weeks before driving them off.

#### **Rainbow Ibisvan**

    (Irydyopterix versichromas) also known as the lesser iridescent ibisvan, is a smaller relative of the greater purple ibisvan, with great adaptations towards nectivory. With a longer middle proboscis, and a

large throat pouch to store it. This animals while not as small as a hummingbird of earth, they fulfill a similar niche. This animals can weigh up to 400 to 500 grams. They have a wingspan of around 30cm. They live in groups in a similar manner to the purple ibisvan, with males having multiple female partners. They have similar child rearing behavior and the chicks also tend to be very well developed and leave their parents protection really early.

A great difference they have to the great purple ibisvan is that while the purple ibisvan has been seen tolerating juvenile chicks hanging around in their groups, the Rainbow Ibisvan actively drive them out of their territories. This behavior of driving away the younglings seems to be a way to spread the species. These animals are very widespread all over the tropical areas of Media insula, the behavior of driving away younglings may be the reason this animals are so widespread.

## **Lumenspeculinae**

Lumenspeculinae, commonly called skywatchers, are a group of seabird like animals that have the most widespread range of any ornithosmilid species. Their range covers mostly zones over water, but the members of the species can be found in coasts all over the world. They are largely piscivorous, eating mostly small fish like dispeculates.

#### **The morning skywatcher**

    (Lumenspeculas maritimus) a seagull like birb that lives everywhere in the eastern oceans. It weighs around 1.75 kg and it has a wingspan of 1.5 meters long. It is a large birb with white fur and dark upper part of the wings and lighter underpart of the wings.

This species is very widespread, it is an exclusive piscivore and almost always consumes fish like dispeculates. Its strategy of catching its food is "pierce and saw". They pierce the fish with their two sharp side proboscis and then proceed to use their large exaggerated beak to saw the fish into smaller sizes they can eat whole.

Due to their marine environment they tend to consume a lot of salt while eating their prey or drinking water. They have two salt secreting glands at the side of their nostrils for this very reason. This helps the animal not consume too much salt. Allowing them to safely consume ocean water allowing them to live above the oceans indefinitely.

This animals are gregarious by nature, living in large groups near cliffs. They may have the biggest gestation period of any type of flying birb, with a one or two large chicks living inside the egg-sack. The eggsack may stay attached for up to 5 months. The heavy chicks make the female of the species too heavy to fly, making them mostly stuck in the colonies. This is where the males come in. The males help bring food for the female in the later stages of her pregnancy, so that she remains healthy while being stuck in the ground.

Once the egg-sack detaches, the chicks will hatch in about a day or two. This helps the parents by not having to build nests or anything of the sort, since the chicks hatch quickly after the egg-sack is detached. Once the pair of chicks hatch they are very well developed. Mostly stuck in the ground, they will be taught how to fly and even fish. Out of all of Protosmilida, the lumenspeculines do the most parental care, since their niche demands it. A chick without a parent is very unlikely to reach adulthood.

#### **The black corvette birb**

(Spectavolans melanomaximus), also known as the corvette skywatcher, is currently the biggest flying species of ornithosmilid known. With a weight of 5.5kg to almost 7kg and a wingspan of 3.2 meters and some exceptionally big individuals reaching up to 3.5 meter wingspan, these animals are very large fliers. They fill a niche similar to the frigate birds of earth. This species can be found around the globe, from media insula to occidentis.

This animals have a strategy of "grab and swallow" when hunting their prey. Their proboscis and beak are designed to be able to quickly grab prey at the tips and quickly swallow it whole. The middle proboscis has an almost sickle like shape, this allows the animal to quickly pierce and dispatch of its prey.

They share much of the same parental behavior with the morning skywatcher. They also have an elongated

gestation period and males tend to give females meals to help them with the process. But while the morning skywatchers only do so with their monogamous partners, the black corvette birb males will give food to all of the females in the colony. This allows the survival of the colony as a whole instead of just the individuals.

The corvette birb has the largest distribution of any known birb, having stablished colonies in almost every continent. They are currently the only birbs to have an established colony on the coasts of Occidentis. However in the past it seems they were not alone, with the species Leptodon pachypterix being very widespread over Occidentis in the past, before an unfortunate series of events led to them being extinct in the area. Now the Corvette birb is the only birb in the area, maybe in the near future other species are able to colonize Occidentis and the other western continents.

## **Opportunistic tendencies and their success**

Protosmilines, even if they retain the basal condition of their clade, have been incredibly successful. With multiple clades that are well known with a large variety in niches and body plans. This is due to their very opportunistic nature.

These animals seem to have been ancestrally, small, omnivorous, and quite adaptable. The Ornithosmilini tribe seems to be the closest to what may be the basal condition to Protosmilidae and may be the closest in body shape to the ancestral Ornithosmilid common ancestor. And even being quite primitive or basal in body shape, they seem to have the biggest success. They have a myriad of species that live all over Media Insula and some even in Terra septentrionis.

Even in more derived tribes such as with the Pictatrichines or the Lumenspeculines they remain quite opportunistic. This apparent malleability in their body plan is probably what has allowed them to have such a large success. Its likely more species from this particular subfamily will be found that may be even more derived. In time its probable there will be more species to add to our data base.