Aerog Races

Unlike humans who have 4 (australoid, caucasoid, mongoloid, and negroid) recognized major race classifications, aerog have 3 (aquaoid, equatoroid, and plainoid).  They can be further divided into roughly 14 main ethnic groups based on location, and these can be even further defined into sub-groups.  Due to the size of the planet, amount of land, and ability to fly, aerog have less distinct ethnic groups than humans as there was - and is - more contact between populations.

Major Race Classifications

**Aquaoid**
- *Location*:  northern end of the planet along the coasts; very humid, windy environment
- *Appearance*:  distinctive counter-shading pattern; high aspect ratio wings; pointed faces with narrow eyes and short to medium length, straight horns
- *Description*:  Aquaoids spent most of their life living off the ocean of Nea.  They traditionally lived along coasts with high cliffs where they could easily become airborne by simply leaping off the side.  Their wings are long and narrow to handle the high speed winds in these areas, and they have the slowest flight of the three races.  To catch fish analogues, their hands are highly textured with long, razor sharp talons.  Aquaoids have a very distinct counter-shading pattern to help camouflage themselves while out hunting.  The ocean is a highly biologically active place, and there are numerous predators both in the waters and above it.

**Equatoroid**
- *Location*:  along the equator of the planet; mountainous, arid, deserts
- *Appearance*:  darker colored counter-shading; medium aspect ratio wings; broader faces and eyes with medium to long, highly curved horns; shortest on average
- *Description*:  Adapted to the mountainous equator, equatoroids tend to be on the shorter side with medium aspect wings that allow them to easily soar between mountains and take advantage of the thermals coming off the deserts in between.  They have curved horns that permit them to watch behind themselves to help with maneuvering between rocky outcroppings.   The equator tends to be less rich in flora than the other regions due to the scarcity of water, which also led to the smaller on average size of equatoroids.  Like aquaoids, they have predators both above and below them, so they have noticeable counter-shading.  However, they tend to be much darker on average than aquaoids.

**Plainoid**
- *Location*:  southern end of the planet; varied environment but flatter in elevation
- *Appearance*:  lighter colored, little counter-shading; medium aspect ratio wings; narrow faces with broad eyes and long, straight horns; tallest on average
- *Description*:  The southern plains were the birthplace of the aerog species.  There is plenty of food available, leading to their large size, which also helped them to deal with the numerous predators in the area.  In general, they tend to have more aggressive personalities as they would more often than not confront their predators - more of a fight than flight response unlike the other two.\*  The traditional family pack developed out of this response.  They have medium aspect wings and powerful legs to help them take off from the ground.  Because of the type of environment they're in, there is less of a need for counter-shading, so they have just the faintest bit that became more pronounced as the species migrated to the northern end of the planet.