Monochrow

Artwork

**Monochrow** (*Megacorvus malignus*) are an original species designed by User:TheAgent41. Monochrow inhabit the *Meta Monsters* universe.

## Appearance and anatomy

Monochrow are the largest known corvids, standing just over seven feet in height when fully grown. Adults can weigh as much as 250 pounds. However, despite this immense weight, they are capable of flying for a few minutes at a time thanks to their ability to control air currents to an extent. Nearly half of an adult Monochrow's height is made up of its neck, which can stretch over three feet in length.

Monochrow are covered in black feathers, each approximately seven inches in length (although this varies slightly). The exceptions are their faces and several white stripes, two on their neck and one on their tail train. Their faces are covered with very short white feathers aside from small black markings around their eyes and a black pattern below their beaks resembling the painted lips of a mime. Monochrow have large "manes" of black feathers surrounding their circular faces.

The feathers on the Monochrow torso are exceedingly long, sometimes having lengths in excess of four feet. This creates a robe-like appearance, obscuring their thin but powerful legs. These legs are covered in white scales, and their feet have three toes pointing forward and one pointing backward. Each toe ends in a large black talon measuring at least three inches in length. Monochrow generally hold their wings in front of their bodies rather than at their sides.

Monochrow chicks, known as Blackrow, stand approximately two feet in height and weigh approximately 35 pounds. They lack the smile-like markings on their faces. Unlike their older forms, Blackrow have large yellow eyes with unusual yellow pupils. These large eyes are surrounded by large black eyespots, creating the illusion of yellow lights inside large hollow sockets. This may help them to frighten away predators.

## Behavior and ecology

### Diet

Monochrow are exclusively carnivorous. While they do hunt small game such as newborn Frillabong on occasion, they are mainly scavengers, frightening away predators with new kills and taking the spoils for themselves. Being unable to chew, Monochrow use their powerful beak muscles to rip off chunks of flesh from carcasses and swallow them whole. Monochrow have two stomachs, one to digest flesh and one to digest normally indigestible things like hair and bones. When the meat of a meal has been digested, the remaining bits (the aforementioned hair, bones, etc.) exit the first stomach and enter a more powerful stomach that manages to break these things down. Some meat that Monochrow consume is stored in a special organ and regurgitated into their Blackrow's mouth later on.

### Behavior and intelligence

Monochrow are fairly intelligent. They are seemingly aware of their unnerving appearances, often knowingly using them in frightening away predators or other Monochrow. By flexing muscles in their faces, Monochrow are capable of turning their "smiles" into "frowns", heightening the uncanny valley-nature of their facial markings.

Monochrow are fairly territorial towards humans. Although their flying abilities are limited, they can leap surprisingly far distances, using this ability to startle those intruding on their territories. Monochrow live in pairs and mate for life. Both parents help in raising the Blackrow chick, although the female inevitably does most of the feeding. The male spends most of his time patrolling the nest and driving away potential predators eyeing his chick.

### Reproduction

Monochrow mating season begins in early March and ends in early April. Bachelor males will attempt to woo potential mates by flexing their facial muscles in ways that allow them to contort the appearance of their "smiles". Just as intruders find their countenances off-putting, females appear to find them attractive. The creepier a Monochrow can make their face look, the more likely they are to seduce a female. Females usually lay one egg at a time, although rare cases of twins have been recorded.

It was once thought that Monochrow kidnapped children in order to magically transform them into Blackrow. This rumor started because of the apparent correlation between the frequency of missing children cases and the frequency of Blackrow hatchings. Modern observations have since disproven this. While Monochrow have been known to lure children into the woods, they actually do this to decorate their nests with bones. Still, the frequency of child kidnappings by Monochrow are still exaggerated; most Monochrow nests that have been observed are decorated with the bones of other animals.

## Trivia

* In the *Meta Monsters* universe, Scruffether are Shadow/Air-type Meta Monsters and are No. 113 in the Encyclopedia. Their Encyclopedia entries read as such: "Monochrow have been known to attempt to kidnap children and lead them into the woods to their nest. Those who go with them seldom return."
* A group of Monochrow, due to their dark magic-related reputations, is called a "Changeling".