Azdasnatch

The Azdasnatch split from its ancestor. It moved towards the watersheds, adopting a piscivorous lifestyle. Becoming more dependent on its lateral mandibles than on its actual lower jaw to bite prey, it has a fantastically large overbite, only using its upper and lateral jaws to bite prey and its lower jaw being reduced to only being used to lick or swallow. It has ceased hopping as an adult, preferring an alternating gait, though juveniles are still very good jumpers. In adulthood, the 2nd and 4th tibiae shorten while the 1st and 3rd lengthen, granting better leverage while walking, while juveniles retain flea-like legs for jumping from danger or onto their mother’s back. In order to more easily jump onto their mother’s back, baby Azdasnatches are already completely bilateral at birth.

As its name suggests, the Azdasnatch catches its prey by snatching them straight out of the water. It will either stand at the edge of the water or wade in the shallows to do so. Though its feet aren’t especially webbed, they are nonetheless large enough to support it on sand or gravel, though it will sink in mud. When it spots prey, its lateral mandibles will thrust forwards and hopefully nab the prey, which it will then pull against its upper jaw. Its teeth and lateral mandible spikes, though not perfect, are relatively conical and slightly swept back, so struggling prey will not easily escape its grip once caught. It will sometimes dive into the water after prey if it doesn’t catch it right away, as its piscivory adaptations are still mostly limited to its dentition and its chances of catching anything otherwise are rather low. If it falls into deep water, it will swim back to shore by undulating its tail side to side, unlike most stinzers which swim with an up-down motion. This is in part because its torso is rather stiff and the tail is optimized for side-side motion when walking. When fish-like prey are not available, it may also consume amphibious creatures as well.

The Azdasnatch’s saddle is no longer a single plate, though the “rim” remains thick. The saddle will flush a slightly violet hue with blood as a health indicator when choosing mates, though it is less visible than before due to darker countershading pigmentation. Outside of mate selection, the saddle still serves the same purpose of carrying their young, though while both parents have the saddle only one will carry their babies at a time. Like its ancestor, the Azdasnatch mates by mounting.