| Index | ||
| Prologue | ||
| The Roper Report | ||
| Introduction | ||
| Section 1 | ||
| Section 2 | ||
| Section 3 | ||
| Section 4 | ||
| Section 5 | ||
| Section 6 | ||
| Section 7 | ||
| Section 8 | ||
| Section 9 | ||
| Section 10 | ||
| Appendix A | ||
| Appendix B | ||
| Perry's Tale | ||
| Pictorial Record | ||
Wlko Physiology
Sec.2.1 Standing upright, the largest males are around 200 cm. tall, females slightly smaller and more lightly built. The animals commonly "sit on their haunches", like quadrupedal felids, as well as lie down, either sphinx-like or, quite often, prop themselves up on their elbows with their legs out to one side. Their appearance is graceful and pleasing in all postures.
Sec.2.2 Anthropomorphic, sentient (both sexes). Digitigrade; feet with four digits; heavy, non-retractile claws; hands with three fingers and opposable thumb, with continually-growing retractile claws on all four digits. Capable of impressive speed (never accurately measured) in short dashes; and, with adequate purchase, capable of impressive leaps. Both efforts are made chiefly in pursuit of prey. Like all felids, wlko leap on prey only from the ground, so that even if waiting in a tree for a passing tellebris (a rabbit-like creature) or suzuto (about the size of a cat) or one of the small graminivorous ungulates that live in the savannah, a wlko will not drop on the prey directly, but will first alight on the ground and leap from there.
Note: sentience was not apparent to early contact parties. Nothing about the material culture of the wlko suggested more than self-awareness; and, while it was evident that they were highly intelligent, especially for felids (as is indicated by their use of primitive pottery and basketware and the ready adaptation of metal tools), it was nevertheless thought that their communication was by a system of cries and vocal signals, albeit a complex one. It was only after some very young wlko had been reared in households as pets, and grew up speaking fully-formed language, that the true facts started to become plain. Contributing to this misunderstanding was the limited mimetic repertoire of these creatures, at least to our eyes. Something like a small frown is occasionally seen, and a definite look of "affection". The wlko themselves claim to be able to read the full range of emotion in one another’s features, though it is likely that no small part of the "message" comes not from mimesis but from such details as position of the ears and vibrissae, tail movement, and so on.
It is true that the wlco are not particularly curious animals. Although it is strictly speaking without solid scientific basis, it is tempting to endorse Hashimoto’s observation that since V. vulcus is a long-lived species that is physically powerful enough to have no natural enemies; has learned to exploit both aquatic and terrestrial food sources in a tolerably mild ecology; has a complex social structure with long-term polyvalenced care for immature and aged members of the community; and spends most of its waking hours not devoted to the aforementioned responsibilities–as Hashimoto directly put it–"copulating with every adult wlko in sight"; it is not perhaps to be wondered at that these beasts should be, as he put it, so unambitious.
One might add to that summary the fact that the peculiar makeup of the wlko family unit (male and female identical twins as co-mates in the majority of family groups) serves to neutralize one of the most potent genetic influences in animal behavior, namely reproductive competitiveness (Sec.3.3). Amiability, that is, and sexual cooperation, are high-value adaptive traits among the wlko. It is hard even to speculate on how reproductive competitiveness would play out in the wlko familial structure.
Head small relative to the body, flattish, otter-like in appearance (small eyes, very small ears). Distinctly different from both otters and felids is the horizontal ‘slotted’ pupils of the eyes, giving the beasts’ expressions an ovid cast. Dentition plainly of carnivore pattern–prominent fangs, sectorial cheek-teeth, small incisors. Only partially adapted to omnivore diet.
The most strikingly non-felid detail in the appearance of wlko is the neck, to our eyes disproportionately long and thick. The male wlko head would look small relative to the rest of the body even if it weren’t attached to a neck that can only be described as horse-like. (Fn 2) The horsiness, of the male neck in particular, is plainly a secondary sexual marker. It develops late in puberty and is more pronounced in males than females. (This dimorphism will be discussed below, in the context of the sexual symbiosis with the equine monukhid species Monux hipparion gracilis.)The proportions of these beasts, though eye-catching and accounting for the vulgar name ("Giraffe Ocelot"), are pleasing and harmonious, and it is easy to understand why they were eagerly, if briefly, sought for the pet trade.
Trunk and abdomen are reminsicent of our extinct cheetas: narrow shoulders, lightly-muscled, wiry. The creatures have presence; even elderly wlkon and the females are physically imposing. The males of the rupellid race, while standing slightly smaller than the vulcids, are noticeably more heavily muscled, broader of shoulder and chest and having heavier arms. But the overall impression, even of the rupellids, is litheness and grace rather than anything reminiscent of say the imposing muscularity of the leonine nagirids of 4-Rho Centauri, or the hulking, tiger-like grey bassids of 3-Zeta Orionis.
Sec.2.4 Tail: typical felid pattern, except for being fully prehensile. Fur short, dense, deep buff in females and young males; with age, the color of the fur toward the root will darken. No tuft.
Sec.2.5 Coat: short, dense, and very soft fur, more reminiscent of otters than felids and well adapted to a semi-aquatic habitat. In both sexes the musculature is clearly visible under the fur. (Fn 3)
Fn 1. It is for future study to try to determine what kinds of social information are encoded in grooming behavior, and how. At the moment, only the very most obvious cues have been noticed, e.g., if a female wlko initiates grooming by licking the male’s scrotum, or licks it after a preliminary stroke or two on his cheek, say, it may be taken for granted that she wishes for him to copulate with her. Males rather rarely initiate sexual encounters by grooming the female’s labia as such, presumably (at least in part) because the tissues are too tender for the animals’ rough tongues. Early reports of such behavior were probably mistaken observations of what is in fact commonplace, namely, licking the female’s nuptial pads (Sec.4.2.8).
I have also noticed on many occasions a wlko approaching a resting co-mate and start to groom the small of his back, say 10 cm above the root of the tail. On every such occasion that I noted, during this the groomer became erect, and when the recipient of the grooming behavior rolled over, he was invariably erect as well, except, of course, when one or the other male was "cold", Sec.8.5. (Interestingly, this impotent condition did not seem to have any impact on the frequency or intensity of the grooming behavior, either between males or between females and "cold" males.)
In all cases, given potent males, and even in episodes of very lengthy precoital foreplay (which are not uncommon), the recipient of the initial grooming penetrated his co-mate. This was never a subject of discussion: both parties seem to know from the outset that the grooming behavior is a male’s invitation for sexual penetration, exactly as is a female’s.
Fn 2. Owing to the peculiar physiology above the shoulders (and enhanced by by the narrowness of the shoulders themseves, and the relatively slim build overall), from a distance, upright wlkon appears to be taller than they actually are.
Fn 3. Luckily for wlko, their coat does not tan satisfactorily. Otherwise, these easily approachable beasts would long ago have been hunted to extinction for their beautiful pelts.
Sec.2.6 Coloration: Both sexes have creamy-white fur on chest, belly, and the insides of the thighs; after pubescence a "ruff" of longer hair forms just below the neck. Head (muzzle apart), neck, back, forelimbs, and the outside surface of the hindlimbs are self-colored. Both sexes have typical felid white ear-patches (hardly more than dots, given the relatively diminutive ears) and eyelid-patches; creamy-white muzzle; dark brown or black leather; a dark stripe down around the muzzle from the corner of the eye; and a dark brown or black stripe down the length of the neck from the angle of the jaw to the base of the windpipe. These latter markings, which are darker in males than females, make their necks appear longer than they are. (Fn 4) Both sexes have dark brown vibrissae on the upper lip, growing from three rows of follicles. These lengthen considerably at puberty, to a more pronounced degree in males than females. "Short-whiskers" is a common form of affectionate address to the young, especially young males.
Newborns are a pale creamy-yellow color all over, except for the eye/muzzle stripe, which gives their faces a fixed expression of puzzled seriousness which strikes visitors as very appealing. Within a year, the parts that will color more deeply in later life have become distinctly toast-colored brownish-buff. This coloration remains until the early stages of puberty, when the contrast between the paler and darker coat increases, by the simultaneous darkening of the back and the whitening of the ventral fur. Even at full puberty, however, the darker self-colored coat is still much paler than it will become later with increasing age.
There is palpable sexual dimorphism in coloring and other details:
Note: among rupellids, the eye- and neck-stripes of even adolescent males are very dark, practically black. Rupellid males have three (or more) more or less definite large dark brown V-shaped markings on their shoulders and upper arms. These markings are admired, and males with somewhat pale markings will stain their fur with the juice of a certain nut (Reulonia pintorix) to deepen the color. Vulcids, however, seem to react to these marks much the way we react to tattoos: most regard them with disdain if not revulsion. Male or female vulcids who seem to find male rupellids attractive (and few do) are by their fellows called (good-naturedly enough) nz-hhssiht, a word of vague meaning but implying a disordered sexual appetite. (Fn 6)
Females: the female coat on the face, neck, limbs, and back, as indicated, is a creamy golden-buff, and remains unchanged through life except perhaps for a very slight darkening when the beast is over 95 or so. Females and males have the same coat at birth, as mentioned, but are easily distinguished by their eyes, which are brown throughout life in males and in females are light blue until puberty, when they turn a rich green which is remarkable for its iridescence, especially in contrast to the male brown ("velvety"–Boulton).
All morphological authorities as well as lay observers of wlkwim are impressed by the beauty of these animals, owing to the balance of delicacy, strength, and grace in their makeup, and the exquisitely modulated coloring of their coats.
These things and their gentle and affectionate personalities seemed to recommend them as pets, but the creatures tend to become morose and unresponsive in captivity, and die very young.
Sec.2.7 Females (wlkwim) have two pairs of lactating teats, and have (phylogenetically speaking) four more pairs of (dry) supernumerary nipples located below the functional ones, along an abdominal line.
Mammary glands enlarge only slightly during lactation. Clearer evidence that a female is nursing is the vivid coloration of the nipples, which are a bright red, compared to the virtually invisible nipples of non-lactating females. The reports of the earliest travelers and investigators took this to be a topical (irritation) reaction to nursing, but in fact the supernumerary nipples, as well, take on a more vivid color when the female is lactating.
All the female’s nipples are supplied with a variety of sensory receptors. Particularly richly innervated are the lactating teats and the inguinal pads, located in the groin just above the labia, which ontologically are two pairs of nipples (see Sec.4.2.8). Nursing is visibly pleasurable to females, and weaning does not take place until the time when dentition in the infants is well along. The wlko are an affectionate and sensual species, enjoying extensive body contact at all ages, between parents and offspring and between members of the same generation, which is presumably part of the explanation. There is no question, however, that nursing is absolutely pleasurable; and the sensitivity of nipples is manifestly important in the sexual response of females (see Sec.4.2.8).
Males have at least one pair of nipples, which are more highly colored than the female equivalent (brownish, deepening in color with age), and because of their size and hairlessness, they are clearly visible despite the denseness of the coat, and even in adolescents stand out clearly in the white fur of the chest. Perhaps fifty percent of vulcid males have only two pairs; and no small minority have one additional pair, smaller, and many have more pairs located in rows which may run, like the females’, all the way into the inguinal groove. To a greater or lesser extent these are all sensitive, but dissection reveals far fewer nerve endings than in the female thelia, and particularly the females’ inguinal pads (Sec.4.2.8).