NU:AMAM Fiend folio - Cockatrice

Order - Cathartiformes
Suborder - Wyvernid
Infraorder - Ziz
Species - Galligorgos euryale
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Height - 2.42m (8ft)
Wingspan - 10m (33ft)
Weight - 238kg (525Ib)

Sound concept - youtu.be/6fBXeNdqNOk

The Cockatrice, a hideously grotesque monster recognised by a pungent stench said to be rife with decay. Accustomed to the lifestyle as a habitual scrounger these foul beasts expire noxious fumes as a result of feasting on deteriorating flesh, choking all who inhale its toxic breath.

— Grimoire passage from the Tapster

HABITAT RANGE

Cockatrice are Ziz native to the Northernmost regions of Neo America, the Verdant South & the Shattered Euro, however an uncommon subspecies had been located within Pellucidar but more information is yet to be obtained. Cockatrice are a pseudo-colonial Ziz species that inhabit locales that are warm & humid in addition having an accessibility to a large body fresh water & an abundance of plant & animal life. These would often include Wetlands, swamps, bogs & thick jungles.

ECOLOGICAL NICHE

Cockatrice are omnivorous by nature feeding on mainly mushrooms & plant matter but as renown scavengers they feeding on the flesh of rotting carrion. The digestive tract of the Cockatrice contain a highly corrosive acid in which is capable of dissolving any fresh or decaying animal material the Ziz would have consumed in the process, yielding little to no ill effects that the lethal bacteria present would cause.
Cockatrice also acquired a taste for Amphibians usually preying on Diretoads but will also hunt & attack Behemoths of the Amphibian beast family to feast on their flesh or their polliwogs as a treat.

Cockatrice are well known to be brooding parasites often relying other organisms to hatch & raise their young, moreover they target behemoths of the Amphibian beast clade like Tiddaliks, Kappas & even Slaads. A Cockatrice female will lay a single egg within the clutch of an unsuspecting mother. Upon securing her egg the Cockatrice mother is relieved from the investment of raising her chick & the construction of the nest, where she now focuses more on scrounging for food & producing more offspring.
The egg of a Cockatrice secretes an enzyme that fools the host parent on a chemical level, imitating that it’s among his clutch. Upon hatching the chick of a Cockatrice resembles an Amphibian polliwog only sporting a beak, fin like protrusions & a slightly larger scale. When reaching adolescence the Intruder would have fully monopolised majority of the parents care & the food given whereas majority of its siblings would have perished out of starvation or eaten by the chick. At this stage the adolescent chicks will abandon its host parents & become independent hunting & fending for itself.

BIOLOGICAL ADAPTATIONS

Amongst the very many Neofauna to utilise poison the Cockatrice is labelled to be the most toxic of all the Ziz species as well as one of the most venomous Neofauna species on the planet. It has been discovered that the Ziz uses three different forms of toxins.

The poisonous nature of the Cockatrice stems from its initial birth from its foster family as well as newfound diet consuming Amphibian meat through a behavioural dietary process known as sequestration. Under the circumstances of its dietary behaviour the Cockatrice had over time evolved to not only become immune but also utilise Bufotoxin, a milky white secretion of the toxic steroid lactones variety in which is present in amphibians.
Stored within its throat sac where upon pre-expulsion it swells & expands to the size of a beach ball. The toxin is transformed into a gaseous state due to a potent fermentation of Bufotoxin collected within the crop of the Cockatrice. The toxin is expelled in the form of a chalky white powder that upon inhalation causes cognitive disorientation, cardiac arrhythmia & fatal seizures.

The Cockatrice also possesses a series of venomous sacs on its wing digits that contains Pterois venom, a neuromuscular toxin similar to that of cobra venom however is mostly common to be present in reef fish such as the Lionfish. The venom is delivered through the claws on its digits by scratching & slashing at its target. Against large predators & other male Cockatrice this venom would cause disorientation, severe pain & mild temperature lapses as a firm reminder to the Ziz’s infamy. A more potent variant of the Pterois venom is present as a chicks in which the venomous spines transform into digits as they bet older.
The symptoms of the Pterois venom causes systemic effects on humans ranging from nausea, fever, convulsions, numbness & paresthesia, however in severe cases without proper medical treatment can potentially cause paralysis, liver damage, heart failure & eventually death. Those with a history of defective heart conditions, elderly & children are at serious risk if envenomated.

The stomach acid of the Cockatrice is incredibly corrosive capable of melting down flesh & bone. They also have the potential to destroy harmful bacteria that’s present in rotting meat that it consumes as well as deadly toxins found in poisonous amphibians, effectively neutralising it to a more agreeable state.
Of course this acid can also be regurgitated as a form of attack against armoured predators, usually hurled at its target as globules that explode into a pool of acid. The caustic nature of the stomach acid is said to rival that of sulphuric acid capable of corroding the densest metallic alloys.

The Cockatrice has a distinctive cranial crest reminiscent to that of Tapajarid pterosaurs. It’s been discovered that this sail like crest is a supreme sensory organ that functions like a rudder enabling the Ziz a well controlled manoeuvrability as well as aerial agility. However this crest had also displayed various capabilities that secures the Ziz’s survivability in the wild.
As a tool the crest had demonstrated to act as a scoop often shoveling thick bog water in order to access small aquatic animals & amphibians underneath where it would then flip into the air, snapping them up in the confusion. The crest also contains a massive concentration of blood vessels in which the Ziz flushes whenever it feels threatened or enraged. Whilst in either state the crest forms an eyespot like pattern where it will prominently display as a means of intimidation. Records show that the threat pose is so effective that those who stare into it had entered a brief state of shock & awe, giving rise to the myth of the Cockatrices power of petrification.

BEHAVIOUR

Cockatrice are temperamental but curious  by nature. Amongst other Cockatrice would usually mean a guaranteed squabble over food or potential mates. As a meso-predator they have no qualms taking down prey or targets smaller than it however against larger creatures or armed humans they would have the tendency to appear larger than they usually are often spreading its wings, flaring its crest & shrieking loudly.