| Terapusmordax | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| |||
| Naming | |||
| Binomen | Terapusmordax obscenus | ||
| Morphology | |||
| Average length | 3 - 4 feet | ||
| Average wingspan | 8 - 10 feet | ||
| Intelligence | |||
| Sentience | Sentient | ||
| Sapience | Non-Sapient | ||
| Aggressivity | High | ||
| Ecology | |||
| Habitat | Mountains of Skull Island | ||
| Diet | Omnivore | ||
| Status | Unknown | ||
| Behind the Scenes | |||
| Universe | King Kong | ||
| Designed by | Christian Pearce | ||
| Performed by | Sounds of Tasmanian Devils, Brushtail Possumss, Big Cats, Gibbons, and other animals (film) Horse wails (game) | ||
Terapusmordaxes (Filthy Pungent Bat) are bat-like creatures that lived in the mountains of Skull Island.
Overview[]
Terapusmordax is a huge flying rat and possibly one of the largest flying mammals of all time. It is the largest member of the Volucerattidae, the family of winged rodents peculiar to the Skull Island, and the convergent replacements to both bats and pterosaurs. As bats have strong sensing ears, Terapusmordax have the same but perhaps even more advanced. When anything comes close to a Terapusmordax they would make them as their victim. It has a body-length of 3-4 feet and a wingspan of 8 to 10 feet. Terapusmordaxes eat fruit, nuts, lizards, rats, and other arboreal inhabitants. Their common prey are their smaller relatives, Volucerictises, and the flying theropods Vultursaurus, which they catch at dusk.
Like its smaller and wingless counterpart, the naked mole rat, Terapusmordax is totally hairless, with translucent naked skin and strong bones for its size. A highly agile flyer, they are able to easily keep up with much smaller birds and flying rats. They dwell in huge uplands caverns, roosting there by the hundreds in colonies ruled by the elder females. The males live in small colonies of a dozen or so and fight constantly among themselves, with injuries and death to infection common. The most notable feature about Terapusmordax is its eye-watering stink. Its waste contains chemicals that cause an incredibly pungent reek, and since waste often is caked and smeared on the animals, they also tend to smell, regardless of where they go. Interestingly, this smell serves to keep predators away, as it is far too strong for many to deal with. In the King Kong video game, it is shown that they follow large blue-skinned Queens, and like in the movie, they are extremely dangerous, and will hunt for humans if spotted. They also attack larger animals if disturbed.
Following the destruction of the island in 1948, it is unknown what happened to the flying rodents, along with other flying lifeforms.
Gallery[]
Notes[]
- The creatures were supposed to be the ones replacing the Pteranodon from the 1933 version.
- Peter Jackson wanted these creatures to be disgusting, frightening, and infected looking, so the artists of Weta Workshop made references from naked mole rats (which they thought was the most disgusting), hairless cats, and hairless bats