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Parka lions, or Parkons for short, are a newly discovered subspecies of lion that lives in the snowy forests of north-eastern Russia. Their coat is particularly dense and thick, but not fluffy, making them look large and bulky. The puffy manes on the males extend further down their neck and chest than African lions, but are not as wide. They help them to keep their brains warm, allowing for better survival in the cold with an overall body temperature of 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Lionesses are particularly colder than males,with a body temperature of about 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Without their warm mane, females have instead developed fur on their bellies to keep them and their cubs warm. Cubs are also covered in thick layers of fur, and can live without their mother for some time before freezing or starving with a varying body temperature of around 75-85 degrees Fahrenheit.
Parka lions are very rarely seen in the wild, usually living in small groups known as tribes that consist of one male, one to three females, and their cubs. Dens are dug by the males under the protective roots of trees, and each one takes many months to fully create. Dens are widened as needed, as only one is used for an entire tribe.
Litters, or stocks, of cubs are born every winter in the warm dens. During the winter, all members of the tribes stay in their dens to protect themselves from the harsh winds and show that pummel the region. Stocks, made up of one to three cubs, are born in the dens to keep them safe, and by next winter they are old enough to be in their own tribes or in their original one.
Local Russians who inhabit the areas call them the сердиться царей, Russian for 'angry czars', due to the large fur 'hats' males bear around their necks. Many legends about these сердиться царей have been spread for centuries, and now that this species has been discovered it is believed to be the culprit with matching descriptions and traits.
Their main threat is poachers, who are hunting them for their prized, warm fur. There is no definite number for those remaining in the wild, but scientists estimate there are only a few hundred remaining, putting them at a highly endangered status due to the small area that they inhabit. This is also leading to inbreeding of parents with other closely related family members (such as children or siblings), resulting in a higher risk of mutated cubs. These range anywhere from albino or melanistic cubs to deformed cubs, sometimes ending in lethal disasters. Other times they are beneficial to the species, such as albino lions blending in better in their snowy environment, so it is the desision of any breeders in programs to decide whether it might be worth the risk.
This is all a huge WIP! But what do you guys think so far?
The idea will be that you capture a male (adopt into a breeding program at your zoo for a CS pet) and then capture females to join a tribe. They can have cubs naturally, or unnaturally by paying with CS pets, but you can only keep up to three females and one male (he original) in that pride. Any male cubs born will have to go into new enclosures (based off the old one), which will cost you (either pets or C$) and from there you can continue your program. Any unwanted cubs will be released into the wild (with a chance of being captured again for more breeding efforts) or gifted to others (but they will be unable to breed or join a tribe if gifted away).
Is this too complicated? Should I cut my ideas down, leave them as-is, or add more? Please be honest...
To Do:
- Draw female
- Belly fluff
- Draw cub
- Excess fluff
- Fix male to look less African
- Tail
- Paws
