Personal Smaugust Challenge Young Ryu Dragon by Lord-Lavrahtheen on DeviantArt (original) (raw)

Published: Aug 21, 2021

Description

Day 21~! (ah yes, one of the funny numbers... that's definitely not 9 +10 )

Young Ryu Dragons still maintain the same level of curiosity that they had at their "baby stage", although they also display more caution when investigating new things. Here we can see 2 young Ryu giving Milo a look-over and assessing whether he's a threat or not.
Curiously, Ryu Dragons have the highest rate of variation between individuals of their species; different horns, scale colors, etc. Scholars theorize that this is a sign of further, slowly progressing speciation within the Ryu. This theory is based on ancestral remains of other True Dragons that show a similar trend. The theory is further compounded by the fact that the currently existing True Dragons have the capability for successful hybridization (meaning, that they diverged from one another not so long ago). The difference between these species is compared to the differences present between different subspecies of Tigers on Earth.
This theory further concludes that within a few thousand or (more likely) a few million years, Ryu Dragons might develop into a number of separate species. Only time can tell whether or not that will be the case.

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1236x764px 1.01 MB