yellow-wagtail
The tail wag is a lure. In the off-world, ornithologists have various theories about why wagtails wag — temperature regulation, parasite disturbance, status signalling. Here the tail generates a faint bioluminescent pulse at the tip, barely visible in daylight, highly visible in murk. The creature is fully aware of this. It positions itself at a distance that reads as interesting rather than threatening, and wags until something yellow-wagtails do not hunt alone. The tail-pulse frequency is also a counting system: each wag at rest fires at approximately one pulse per two seconds. When others are present and aware of the same target, the frequency increases proportionally. A wagtail pulsing at twelve beats per minute means approximately twelve others are nearby. I have not confirmed the upper limit of this ratio and do not intend to.
The beak produces a corrosive secretion. Not venom — it does not require injection. Contact is sufficient. The secretion dissolves protein bonds in muscle tissue at a rate that is slow enough to be noticed and fast enough to matter. They strip what they want and move on, and what they want is not all of you.
Field note: the bioluminescent pulse is visible through closed eyelids. I discovered this by accident. I do not recommend the experiment.
| Type | Listener |
| HP | 2 |
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