Pricklepoke

The pricklepoke sniffler is a species of spiny sniffler descendant, where it can be found in the savannah woodlands in areas of tall grass. Here they live in mated pairs with their chicks, staying to small territories and keeping to well-worn pathways in the grass as they hunt for worms and water-loving invertebrate prey.

This little trunko, which stands only about 11 inches tall, has evolved a most remarkable integument to protect itself from its enemies. Its spine-like feathers have broadened into hard, scale-like keratin plates which can be pulled tight when at rest or erected into a very difficult-to-access fortress of outward-facing spikes when under duress. A keratinous shield upon its head can be pulled back to lock in with the scales of the back, protecting the neck as well as the trunk which is pulled inside against the breast feathers. 

Any predator that tries to catch the pricklepoke, once it rolls up in this way, is left grappling with a ball of spikes and the powerful, sharp-clawed legs of the sniffler as it kicks fiercely at its foe. Though the pricklepoke's defense is imperfect compared to some other armored animals, it is usually sufficient to save it from its main enemies - small foxtrotters and flightless cursorial birds, which both lack the jaw strength to get through its armor. These trunkos can even brood their eggs while defensively rolling up in this way, but it has required the eggs become smaller relative to their body size so as to be able to protected beneath their head shields when rolled up. The chicks are thus born smaller and less developed than most species and confined to the pouches of the parents completely for the first week, after which they are moved to a secluded nest in dense grass once they outgrow their first home.

Adult pricklepokes have a simple but effective way to rest when they get tired. Not making any sort of complex nest or burrow, pricklepokes dig small scrapes in the dirt and then lay in them, so that only their spiny exterior is visible. For the most part, this goes unnoticed by other animals as some sort of funny-shaped rock or pile of sticks. Even if they do realize it is an animal, it is quite well-protected in its little hole and very difficult to remove. Having physical defenses means that pricklepokes can live at a slower pace, and with less worry than other snifflers, and they can often be seen meandering along well-worn trails with a calm confidence their more vulnerable relatives could never afford.