Life in Centro Island
The herbivoos

The prolonged insular condition and the more temperate climate of Centro, unlike that of Boitomb, have allowed this island to develop a unique fauna compared to the continental one. Except for a few central mountainous areas, the territory is largely flat or hilly with an almost identical climate throughout the entire island: this uniqueness of landscape has allowed the development of unusually large island forms, causing the creation of a plant association almost analogous to the continental coldvanna, with forested areas alternated with large clearings. 

Eggpouchers dominate the island’s food chain. The herbivorous forms are all derived from herbivoos, currently represented by at least 10 different species. Only one, however, has reached colossal dimensions: the long-necked herbivoo (Centrovipera berus). Weighing over 500 kg (1100 lbs), this bird is an insatiable wandering skyscraper; it is a very generalist species, nourishing of both foliage and tender herbs in the great mosaic habitats of Centro. They are mainly solitary birds that never form social bonds: great noisy aggregations of long-necked herbivoos can be found almost exclusively near watering pools. Unlike their slim counterparts from Polarica, long-neck herbivoos have an extreme graviportal structure and they are uncapable of running: their size make them unassailable, even for the largest predator of the island (which does not exceed 50 kg/110 lbs). Despite their size, long-necked herbivoos produce extremely high-pitched calls, which are not made with the use of the syrinx (the main vocal organ of birds), but by blowing air between the interstitial spaces of its tongue, like a whistle. Because of this, they are often called "the antarctic squeakers". The resulting sound would be similar to the one of a rutting wapiti.

Like all eggpouchers, the herbivoos are ovoviviparous: the eggs are kept in an inner sac near the oviduct, and then are expelled shortly before hatching. The young are hyperprecocious, already covered by a thick layer of plumage and able to walk after a few moments from the birth. Because of this, the parental care of these birds is often very limited, rarely more than a few weeks.
A species of herbivoo in particular, however, because of its highly social behavior, can prolong the parental care even for half a year: it is the fast herbivoo (Rapidivipera temperata), a rather large terricolous bird with a gracile structure suitable for running. These birds are the wildebeest of Centro, moving in herds that exceed the thousand. Their light weight in proportion to their size allows these birds to walk over the winter snowpack without sinking too much, thus managing to escape more easily from possible predators.
Their fragility, however, brings with it a big disadvantage: unable to dig in the compact snow to look for food on the ground, fast herbivoo are forced to feed on low quality foods in the winter, such as bark, conifer needles and mosses. To reduce the risk of winter mortality, herbivoos are known to feed in disproportionate quantities of fruits, seeds and other energetic foods, developing a large layer of fat used as a nutrient supply rather than for thermal insulation.
Although still widespread in the territory, fast herbivoos and its other relatives are declining due to the arrival of a new group of birds: thanks to their much more plastic diet, a more efficient social system and the ability to run and fly, this mysterious as well as bizarre evolutionary line of birds is slowly revolutionizing the Antarctic ecosystems, including the fragile Centro environment. 

The future of this island and its endemic bird fauna lies on a razor’s edge... and the worst is yet to come.