| abstract | - The Thornback is a tripedal herbivore native to Darwin IV. It has a large "thorn" on its back shaped like a shark fin. The thornback is hunted by many other larger predators such as the Rayback and the Arrowtongue.
- There can be at least two major herds feeding alongside each other, each composed of about a hundred individuals pinging and eating. As many as five pods of thornbacks will break away from the main herds. They meander around the dusty ravines, searching for round, rolling, succulent fodderball weeds that make up their usual forage. Predators that will hunt down these wandering individuals include arrowtongues. When running, thornbacks' clattering hooves seem to barely touch the ground. Their dorsal nostrils pucker and flare as their foamy breath moistens their armored backs. Members of a pod will run as one, instinctively knowing that security lays on their joined efforts. Running in a mass with only their horned backs exposed, they provide their pursuer with a confusing sonar image. Without a single target to focus upon, the hunter can only follow its prey and hope for a killing opportunity.
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