Adult Female
Name: unnamed
Species: Riguang Fenghuang
Birthday: Wednesday, January 10, 2018
Owner: Vespurrs
Element: Light
Riguang fenghuangs are gorgeous birds, and are agile flyers despite their long tails. They are remarkably intelligent, and their power over flame can be trained by a patient magi. They are more skilled at making controlled fires than their riluo counterparts. They can easily direct light well enough to light the wicks of candles or safely keep their tail feathers burning while roosting by a window. Due to their love of the sun, they do not like to be kept inside, and much prefer to be allowed to roost outdoors. Well trained riguang fenghuangs can cast gorgeous patterns of light along the Keep's walls. Many magi who study light and vision keep a riguang fenghuang as a companion, and artists have used their help to design stained glass windows.
Riguang fenghuangs are beautiful, but in the wild their beauty is a clear warning sign of one of the deadliest hunters in their habitat. They hail from the deserts of Voltar, but these birds do well wherever they are introduced as long as they have access to the sun. Their feathers are gorgeous, but do more than give them the power of flight and their lustrous color. Each feather can act like a piece of glass, refracting light perfectly and focusing it on a single point in order to concentrate the sun's rays and set it aflame. Their favored prey is actually other birds, which they burn out of the sky by using focused light, or by simply striking with their long, fiery tails. Riguang fenghuangs are not as bright as riluo fenghuangs, and with their ability to keep their flames low and harder to see, they can even hunt at night using just their powerful talons. Though they are efficient hunters, they are not violent, and when not hunting are content to bask in the sun. They are very careful not to accidentally burn anything in their environment, and it is noted that they will fly long distances to avoid nesting and potentially setting alight a dry forest. For this reason, they are not often found in wooded areas, preferring to nest on rocky mountain peaks. True to their name, these birds live an incredibly long time. It is only when they have no access to the sun that they will burn themselves up using the light from their own waning fires and wait to be reborn during a sunnier time.
Sprite art: Mysfytt (adult) | Description: Raneth