Female Hatchling
Name: unnamed
Species: Somni Deshkivari
Birthday: Thursday, June 28, 2018
Owner: Yrenne
Element: Air 
Deshkivari have one of the most elaborate and long courtship dances of any known creature, though no one has ever seen the mating dance of Somni deshkivari. As with other seahorses, the eggs are cared for by their fathers in special brooding pouches on the male's belly until they are ready to hatch, at which point a a dozen or so young fry are released into the water. The young fish remain in the ocean until their wings grow in, feeding on drifting plankton in the water column. The young are only a centimeter or two long and highly vulnerable to predators, so they spend most of their time grasping onto sea weed and corals, relying on their stillness and coloration to hide from predators. When their wings are sufficiently large, they float to the surface and take their first breath of air, then jump into the sky in search of their first nectar meal.
Deshkivari are common in the east, and until recently thought by the Keep to be limited in range to the Callisto Islands. The people of Somni have stories of small flying seahorses native to the archipelagos, however, and occasionally lucky visitors to some of the more remote islands might catch a glimpse of one before it disappears into the shadows of the forest. Little is known about the Somni deshkivari, but they are said to have powers similar to the eastern species. According to Somni stories, these creatures are able to raise creatures as large as dunkleosteus from the ocean, and they seem to have some ability to control the creatures they allow to fly as well. However, these reports have never been verified by a living human, as the seahorses are rare and skittish on the islands, and their removal from the Candle Archipelagos is strictly prohibited. Even the most respected magi at the Keep are not allowed to keep Somni deshkivari, and must instead travel to the islands to study these odd little creatures.
Sprite art: Jrap17 (hatchling) | Description: PKGriffin