Snowsaber

There are certainly mammalian predators on Diaemus, but in many places they are overshadowed by the great carnivorous dinosaurs. Towering bodies, enormous skulls, and banana-sized fangs characterize this group, and they have (presumably) colonized many distinct habitats. In the frozen snow fields of the tundra, one such predator, the snowsaber, reigns supreme. This beast is forty feet long and weighs over a ton, and its roar is a note of terror for many polar species. Theropod dinosaurs usually have short arms and walk upon two legs. The snowsaber has long since evolved past that. The arms of the snowsaber are almost as long and powerful as the legs, and the animal frequently bounds on all fours when covering distance. Its scales are shielded by the cold by a coat of shaggy ivory feathers, and the jaws are fringed with colonies of blue lumuoles bright enough to blend in with the pure white landscape of the winter tundra. In summer, when the tundra turns green, the snowsaber molts and gains a auburn coat, and the jaw lumuoles turn deep navy as the males attempt to attract females. The naming characteristic of the snowsaber is the pair of lethal saber-shaped fangs at the front of the mouth, visible even when the animal's mouth is closed. The teeth are curved and fulfill the same function they did for the saber-toothed cats of Earth--killing. When hunting the snowsaber will ambush its prey, bounding to its side and using its powerful front forelegs to wrestle and pin it to the ground. Once the unfortunate megafauna is fully helpless, the snowsaber will swiftly sever its jugular veins with a bite to the throat, allowing the animal to bleed out in the snow before digging in to the carcass. Because of the delicate saber teeth in the front, the snowsaber must be cautious when eating and hunting. Small and bony prey like humans are generally shunned, in favor of large beefy herbivores like spaksnouts and the few other iguanadonts of the tundra. Humans nonetheless must fear the young of the snowsaber, which will happily prey on humans and other small game before their fangs grow in. And snowsabers of all ages will be a serious threat to any people who rely on large livestock to secure their sustenance on the frozen plains.

The snowsaber is a relative of the woodstalker found in the northern taiga.