Katen: Species Guide
Basic Info
Physical Description
Katen (singular kat) are nearly identical to cats in appearance. However, there are important differences, such as the ability to fully rotate their paws so that the pad faces up, and an increased ability to stand on their hind limbs. They have slightly longer paws than a domestic cat, and increased flexibility of their digits, which allows for better grasping of small or delicate objects.
Katen are capable of being colors that domestic cats cannot be, such as green and blue. This is due to having the same BGP (blue-green pigment) gene as tirten and mettalus. This mutation occurred before yaketiren split off from katen, but after the events of Clowders & Claws.
Scientific Name
Felis catus callidus or felis callidus, depending on whether katen are considered a species or subspecies.
This name is an exonym, existing purely for my own entertainment, is not known to mettalus, tirten, or katen themselves.
Typical Vitals
HR: 100-200 BPM
RR: 20-40 BPM
Temp: 99-102 F
Average Lifespan: 10-15 years
Diet
Carnivorous. Katen feed mostly on pijenen, xqnen, and feraten, but will eat miraden and other small water-dwelling creatures if they aren't competing with ketnoen.
Habitat
Almost anywhere. Just like cats, katen are very adaptable. Doubly so because of their intelligence. They have been found across the entirety of tirtenia. The only place they haven't reached is Yaketiren Island, where Tee lives.
Mode of Reproduction
Katen are seasonally polyestrous induced ovulators and kittens are raised by multiple females at once. Males will stay with their partners until the kittens reach adulthood. Typical litter sizes are 4-8.
Social Behaviors
Katen are loosely social, preferring to share territory but hunt alone or with only one or two related katen. This may be because of encounters with ketnoen and yaketen. Groups of katen maintain fiercely protected territories.
Katen are very intelligent! Using forsen, they're able to communicate with each other and katiren. Although they could also use this ability to communicate with tirten, they rarely do so, since most have no reason to speak with tirten. When mettalus were more populous, they also avoided socializing with them. This has led both mettalus and tirten to assume that katen are simple creatures.
Evolution of Katen & Related Species
Katen evolved from domestic cats. After humanity died, cats both feral and pet were left to fend for themselves. Through sheer randomness, they developed the first mutations that would eventually lead to the utilization of forsen, such as the ability to create sparks, communicate telepathically, or heal from impossible wounds. Katen who were more intelligent were better able to take advantage of these mutations, so intelligence was naturally selected for. Flexibility of the forelimbs and improved grasping abilities come soon afterward. These katen formed early societies.
At some point, there were too many katen. Their primary sources of food—small birds and rodents—began to die out. Katen were forced to find alternative food sources. Some turned to plants. Others turned to cannibalism. This free-for-all led to the first set of splits: ketnoen, yaketen, and feraten. Ketnoen became quick and highly social to evade yaketen. Yaketen grew larger to take down their peers. Feraten diversified their diets and became smaller to better hide from yaketen. Eventually, other species, such as miraden and xqnen, filled the gaps that were left behind. Katen remained.
A group of katen continued to evolve flexibility of the forelimbs and increased grasping ability. They spent more time upright and began to lose their fur. Eventually, they became yaketiren, then mettalus, then tirten. Katen still remained.
Relations with Tirten and Mettalus
Most tirten (and mettalus, when they roamed tirtenia) don't look at katen and see their ancestors. Rather, they see nuisance animals that are only tolerated because miraden and feraten are considered worse. Some keep katen as pets, unaware of their true intelligence. But katiren know of this. Katen regularly intermingle with katiren, and sometimes even reproduce with them—with the katir in kat form, of course. The offspring of such matings are always entirely katen.
Like Tee, katen could create their own mettalus or tir bodies. This blurs the line between kat and katir greatly. But most katen aren't interested in doing this.