Talpatheria

The Talpatheria aka giant mole is a docile prey living in the Grasslands Biome. They are based on the European mole and the elephant shrew.

Ecology
Talpatheria are very gentle giants, sizing in comparison to an average canis. They have massive claws, a long pink trunk and a flattened tail used for tamping down loose soil. When underground, Talpatheria dig tunnels and eat small underground insects. They live in large groups and their lives are dependant on the number of members in their groups. Their diet consisting of such small amounts of insects means they must conserve energy, so they huddle together for warmth while individual members carve tunnels to unearth more insects. Once a new tunnel is dug, the group moves through the tunnels eating insects and then resting in a new area, where a new individual is chosen to dig.

Talpatheria unearth themselves and, using a mouth full of strong flat teeth, eat decaying wood on the surface as a strong source of fiber to maintain the bacteria in their gut which super-converts the insects they eat to useable materials. This causes them to excrete very little, so the extra fiber provides more material to make stool with. The use of this stool is to make piles inside of their den, which attracts more insects to consume.

Youngling Talpatheria live in pouches on the mother, living off of their mother's milk. They do not emerge from the pouch until they have hardened claws for digging.

Talpatheria are extremely docile for their size, and prefer to flee or ignore anything attacking them. They have very little energy as is, and rely on the size of their claws to scare away potential predators.

It is not uncommon to find young Talpatheria inside of a dead Talpa's pouch.