Ok, yes, there was some logic behind this one...apart from my sparse notes up top (one of which is "more frontal eye placement on predator"). Its eyes are more similar to a dog or cat's, with vertical slits and excellent night vision, compared to the horizontal pupil shape of horses, goats, deer and other daytime/herbivorous mammals. Its silhouette (well, the front half at least) is almost identical to a horse, other than its *ahem* dental work...the idea is that it can approach its prey, typically horses, quite closely without being detected. Its body also produces a scent that mimics that of common horses, so even upwind of its prey cannot be easily detected as a threat. Its oversized canines and exaggerated incisors are to clamp down on its prey--with strong neck and jaw muscles to keep them immobilized. It eats much like a crocodile or alligator, tearing off chunks of meat and swallowing it whole (I mean, can you imagine that thing trying to chew and just slobbering all over the place?). And no, attempts to domesticate have not gone well...it tends to just eat whatever it's stabling with.
I was searching through some random pictures while trying to figure out some different possible variations o the anatomy of horses mixed with something more powerful for a self project. I stumbled on this picture and it really struck me as something very impressive. Its kind of become an inspiration for what I'm trying to breathe a little life into. I just wanted to tell you I think your art is really wonderful and its helped me, I'm no one important but I feel you should know how I felt when I saw your sketch.
ReplyDeleteHi, thanks for the kind words! Sorry I only just saw this...have just figured out how to enable comment notifications now :) Best of luck with your project!
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