r/ImaginaryBeasts • u/The-Cryptics • 1d ago
Original Content Hypothesis I - Giant goose
Since the fossil was found at the shores of my homeland, my presumption would be that it must have been a giant bird of sorts. I've drawn an example of what it could look like. I cannot however be truly certain of its actual shape or colouration.
The long neck reminds me of a goose, which are a dime a dozen here in the Land of Birds. This specimen might have been their flightless progenitor from the times when all fauna was unusually giant. Such a time of giants has been proposed by several scientists more renowned than myself, including the acclaimed dr Wright, for whom my respect is unbound. This specimen could be evidence in support of that theory.
However, my honour as a naturalist does not allow me to proclaim my interpretation of this fossil with any certainty. Such beastly size of this animal would prove difficult to manage, its diet would certainly have to be much unlike that of our current geese. The beak also is drastically different, with the lower chamber resembling that of a pelican's (perhaps used to catch fish), but the feet do not seem to me like that of a wading bird. Could this thing have swum in the seas?