Karoo Basin
265 million years ago
Late Permian
As the sun just begins rising over the horizon, its rays of light reveal a lush, open floodplain crisscrossed by lakes, ponds and rivers, bringing with them massive amounts of sediment from the Antarctic mountains to this region of Africa.
Instead of grass and trees, the area is populated with ferns, horsetails and the tree-like glossopterids. These plants are able to thrive in this environment thanks to seasonal monsoons. A river flows off a ridge and crashes into a lake, becoming one with the larger body of water.
Emerging from the morning's mist is a herd of strange looking creatures. Despite their appearance, these are neither crocodiles nor hippopotamuses, but rather 3 meter long Tapinocephalidaes known as Struthiocephalus whaitsi.
These bizarre looking animals are best known for their large naso-frontal boss; however, this feature is something that only mature males possess, females lack the headwear entirely.
Leading the herd is Pick-horn, a fully grown male with a lot of experience under his belt. His colorful facial markings and tall crest shows that he's in the prime of his life.
As both Pick-horn and his herd approaches the lake, the old male notices a younger male approaching him, this smaller subadult is Bumper-head.
Normally, Pick-horn might react with some agression to other males who decide to get too close to him, knowing that they might be challenging him for the title of bull, but because of Bumper-head's age and inexperience, the older male lets him stay by his side.
As the herd approaches the lake, Pick-horn stops and lets out a bellow before he begins to feed, telling the rest of the herd that it's time to eat. As the bull, Pick-horn is able to have the best feeding spots to himself; however, this title doesn't mean that he's also the only male who can mate with the females.
While some of the Struthiocephaluses feast on the soft plants on the riverbank, others start wading into the water. Thanks to their long snouts which make up a sixth of their total length, these herbivores are capable of uprooting aquatic plants to eat without needing to dive into the water.
To prevent water from entering their nostrils when feeding in such a manner, Struthiocephaluses have evolved special, fleshy valves able to close off the liquid's access to their airway. Of course this can only last for so long, eventually the animals will have to open them to breathe, hence why they prefer to stay on the shore.
Although the Struthiocephaluses are able to take advantage of a food supply that is inaccessible to most of the other herbivores, that doesn't mean that they have the lake all to themselves.
As Pick-horn looks up from his meal, he's met with the face of a Styracocephalus platyrhynchus.
Standing at around 1.8 to 2.1 meters long, these strange looking creatures are smaller than most of their relatives, including Struthiocephalus. However, what they lack in size, they make up with one of the most elaborate head ornaments of the time. With two large, fan-shaped crests flanking each side of their head, and a tall bulge at the top of their skulls, it's very easy for both Styracocephaluses, and other species to recognize them.
Although both sexes have these crests, those supported by the males are significantly larger and more colorful than the ones of their female counterpart. The more noticeable headwear of the males are used in mating displays - the bigger and brighter the crest, the better the chances are that they'll be selected by a female. This is because the size, shape, and color of the individuals' head ornaments advertises their health and genes.
Despite being larger than the Styracocephalus standing in front of him, Pick-horn backs away from it. The side fans may be too fragile to be used as weapons, but he knows that these small creatures are armed with canine teeth able to deliver a nasty bite when threatened.
As he walks away, the smaller Tapinocephalidae opens its mouth and grabs the base of the horsetails. It then jerks its head up, causing its canines to hook onto the roots and rip the plants from the ground. It then uses its crushing teeth to grind up the vegetation. They may be herbivorous unlike their ancestors, but their fangs are still used for feeding.
Pick-horn wanders up to the edge of the water and bends down to quench his thirst, though his peaceful drink is soon interrupted as he's joined by Bumper-head. The younger and more excitable male accidentally bumps against the old bull, causing him to respond with a shove.
Bumper-head stumbles to the side, surprised by Pick-horn's sudden outburst. The younger of the two quickly gets back on his feet and waddles away, not wanting to be on the receiving end of Pick-horn's bulge.
As male Struthiocephaluses begin to reach sexual maturity, a thick crest made from keratin will start to form over their bulge. Just like the Styracocephaluses, these head ornaments are used to advertise their health, but unlike their smaller relatives, their newly formed, cone-shaped bosses double as battering rams in flank butting contests between males. When hitting each other, the crests narrow down the point of impact to a single part of the skull, making it more painful for the opposition.
Once he's put enough distance between himself and Pick-horn, Bumper-head stops and looks back at the herd's bull. Knowing that right now would be a good idea to give the old Struthiocephalus some space, he starts wandering around the lake, but stays close enough to the herd for protection.
As Bumper-head begins to wander around the edges of the herd, he catches something moving towards him. He may not have the best eyesight, but he can still make out just enough to differentiate between friend and foe.
Bumper-head strains his eyes to figure out what's approaching him. As the figure gets closer, he immediately recognize it as a Titanosuchus ferox.
Although their appearance isn't too dissimilar to that of their relative, these 2.5 meter long Dinocephals have left behind their herbivorous origins to become a mostly carnivorous species.
Armed with razor sharp incisors, and fang-like canines, these predators are easily able to deal deep and massive wounds with their bites. Even if the initial attack doesn't kill their targets, there's a good chance that the animals will bleed out, meaning that all the Titanosuchuses have to do is follow and wait.
Even though their preferred prey are animals that are around the same size or smaller than themselves, some Titanosuchuses do on occasion integrate plants into their diet.
Bumper-head sounds the alarm and runs back into the herd. The Struthiocephaluses begin to huddle together for protection. Luckily for the herd, Titanosuchus looks at them before continuing, this time more interested in quenching its thirst than hunting. Even though the herbivores relax, they nevertheless continue watching the animal, just in case it begins to show any signs of aggression towards them. Finally, the Titanosuchus finishes drinking and heads back into the hills.
As the hours pass and the sun rises higher and higher into the sky, the heat it emits, coupled with the Permian's naturally hot climate, is causing even more animals to seek out a source of water. Soon, this lake is bustling with life from all sorts of species.
The heat is causing some of the Struthiocephaluses to wander away from the herd in an attempt to find a way to cool off. Pick-horn has been in this situation many times before, and he knows what to do.
Approaching the lake, the old male drops down into the mud and water. As he relaxes, the mammal-like reptile's core temperature begins to lower, making him more comfortable in this weather.
Bumper-head on the other hand hasn't yet worked out how to beat the heat. Instead of laying down in the mud like what some of the other Struthiocephaluses are doing, he's attempting to use the shade provided by an outcrop of hills to stay out of the sunshine. Unfortunately for him, this isn't the most effective solution to his problem. Bumper-head, he's about to get a pretty big surprise. The hill that's currently providing him shade happens to also be occupied by a herd of Tapinocephalus atherstonei, and two of the males are fighting each other to try and impress the females.
Although these Tapinocephalidaes typically grow to be 3 meters long, some older individuals can become even longer.
Like many of the other creatures in this part of the world, the Tapinocephalus' most defined characteristic is the creature's headwear. In the case of this species, it comes in the form of a large, strong, and bulging skull roof. In a bizarre contrast to their strong skulls, their snouts are relatively short and weak.
Unlike the more elaborate crests of their relatives, these creatures use their bump to engage in head to head pushing combat. Males do this to impress females during the mating season; however, both sexes will use their rams against predators when threatened.
During shoving matches, Tapinocephaluses will attempt to either force their opponents to back down, or knock them off their feet. But when your adversary has a wide stance, powerful front legs, and can weigh between 1.5 and 2 tons, succeeding in pushing them over is a daunting challenge.
As the two opposing males push and shove against each other, the larger of the two begins to gain the advantage in this battle. The smaller one's strength begins to falter, but the larger Tapinocephalus refuses to back down.
Eventually they manage to push each other to the edge of the hill, but they're so focused on beating their opponent, that neither one of the combatants has noticed their precarious position.
Finally the larger animal gives an enormous shove, causing one of its adversary's legs to slip off the precipice. As the Tapinocephalus desperately tries to regain its footing, its opponent pushes it off the hill, making it tumble all the way down.
As Bumper-head hears the commotion coming his way, he turns around just as the Tapinocephalus rolls into him. The impact causes him to be knocked out of his shady spot. He may not realize it, but he was lucky to only sustain some bruises. If the heavy Tapinocephalidae had rolled at a different angle, it could have landed on him causing much more damage to his body, possibly even breaking something.
While the vanquished creature struggled to get back up from its fall, the victorious Therapsid looked down at it from the top of the hill.
Hot, frustrated, and tired, Bumper-head charges at the Tapinocephalus who's managed to get back to its feet. Despite being similar sizes, the lumbering Therapsid weighs much more than Bumper-head, meaning that his attempt to topple over the heavier animal doesn't amount to much.
Whether it be the humiliation of losing, the tiredness it is feeling, the refusal to fight anymore, or just not understanding what Bumper-head was doing, the Tapinocephalus simply walks away, leaving the young Struthiocephalus behind.
Bumper-head lays back down in the shadow of the ridge as he once again tries to sleep, but this doesn't last long. Soon the rest of the Tapinocephalus herd comes down towards him.
The large animals push him around with no regard, their minds set on getting to the fresh water. Defeated, Bumper-head stomps away, heading back toward his own species.
As the Tapinocephaluses get closer to the lake's edge, the Struthiocephaluses must make some room for the newcomers. Most of them are displaced from their mud baths by the lumbering animals, but others like Pick-horn swim into the lake. He may not be the best swimmer, but Pick-horn is still capable of moving through water with enough ease.
Unfortunately for them, the area is about to get even more crowded. Coming towards them is a large group of Moschops capensis.
These 2.7 meter long Therapsids may not be the longest or heaviest animals out there, but because of their posture, they are one of the tallest, with some individuals almost reaching 1.5 meters in height. This large size is usually enough to deter predators from attacking, but if they are in danger, Moschops are capable of handling themselves in a fight.
Similarly to their relatives, the Tapinocephaluses, Moschops have a very durable skull which they normally use in headbutting competitions for herd supremacy, but they aren't opposed to using them for self defense.
Although they primarily headbutt adversaries, Moschops will also throw themselves forward like a sumo wrestler in a bid to get the upper hand. With most of their weight being propped up by their forelimbs, this not only reinforces their hindquarters, but it also means that the impact they make against opponents is even stronger.
Despite being a physical tank, there is one major weakness that these animals have. They are unable to run for a long time, and the best they can manage is a quick burst of speed.
These hardy animals push into the packed clearing. These nomads have been sustaining themselves through the dry season by feeding on tough plants like cycads, but with the arrival of the monsoon season, they can finally get fresh water.
Finally, this is too much for Pick-horn. Getting out of lake, he calls out to the herd and rounds them up as they leave the clearing. As he leads them down stream, he can't understand why so many species are coming to this specific stretch of the lake; however, there's a good reason for the other herbivores' decision.
As the Struthiocephaluses wander down to a more open area of the lake, Bumper-head notices something move behind a hill. His curiosity leads him away from the herd, but before he goes any further, he realizes that the movement could be coming from a predator and retreats back to safety.
If he had gone all the way, Bumper-head would have met a Jonkeria truculenta feeding by itself on the other side of the ridge.
(Note, the J sounds like a Y)
These creatures are massive, being one of the largest species in the region. Most of the time, these animals grow to be 3 meters long, but just like all other reptiles, Jonkerias never stop growing, with older individuals able to reach 5 meters in length.
Jonkerias primarily feed on plants during the monsoon season, but these aren't peaceful herbivores, a set of large incisors and canines reveal another side of their diet. When vegetation becomes scarce, Jonkerias become predators.
Thanks to their size, even the largest Moschops can become prey; however, they can just as easily steal kills from their smaller rivals.
Despite the differences in size and behavior, Jonkerias are closely related to the Titanosuchuses.
It's a lucky escape for Bumper-head, but if he had made it over the hill, he would have seen the Jonkeria suddenly retreat.
As the sun begins to set, the temperature falls, and the herd is finally able to cool down. Pick-horn gives the signal to stop and rest for the upcoming night.
For protection against predators when sleeping, the Struthiocephaluses gather around in a circle with males on the outskirts, females in the middle, and the young at its center.
But as the herd settles down, they have no idea that it's being watched by an Anteosaurus magnificus.
Growing from 5 to 6 meters long, these apex predators are the only thing that can rival a Jonkeria.
Despite being different from other Dinocephals like Moschops, males will still engage in head pushing competitions for the right to mate.
For their size, Anteosauruses are surprisingly fast and agile because of their enlarged inner ear, and having a large part of their brains dedicated to eye coordination. But of course, their deadliest weapon is their massive teeth.
As the Anteosaurus slinks through the long shadows of the tartine, it makes sure not to attract any attention to itself.
Only half asleep, Bumper-head feels like something is wrong. He then hears a rock fall causing him to snap to attention and look around. He notices something in the shadows. The last rays of light briefly reveal the hunter. Bumper-head recognizes that threat posed by the Anteosaurus and sounds the alarm.
The herd wakes up and starts panicking, but Pick-horn quickly rallies them up, forcing the Struthiocephaluses to stand their ground.
Seeing that its ambush is ruined, the Anteosaurus rushes the herd and snaps its jaws, trying to break the formation, but they won't move. Even after trying to use its height advantage to grab their necks, the swinging bosses of the males deflect every attack.
Eventually, it must retreat, realizing that this hunt has failed. This time, the Struthiocephaluses have won.
Water: it controls everything out here. It makes it possible for plants to grow and provides food for creatures, both prey and predator. For millions of years, lakes and rivers have been places of gathering, somewhere where animals can drink in harmony, or a place of ambush and death. This story has happened before, and as long as water exists, it will continue to happen.
As the Struthiocephaluses relax and go to sleep, Pick-horn looks at Bumper-head and makes a huffing noise, as if to thank him for alerting them. The two males drift off to sleep as a storm brought by the monsoons brews in the distance.