05-19-2016, 04:56 PM
Details agreed so far
Located in the ocean, out to the west of the main Idu continent.
One large island (roughly the same size as southern England, from the Channel to the Thames), with a number of smaller ones around it.
Climate approximately as for RL?s Channel Islands, i.e. Jersey & Guernsey & their neighbours. (An earlier regional agreement says that ocean currents basically pass clockwise around the region, so the waters around these islands would have a warm current arriving [helpfully] from the south or south-west?)
Wildlife basically comparable to that of the Channel Islands too, i.e. basically similar to a ?Western European? ecosystem although with some elements that might be thought of more as ?Southern European? instead, but with some of this region?s endemic species also present (maybeso substituting for their RL ecological counterparts) as well.
Its national animal is the Bear, presumably meaning the Brown Bear (Ursus arctos), which is present in the forests of the main island?s north-western corner.
Questions and suggestions
1. Presumably the main island is composed of ?continental? crust, so that it includes sedimentary and metamorphic rocks (and maybeso some ?granitic? igneous rocks, which can have useful deposits of metal ores or even ?native? metals [i.e. ones that don?t need splitting out of ores] associated) rather than of ?oceanic? crust (which would basically limit it to ?basaltic? igneous rocks, and little if anything else?). (Yes/No?)
If so, then it could be either on the ?continental shelf? of the main Idu continent or a detached fragment of continental material that was left behind after splitting off from that ?North Idu? plate as the latter moved north-north-westwards (c.f. in RL, the Seychelles which were left behind by India, or South Georgia which was left behind by South America). Both of these possibilities would let it have native species descended from stocks that have been present here since before the continents split, rather than just from those that could colonise an ?oceanic? island, but keeping it on the continental shelf would also allow for later immigration ? across the intervening shelf when that was exposed at times of significantly lower sea-level ? too, which is probably a preferable situation. Shelf or fragment?
In any case, of course, other species could arrive [and probably have have arrived] from alternative aspects of ?fractal reality? ? including versions of Europe or North America, as well as alternative versions of Idu ? as well.
2. If the islands are on the continental shelf then I suggest that they?re fairly close to the western edge of this, and are angled more-or-less from along a NW-SE axis. [/b](Yes/No?)[/b] There could be a shallow area of significant size in the sea to the east/north-east, sheltered from the ocean?s strength by the islands, ?the [Sodor?] Banks?, which would be a good place for fishing. (Yes/No?)
3. Some ?South European? plant species whose presence as natives here seems reasonable to me = Sweet Chestnut, [Common] Horse Chestnut or a close relative (or two?), Strawberry Tree (Arbutus unedo), Bay Tree (?Bay Laurel?), Silver Fir, and also [in RL native only to the Balkans, although also grown & to varying extents naturalised in England, but in NS already found at least as far west as some southern areas in Bears Armed] a species of Lilac, the Ivy-leaved Toadflax, and Wallflowers.
4. If it?s an ?oceanic? island, never associated with a continent, then the only species of freshwater fish likely to be present naturally ? apart from any that arrived from other Realities altogether ? are ones that can spend part of their lives in the sea as well: Eels, Trout, Salmon, and so on? However if it?s a ?continental? island, as I?ve already suggested would be a better choice, then it could have a comparable range of freshwater fish to western Europe and maybeso a few additional species (probably including at least one type of Catfish) to reflect the ?southern? aspect as well.
This nation having a slightly more ?southern? aspect than does RL England means that it could ?comfortably? (except to the phobic?) be home to more native species of Amphibians and Reptiles than England is, too: That isn?t the case for the RL Channel Islands, mainly because their smaller size provides less in the way of habitats, but with Nova Sodor being significantly larger than all the members of that island group combined that problem wouldn?t apply here. I don?t know yet how much we?re using RL species from these classes, rather than [more-or-less] equivalent ones that evolved specifically in the IDU?s own lands, but if we go with the ?continental island? origin (rather than with an ?oceanic island? origin, which would be rather more restrictive) then this nation?s herpetofauna could plausibly include sa fairly wide selection from: Common Frog, one or more other types of ?Green Frog?(i.e. Pond frog, Marsh frog, the ?Edible Frog which is a hybrid of those?), Nimble Frog, European Tree Frog, Common Toad, Natterjack Toad, Midwife Toad, Common Newt, Palmate Newt, Great Crested Newt, 1-3 more species of Newts or Salamanders, either the Common/Viviparous Lizard or the Two-lined/Western Green Lizard (or maybeso even both of those?), Wall Lizard, Sand Lizard, Slow Worm, Grass Snake, Adder [or the former?s deadlier relative, an Idu endemic species, the ?Subtractor?), Smooth Snake, Aesculapian Snake, European Pond Tortoise, and maybeso even a [?land?] Tortoise.
Birds plausibly could also be more diverse here than in either RL England (cooler) or the RL Channel Islands (smaller)? but there?s a problem. If these islands are a significant distance from the Idu mainland, and there isn?t a chain of other [smaller?] islands to bridge that gap, then the only migratory species that could be present would be those that can manage long over-water flights: This requires some thought?
I would expect to see the Red-billed Chough (in RL also called the ?Cornish Chough?) in some coastal areas, and the IDU?s endemic ?Coloured Crow? ? which generally replaces the Common Crow, Hooded Crow, and other RL ?Crow? species in this region ? quite widespread. Probably Ravens and some other corvids in suitable places, too?
The islands? largest native ?gamebird? is probably a partridge of some kind, or a grouse: Has a larger gamebird (a pheasant, or a wild turkey) been introduced at some point for hunting purposes? Yes/No?
Mammals: the presence of bears (brown bears, I presume?) in the woods suggests to me that, unless the first bears were actually brought here deliberately by [bear-worshipping?] humans, the main island probably had a fairly complete set of either 'European' or 'North American' large mammals at one stage: One or more species of deer; wolves; wild boar, if it was a 'European' fauna; possibly one or more out of wild cattle, woods bison, ibex [in the uplands] or chamois or 'rocky mountain'-style "goat"; beaver, if there were any rivers with suitably large flood-plains; maybeso lynx, or even -- with a 'north American' fauna -- puma...
How many of those would still be present, after millennia of human pressure on their habitats and probably of hunting as well, is of course another matter. Maybeso only one or more species of deer, unless protecting the bears (for cultural reasons) involved protecting their habitat so extensively that some other species of large mammal survived there?
Located in the ocean, out to the west of the main Idu continent.
One large island (roughly the same size as southern England, from the Channel to the Thames), with a number of smaller ones around it.
Climate approximately as for RL?s Channel Islands, i.e. Jersey & Guernsey & their neighbours. (An earlier regional agreement says that ocean currents basically pass clockwise around the region, so the waters around these islands would have a warm current arriving [helpfully] from the south or south-west?)
Wildlife basically comparable to that of the Channel Islands too, i.e. basically similar to a ?Western European? ecosystem although with some elements that might be thought of more as ?Southern European? instead, but with some of this region?s endemic species also present (maybeso substituting for their RL ecological counterparts) as well.
Its national animal is the Bear, presumably meaning the Brown Bear (Ursus arctos), which is present in the forests of the main island?s north-western corner.
Questions and suggestions
1. Presumably the main island is composed of ?continental? crust, so that it includes sedimentary and metamorphic rocks (and maybeso some ?granitic? igneous rocks, which can have useful deposits of metal ores or even ?native? metals [i.e. ones that don?t need splitting out of ores] associated) rather than of ?oceanic? crust (which would basically limit it to ?basaltic? igneous rocks, and little if anything else?). (Yes/No?)
If so, then it could be either on the ?continental shelf? of the main Idu continent or a detached fragment of continental material that was left behind after splitting off from that ?North Idu? plate as the latter moved north-north-westwards (c.f. in RL, the Seychelles which were left behind by India, or South Georgia which was left behind by South America). Both of these possibilities would let it have native species descended from stocks that have been present here since before the continents split, rather than just from those that could colonise an ?oceanic? island, but keeping it on the continental shelf would also allow for later immigration ? across the intervening shelf when that was exposed at times of significantly lower sea-level ? too, which is probably a preferable situation. Shelf or fragment?
In any case, of course, other species could arrive [and probably have have arrived] from alternative aspects of ?fractal reality? ? including versions of Europe or North America, as well as alternative versions of Idu ? as well.
2. If the islands are on the continental shelf then I suggest that they?re fairly close to the western edge of this, and are angled more-or-less from along a NW-SE axis. [/b](Yes/No?)[/b] There could be a shallow area of significant size in the sea to the east/north-east, sheltered from the ocean?s strength by the islands, ?the [Sodor?] Banks?, which would be a good place for fishing. (Yes/No?)
3. Some ?South European? plant species whose presence as natives here seems reasonable to me = Sweet Chestnut, [Common] Horse Chestnut or a close relative (or two?), Strawberry Tree (Arbutus unedo), Bay Tree (?Bay Laurel?), Silver Fir, and also [in RL native only to the Balkans, although also grown & to varying extents naturalised in England, but in NS already found at least as far west as some southern areas in Bears Armed] a species of Lilac, the Ivy-leaved Toadflax, and Wallflowers.
4. If it?s an ?oceanic? island, never associated with a continent, then the only species of freshwater fish likely to be present naturally ? apart from any that arrived from other Realities altogether ? are ones that can spend part of their lives in the sea as well: Eels, Trout, Salmon, and so on? However if it?s a ?continental? island, as I?ve already suggested would be a better choice, then it could have a comparable range of freshwater fish to western Europe and maybeso a few additional species (probably including at least one type of Catfish) to reflect the ?southern? aspect as well.
This nation having a slightly more ?southern? aspect than does RL England means that it could ?comfortably? (except to the phobic?) be home to more native species of Amphibians and Reptiles than England is, too: That isn?t the case for the RL Channel Islands, mainly because their smaller size provides less in the way of habitats, but with Nova Sodor being significantly larger than all the members of that island group combined that problem wouldn?t apply here. I don?t know yet how much we?re using RL species from these classes, rather than [more-or-less] equivalent ones that evolved specifically in the IDU?s own lands, but if we go with the ?continental island? origin (rather than with an ?oceanic island? origin, which would be rather more restrictive) then this nation?s herpetofauna could plausibly include sa fairly wide selection from: Common Frog, one or more other types of ?Green Frog?(i.e. Pond frog, Marsh frog, the ?Edible Frog which is a hybrid of those?), Nimble Frog, European Tree Frog, Common Toad, Natterjack Toad, Midwife Toad, Common Newt, Palmate Newt, Great Crested Newt, 1-3 more species of Newts or Salamanders, either the Common/Viviparous Lizard or the Two-lined/Western Green Lizard (or maybeso even both of those?), Wall Lizard, Sand Lizard, Slow Worm, Grass Snake, Adder [or the former?s deadlier relative, an Idu endemic species, the ?Subtractor?), Smooth Snake, Aesculapian Snake, European Pond Tortoise, and maybeso even a [?land?] Tortoise.
Birds plausibly could also be more diverse here than in either RL England (cooler) or the RL Channel Islands (smaller)? but there?s a problem. If these islands are a significant distance from the Idu mainland, and there isn?t a chain of other [smaller?] islands to bridge that gap, then the only migratory species that could be present would be those that can manage long over-water flights: This requires some thought?
I would expect to see the Red-billed Chough (in RL also called the ?Cornish Chough?) in some coastal areas, and the IDU?s endemic ?Coloured Crow? ? which generally replaces the Common Crow, Hooded Crow, and other RL ?Crow? species in this region ? quite widespread. Probably Ravens and some other corvids in suitable places, too?
The islands? largest native ?gamebird? is probably a partridge of some kind, or a grouse: Has a larger gamebird (a pheasant, or a wild turkey) been introduced at some point for hunting purposes? Yes/No?
Mammals: the presence of bears (brown bears, I presume?) in the woods suggests to me that, unless the first bears were actually brought here deliberately by [bear-worshipping?] humans, the main island probably had a fairly complete set of either 'European' or 'North American' large mammals at one stage: One or more species of deer; wolves; wild boar, if it was a 'European' fauna; possibly one or more out of wild cattle, woods bison, ibex [in the uplands] or chamois or 'rocky mountain'-style "goat"; beaver, if there were any rivers with suitably large flood-plains; maybeso lynx, or even -- with a 'north American' fauna -- puma...
How many of those would still be present, after millennia of human pressure on their habitats and probably of hunting as well, is of course another matter. Maybeso only one or more species of deer, unless protecting the bears (for cultural reasons) involved protecting their habitat so extensively that some other species of large mammal survived there?