Fastheld has a wide variety of animal life fostered by its diverse terrain and climate. Many of the animals are utilized not only for their meat, but also for their furs, skins, and feathers used for decoration and other byproducts such as furniture, clothing, and tools.
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Hunting
Hunting animals for sport is reserved mostly for the nobility, while Freelanders tend to hunt only for necessity. All hunting requires a permit of some type administered either by the House that owns the land, or in the case of property of the Empire, the Imperial Taxmaster.
Avians
The birds of Fastheld are limited in the number of species, but the variety within the species is broader in terms of size and color due to interspecies breeding.
Anae Stork
A graceful, long-legged bird, the Anae Stork is often found in starkly elegant poses, balanced on one or both of the aforementioned lengthy appendages. Its top coat of feathers is mostly a pristine white, tending towards pastel yellow (in general) at the tips, slightly dirtier yellows underneath. Bright green eyes prove a vivid contrast to that coloration, though in its verdant habitats, they remain one of the few parts of the bird that resemble camouflage. Other tip colors include shades of orange, red, and possibly blue (still an unsubstantiated rumor). Their body length from beak to tail ranges within 30-40 inches (75-101 cm.) with a wingspan of approximately 60 inches (1.5 m); the average weight of an adult male is 8 pounds (3.5-4 kg).
Its long, slightly curved beak is excellent for stabbing fish through the waters or scooping them up, especially when combined with the propelling power of its equally long neck. Everything about this bird, in fact, gives that impression of length - but its stalking movements are not clumsy all the same.
The Anae Stork is usually found in areas where it can access marshy wetlands, although it's fonder of areas close to human habitation than many other kinds of birds. It is a non-aggressive, peaceful animal that will run rather than fight unless its nest is threatened. The Anae Stork is also known for being a curiously quiet animal, almost silent in flight; it is for this reason, combined with their pale coloration, that some suspicious farmers call them 'ghost birds'.
Forester's Sparrow
Found just about everywhere, the Forester's Sparrow is a common songbird that's seen from one end of the known world to the other. Nesting in house eaves and trees, it is truly prolific and visible year-round. While never truly domesticated, the sparrow can be tamed if raised from a chick. Sparrows have been caged as pets for song in noble homes and taken by the Nillu into the mines near the Lode to act as a warning for those places where air has gone bad.
Children often imitate the sparrow's song, and it is a common scout signal used in both Imperial forces and for hunting. It is hunted lightly for its meat, which is slightly tough but has a vaguely sweet taste, and its bones and feathers which are used in jewlery, decoration, and to cut inexpensive quills.
Forrester's Sparrows, unlike some birds, do not appear in cycles, instead remaining in some proximity to their nesting space year-round. Females are simple in hue ranging from a light grey (most common) to charcoal-hued or dark brown, while the males have irridescent green, blue, or indigo wing-feathers and a remarkable capacity to imitate forest sounds, which they then use to attract a mate. Mated pairs return to the same nest each spring, but range wider through the winter months as food grows scarce. Their average body length is 7 inches (18 cm) with a wingspan of 14 inches (35.5 cm); the weight of the average adult male is approximately 8 ounces (227 g).
Like most birds, Forrester's Sparrows are flighty and quick to flee, preferring flight to conflict. Females have been known to play 'wounded', dragging a wing and acting hurt to lead predators away from a nest, but mated pairs will abandon unhatched eggs to predators and gatherers if the pretense fails.
Moss Jay
With a distinctive trilling cry, the Moss Jay is the herald of Spring, vanishing as the leaves turn and reappearing as the ground thaws. Considered a mark that the Shadow of winter is failing, its annual reappearance is also used by most farmers to begin planning their crop planting and plowing, as well as a sign to expect consistent warming after the bitter cold.
The Jays are often imitated by children, and their song is used by Scouts and Wildland Hunters as a call signifying danger is near.
Females are blue and grey, making them virtually invisible against the sky while in the nest, while Males are an olive, almost emerald green with red eyes, remarkably distinctive. The feathers of both male and female are prized for ornamentation and inexpensive quills, while their bones are used in ornamentation and in the creation of iridescent inks. In recent years, sightings of green females and blue males have led the consideration of a new Moss Jay subspecies. They reach a general body length of 4-6 inches (10-15 cm) and a wingspan upwards of 10 inches (25 cm); the average weight of an adult male is 6 ounces (170 g).
Moss Jays are found throughout all of Fastheld, from early spring until late fall. They are never seen in winter, vanishing mysteriously as the leaves turn and returning again just before the ground thaws. They build a new nest each year, usually high in the treetops or among roof-trees, with minimal shelter to the sky. Many put out birdhouses and hollowed gourds to attract them, as their song is considered particularly pleasant.
Each year is a new courtship ritual, and the air around Moss Jay nests is a riot of song during the spring. Like all songbirds, Moss Jays prefer to flee by flight rather than to fight a predator. They will defend their nest, however, until it is obvious it is lost, flying into the face of those that would attempt to thieve eggs and doing their best to drive the encroacher away.