Gloranthan Animal Migrations

[RHW]

I had tens of thousands of Painted Lady Butterflies fly over my house in the past 24 hours and it made me wonder about Gloranthan migrations. Do Gloranthan animals migrate? If so, which ones and where do they go? For example:

Pelorian Geese fly south through Dragon Pass every Storm Season to their Dark Season nesting grounds in Kethaela around the Mirrorsea. They fly north again in Sea Season. They are distrusted by both Pelorians and Orlanthi, but beloved by River Gods worldwide. There's a myth where Lhankor Mhy listens to the geese every Dark Season for news of the world.

Butterflies from all over Genertela winter at Chalana Arroy Temples, including the House of Peace in Jonstown, the Grand Hospital in Nochet, and the Temple of Peace in Solanthiland. Killing a butterfly is considered bad luck all over the world.

Salmon head up the Creekstream River and Janube Rivers to spawn every Fire Season. They once also spawned in the Oslir River, but have not been seen since the Ascent of the Red Goddess.

Swallows winter at Yelmalio Sun Domes, especially in Sun County in Prax.

Humpback whales calf around Jrustela during Dark Season before heading north to toward Valind's Glacier and other Fire Season fishing grounds.

Pamaltelan Wildebeasts migrate from Zamokil to Jolar and back every year, following the rains.

Any others?

 

 

 

[Martin]

I would be temoted to set aside the earth notions and reasons for animal migration...climnate, weather, nd of coure animals using magentic fields to navigate migration paths...As Greg  said : "The world is made of everything" ...hence so are animals; so maybe those animals above migrate depending on their most powerful rune, hence their runic assocaitions. They migrate to sites and thats why there are certain temples at those locations...

[Bill the barbarian]

1 hour ago, Martin said:

I would be temoted to set aside the earth notions and reasons for animal migration...climnate, weather, nd of coure animals using magentic fields to navigate migration paths...As Greg  said : "The world is made of everything" ...hence so are animals; so maybe those animals above migrate depending on their most powerful rune, hence their runic assocaitions. They migrate to sites and thats why there are certain temples at those locations...

Nice turn to Glorantha, and thank you for broaching the topic RHW. 

John Hughs has a nice take on this which propels you idea forward in his amazing Questlines, Martin.
“Animals have their own tribes, and approximately 1 percent of each species have a high degree of consciousness, free will and volition. They have their own immortal leaders, heroes and shamans, who may dwell both on the Other Side and on the Lozenge"

He goes on the describe them having gods holy places hero quests and longterm goals.

My small addition to this conversation is a question, alas rather than an answer. What of Praxian migrations, this ought to be major, no?

Cheers

Edited March 13, 2019 by Bill the barbarian
por spelin' dam spelchekr

[RHW]

10 hours ago, Martin said:

I would be temoted to set aside the earth notions and reasons for animal migration...climnate, weather, nd of coure animals using magentic fields to navigate migration paths...As Greg  said : "The world is made of everything" ...hence so are animals; so maybe those animals above migrate depending on their most powerful rune, hence their runic assocaitions. They migrate to sites and thats why there are certain temples at those locations...

Hence why in my Glorantha butterflies migrate to Chalana Arroy temples and swallows winter at Sun Dome Temples.

Why don't salmon swim up the Oslir anymore? It's a mystery that greatly concerns the traditional bear cults of the Upper Oslir. Could it be that the Moon Bear priesthood doesn't do the rites properly? 

Why don't salmon swim up the Zola Fel? The catfish claim to have worked great spells to keep them out.

The salmon were afraid to migrate back to Sartar after the Dragonkill, until Enjossi convinced them to return.

[RHW]

8 hours ago, Bill the barbarian said:

My small addition to this conversation is a question, alas rather than an answer. What of Praxian migrations, this ought to be major, no?

Praxian migrations, IMO, aren't seasonal. They're more political/strategic. "We need to move on from this oasis/grazing because we've exhausted it, but the  Rhino Riders are at the closest good grazing. Do we fight them, negotiate with them, or try another spot?"

I feel like figuring this stuff out is one of the major responsibilities of the tribal Khans and Queens.

That said, the annual tumbleweed migration of Prax and the Wastlands is a sight to behold. Countless tumbleweeds (accompanied/herded by Runners and Pixies) roll north every Storm Season to their northern pastures near Pent, where they remain through Dark and Sea Season. Then they roll south again when Fire Season comes. Various Praxian clans and tribes, especially the Bison Riders, Zebra Riders, and Morokanth, follow the migration to pick off strays, sometimes coming into conflict with each other and the Runners.

It's rumored that the tumbleweed herds carry the seeds of the Wastelands' lost forests with them, and that someday the White Elves will reappear and the weeds will put down roots and the forests will return. "All this land will be ours, ours," the pixies sing as they fly above the migration. "All this land will be flowers."

Edited March 13, 2019 by RHW

[MOB]

13 hours ago, RHW said:

Humpback whales calf around Jrustela during Dark Season before heading north to toward Valind's Glacier and other Fire Season fishing grounds.

Ambergris is the maguffin for a plot I'm currently concocting that starts in Casino Town and eventually takes the players characters to the great city of Garguna via the sperm whale spawning grounds around the Three Step Isles.

[Bill the barbarian]

1 hour ago, RHW said:

That said, the annual tumbleweed migration of Prax and the Wastlands is a sight to behold. Countless tumbleweeds (accompanied/herded by Runners and Pixies) roll north every Storm Season to their northern pastures near Pent, where they remain through Dark and Sea Season. Then they roll south again when Fire Season comes. Various Praxian clans and tribes, especially the Bison Riders, Zebra Riders, and Morokanth, follow the migration to pick off strays, sometimes coming into conflict with each other and the Runners.

I said this ought to major... no?

[RHW]

18 minutes ago, Bill the barbarian said:

I said this ought to major... no?

Yes, the annual Great Wasteland Tumbleweed Migration is one of the most important migrations in all of Glorantha!*

 

*Which is especially remarkable since I totally just made it up.

[Sir_Godspeed]

Are there any wild Pentan horses left? One would asume they would follow a general south-north migration pattern with the seasons, as Valind's winds come down in Storm and Dark season (iirc.). Then again, domesticated herds kept by the Pentans ought to do something similar.

[Sir_Godspeed]

9 minutes ago, RHW said:

Yes, the annual Great Wasteland Tumbleweed Migration is one of the most important migrations in all of Glorantha!*

 

*Which is especially remarkable since I totally just made it up.

It's a good one, though.

[M Helsdon]

Whilst the Praxian tribes and their herds migrate due to food supply and tribal dominance, the Pentans, who have a much more severe climate, will have to migrate, because herds of horses, cattle, goat, sheep have different tolerances to heavy snow.

[RHW]

22 minutes ago, M Helsdon said:

Whilst the Praxian tribes and their herds migrate due to food supply and tribal dominance, the Pentans, who have a much more severe climate, will have to migrate, because herds of horses, cattle, goat, sheep have different tolerances to heavy snow.

Absolutely. This is probably a major source of the Pentians conflict with the Lunar Empire, since the Good Winter Lands of the Pentians are basically Jarst and the Redlands. In recent times, the Pentians have had to migrate to less ideal winter grazings such as the shores of Hot Lake or the Praxian-infested lands south of the Snow Line (see: Hillside Bison Secret Grassland). But recently Always Wakes Twice has been prophesying a return to the Good Winter Lands, led by the King of the Winds.

[Bill the barbarian]

53 minutes ago, RHW said:

Yes, the annual Great Wasteland Tumbleweed Migration is one of the most important migrations in all of Glorantha!*

 

Pshaw, I'm awaiting for the great aerial migration of the gargoyles! :)

 

[RHW]

Just now, Bill the barbarian said:

Pshaw, I'm awaiting for the great aerial migration of the gargoyles!

 

No one knows why, every Earth Season, gargoyles from all over Fronela flock to Loskalm and roost on that land's many Temples to the Invisible God. Usually, they're quite peaceful and the authorities leave them be, to sit motionless on the high roofs and towers until they make their mysterious departure at the start of Storm Season. But this year, it's different. This year they've been attacking townspeople in all the major cities, going into frenzies of death and destruction seemingly at random. Could it have something to do with the hunchback seen gamboling about the rooftops of Northpoint's Temple of Reason?

[jajagappa]

3 hours ago, RHW said:

The salmon were afraid to migrate back to Sartar after the Dragonkill, until Enjossi convinced them to return.

More likely the issue was Belintar's battle with the Only Old One which cut the mouth of the Creek-Stream River off from its body/headwaters.  Even after Belintar dug the New Canal, the salmon did not know how to return (or perhaps feared doing so, or had been lured by Esrolians to stay in their lands). Enjossi had to show them the new path home.

[Ali the Helering]

9 hours ago, M Helsdon said:

Whilst the Praxian tribes and their herds migrate due to food supply and tribal dominance, the Pentans, who have a much more severe climate, will have to migrate, because herds of horses, cattle, goat, sheep have different tolerances to heavy snow.

If one follows the observable Mongolian model, this migration is often 'local lowland-local highland' rather than enormous distances north and south.

I would also assume that there are wild herds, the result of centuries of escape from the main herds followed by breeding in the wild.  These would be far more likely to follow a north-south axis.

[Ali the Helering]

Further research indicates a lack of knowledge relating to mustang herd migration.  Over the last few years there have been attempts to track those in Montana and Nevada, but I cannot find the outcomes.

[Sir_Godspeed]

The main canonical migration pattern I can think of is the annual Uncoling massing in Porent. The GtG emphasizes its importance for conducting mass magical rituals rather than ecological reasons, though admittedly, the two might very well be connected - perhaps the Uncolings rituals are to help keep the glacier at bay?

Edited March 14, 2019 by Sir_Godspeed

[MOB]

19 hours ago, RHW said:

*Which is especially remarkable since I totally just made it up.

Ah, the same wellspring of inspiration as Greg Stafford! I remember a Gloranthan scholar being somewhat shocked when I said something similar, after he asked (notepad and pen in hand) what obscure Staffordian source I was basing my musings on.

19 hours ago, RHW said:

No one knows why, every Earth Season, gargoyles from all over Fronela flock to Loskalm and roost on that land's many Temples to the Invisible God. Usually, they're quite peaceful and the authorities leave them be, to sit motionless on the high roofs and towers until they make their mysterious departure at the start of Storm Season. But this year, it's different. This year they've been attacking townspeople in all the major cities, going into frenzies of death and destruction seemingly at random. Could it have something to do with the hunchback seen gamboling about the rooftops of Northpoint's Temple of Reason?

Perhaps the Loskalmi have embraced the Lunar art craze of vivisculpture? That would be sure to make the gargoyles angry, especially if the Cult of Freedom has got in their ear...

http://rpgreview.net/mob/viviscupture.htm

[Joerg]

When it comes to sea bird migration (something my part of the world gets two annual spectacles out of), I am not sure how much of that is going on in Glorantha.

The extreme migration from one polar summer to the other cannot occur on Glorantha for lack of poles and antipodean temperature patterns. Birds partaking in the "false plenty" of the Pentan grasslands are quite a possibility, as mosquitos and moths are likely to partake on that. The region used to be one of the major bird culture regions of Glorantha, too.

When did the birds start hunting insects for food in myth, however? Are there mosquitos, worms etc to be found in the Golden Age surface world, or are such entities still where all beings of Darkness belong, in the Underworlds? (And when did Aldrya start to rely on wind pollination?)

Flowering plants might have gotten by with the services of hummingbirds, starting with the emergence of Sky.

But then, there are birds that forage directly on grasses, most prominently geese and their duck kin, plus there are a plethora of wading and diving birds harvesting their food from the waters. These could still follow seasonal patterns.

With the caveat that such patterns only emerged within Time. One of the many things going on in the Dawn Age would be Nature adjusting to the new cyclical patterns, not always succeeding.

[David Scott]

23 hours ago, RHW said:

Praxian migrations, IMO, aren't seasonal. They're more political/strategic. "We need to move on from this oasis/grazing because we've exhausted it, but the  Rhino Riders are at the closest good grazing. Do we fight them, negotiate with them, or try another spot?"

It's actually both and another reason - Mythomagical. The actual movement works like most nomadic cultures - A camp is setup and over time the herd move further and further away from it until it's too far to return. Then the camp breaks up, overtakes the herd and sets up again (likely has the mid herd with it). The main movement group is clan sized with septs meeting up during the years journey and rarely in the third age tribes. The main seasonal camps are those with related holy days to Waha and Eiritha. Built into this yearly cycle is a cycle of visiting the Paps and perhaps other Holy places. This can be be a 5-10 year cycle depending on the clan's history. There is also the option of moving these seasonal camps slowly over the years. When the lines pass close to oases, this is when conflicts arise for resources. The 80 or so ephemeral oases in the Wastes are normal discovered in situ and are too fragile to support a herd watering, they aren't reliable as the last at most a year, usually less. I model this in my games by pulling out a hex outline map of Prax and the Wastes and getting the players to mark on it the five seasonal runes and the god rune for sacred time. These are the movement lines for the year.

This is based on the 5 mile / 8km hex map in the Guide and AAA. It has the ancestral grazing of most tribes marked. Most groups like to mark a route to these every few years, it's not needed every year. Purple is the Pol joni march. High places that are accessible are in black. Brown is nothing to eat. The yellow is most luscious grazing the Wastes (middle of the Krjalki Bog). Orange circle is the Sacred Ground of the Paps.

12 hours ago, Ali the Helering said:

I would also assume that there are wild herds, the result of centuries of escape from the main herds followed by breeding in the wild.

There are very few wild herds, most are sent directly by Eirtha and as such as considered sacred. They may last a few years before succumbing to predators.

 

[Sir_Godspeed]

Does Prax have one or more rainy seasons? If so, one would expect to see herds expand during rainy seasons, and contract during the rest of the year, making competition more fierce during that time.

Given that Prax is one of the most well-covered regions, I am fully expecting to get an explanation about why I am wrong, however.

[Ali the Helering]

1 hour ago, David Scott said:

 

There are very few wild herds, most are sent directly by Eirtha and as such as considered sacred. They may last a few years before succumbing to predators.

 

My post to which this is a reply was referring to Pent, rather than Prax, which has a very different ecology - both biological and spiritually.

[David Scott]

14 hours ago, Sir_Godspeed said:

Does Prax have one or more rainy seasons?

RuneQuest Glorantha page 122 has the Prax Temperature and Precipitation table. Storm-Late, Sacred Time and Sea-Early would probably constitute a rainy season.

14 hours ago, Sir_Godspeed said:

If so, one would expect to see herds expand during rainy seasons, and contract during the rest of the year, making competition more fierce during that time.

Depends on the herd beast type, not all birth at the same time.

[soltakss]

On 3/13/2019 at 9:00 PM, Sir_Godspeed said:

Are there any wild Pentan horses left? 

Of course there are wild horses in Pent.

In my Glorantha, Pentians have herds of domestic horses, which they breed, but they also break/tame wild horses. In fact, it is a rite of passage to tame a wild horse.