Size: Large at 6 to15ft and an average of 6-10 inches thick and bigger if well fed.
Weight:
Description: Large multi segmented worms, appearing much like centipedes but covered in sharp poisonous hairs. The worm moves without undulations as it’s many clawed feet carry it along as if gliding. The body is semi soft so very flexible and swells with the amount of food supplied. Over doubling their size in girth with enough food. Ravenous monsters of an eating machine they are never sated and will gorge while able.
Fur/Scale Color: Bogas worms are a reddish to a pale pink almost white flesh color. They vary in coloration with their food source growing up. Some are dark and some are patchy or striped, all of them have large sharp hairs along their sides in tufts at the separation of the body segments. The Hairs are typically an orangish red but have been known to be black or white as well. The jaws are a brownish red like old blood, the claws it uses to climb or crawl are a blackish brown.
Areas Found: Anywhere there is warmth, moisture and a food source that can be taken advantage of. Normally found in wet jungles and along the seaside eating carrion. They have also been known to live in swamps and areas that seem too cold. This drives them to hide in masses during the winters and emerge after the thaw. The worms that have to hibernate often are much smaller then ones that can feed all year.
Environment: Beaches and Jungles all over the place. The Bogas Worms are climbers and regularly climb to look for prey in trees and among the cliffs. Any area near the sea or wetlands or jungle you may find them. You can also find them in the waters, usually in depths up to 1000ft but also all the way up to the shores and beyond.
Ecology: The Bogas Worm is a hybrid of the Bristle and Bobbit worms, both being of the same genetic lines in the wild, hybridized easily. They in the far past were scavenging worms crawling the coral and rocks. Growing in size and adapting to live on land in damp and wet environments they found new food sources and a new life. The worms are quite bold with their poisonous hairs that can sting and leave welts lasting for days. Living in colonies and freely moving among each other without harm from the spine like hairs.
Family Structure: Colony Groups of all stages of growth. Safer in numbers as not much will bother a mass of toxic hairs and sharp jaws.
Breeding and Mating Rituals: Whenever the opportunity comes the Worms will mate and move to a muddy area or the water and deposit the eggs among the rocks or in mud and rot. In the waters the eggs are just let loose in masses, most being eaten but some making it to adults. Each worm lays over a hundred thousand eggs and all worms are hermaphrodites all are egg layers. The eggs take a month to hatch and emerge as small copies of the adults. Most of the eggs will die or be eaten by insects or fish in the seas.
The body can be easily damaged and the segments easy to break off, this is on purpose as the worm regenerates from the breaks into new worms. Three or more segments have the most chance to regenerate into a new worm. Smaller pieces can but not as often usually dying.
Just hatched worms are not toxic, their body needs time to grow a bit and generate poison and deliver it to the hairs. The hairs are designed saturate themselves with the poison, giving the hairs their toxic kick.
Other Info: Bogas Worms will stay away from fire and certain tree barks that when burned create smokes that keep them away. Bold and aggressive the worms will enter peoples homes or farms and kill and eat anything they can. Coming in numbers many people get overwhelmed and have to drive them back with fire or let them clean the area of vermin and all they can devour.
Some races like the Bone Talkers find the worms to be a great food source but take some technique to catch and prepare. There is also a Crab in some areas known as the “Reckers”, the crabs are large 5ft high at the shell’s hump. Their thick armor lets them feed with impunity and freely hunt the worms when then find them. Most of the time the Crabs only get a fragment of the worm and the rest moves away out of the danger. The Reckers only inhabit the sea side areas and forests near such sea access as they require the sea to breed.
Many creatures feed on the worms, Fish and birds feed on the eggs left in the waters or Insects and small animals feasting on the eggs. Tree Weavers will eat them as well but catch them in silk and bite then backing off to let it die to the venom. The hairs are then used as defense in their nests poking out and secures with silk.
