Mustelidae Spotlight: Ekorus Ekakeram

Ekorus ekakeram--or just ekorus for short--is the scientific name for a prehistoric mustie who sadly does not walk our world anymore. Bones of this very interesting species have been found in both North America and Asia. Although they don't actually have a proper name, I am quite fond of ekorus. I think it sounds pretty jazzy. What do you think?

One thing you will find with prehistoric musties is how big they are. If you remember my rodent spotlights, this does seem to be a trend with prehistoric animals. I actually find the idea of it fun. Lord knows I would love to see a giant mouse running around the world today. In the case of the ekorus, this guy had a shoulder height of 2 feet. They had long legs and could likely achieve a decent speed. The modern musties generally have short legs and are more sneaky than fast--with few exceptions.

So the ekorus was more of a leopard style hunter. He would chase them down and tackle. Like most musties, they had some very nasty jaws that were very good for subduing prey. I looked into what kind of prey they likely hunted. The only two things mentioned was a three-toed horse called a eurygnathohippus and a large pig called a nyanzachoerus. However you look at it, it seems like the ekorus went after big game, and that is pretty cool. I am fairly certain that no modern mustie would go after a horse. Well... maybe a honey badger, but only because he doesn't give a crap.

That is all I know about the ekorus, but I don't think its really all that lacking. You get a pretty good feel for how they would likely have behaved when they were still alive. You really have to consider the fact that they were still musties, and there is a very awesome predatory side to being apart of that group. Mix that with the power, speed, and the relative size of a leopard, and you got a very interesting character for fiction.

Let's anthropomorphize this fellow for a moment. I actually see the ekorus being a strong force for villainy but not at all a mastermind. I see them more as sub-boss toughies that are very good at killing. I can even imagine them with armor and weapons. They are very big and strong. They still have that sneaky side that makes them clever enough to be a force to be reckoned with. I really like this, and I wouldn't mind if I saw a picture of them set up this way. It would likely be an interesting story too.

The ekorus is no longer here, but that doesn't mean he wasn't cool. Still, when you consider how crafty and dangerous the little ones are--not to mention stinky--it is probably a good idea we don't have to deal with the giant ones now-a-days.

Thank you for reading this blog. If you enjoyed it, you can comment below, email me at tooie@tooiekangaroo.com, or just carve it into a stone slab and send it via pterodactyl. Ug.