11,876
edits
Changes
From Warhammer 40k - Lexicanum
→Migration
==Migration==
Crotalids in captivity have lived over seventy years, but [[Magos Biologis]] [[Xenologists]] have been unable to determine the lifespan of Crotalids in the wild with any precision. This is due to their unique and curious migratory habits. In fact, as a rapidly expanding population of Crotalids comes to dominate a region, their prey is completely exhausted in the course of a few decades. The Crotalid population must now migrate to a new location or face extinction, and the creatures instinctually gather in response to their growing hunger.{{CMEFn|4}}
At some undetermined point, the unconscious desires of the Crotalids enable them to move on, not by walking or swimming but by passing through the [[Immaterium]] itself. How Crotalids perform this feat is still unknown, autopsies have revealed no organ or abnormality that might give the beasts the ability to pass through the [[Warp]]. Certainly no conscious manipulation of the process seems available to the Crotalids themselves, as they can appear on worlds quite unsuited for them including [[Desert World|desert planets]] and even airless worlds. Nonetheless, migratory packs of Crotalids can appear on worlds up to ten light years from their origin point and have been highly successful in establishing themselves in new environments through this apparently hit-and-miss process.{{Fn|1}} Crotalids, when they arrive, are extremely aggressive and will attack anything within sight to establish their territory – should they encounter a threat they cannot defeat however, they will simply vanish back into the [[Warp]] to seek a less hazardous environment.{{Fn|4}}
