Majestic Creatures Profile

Sand Dragon

Habitat: Akasuna desert
Dimensions: smaller than their ancestors (varying from horse-like to enormous)
Diet: Carnivore
Rated Danger Level: 5
Colour: varies between sandy yellow to a red rust
Beast Tamer:

Sand Dragon

s have an intelligence that is perfectly comparable to humans. This creature can not only just breathe fire, but can manipulate any flame or blaze around them including a caster’s pyromantic abilities. Warning: Do not try to tame them. Many foolish people have died trying to acquire one as a pet.

The Burrowing Sand Dragon Statistics

Scientific Name: Draco harenae.
Origin: Egypt.
Diet: Omnivores. Includes scorpions, vipers, weasels, date palms and grasses.
Life Span: 300-400 years.
Size: 10 metres wide and 100 metres long.
Colour: Black, dark grey or dark brown. Sometimes golden.
Notable features: Wingless, cobra hood.

Origin of the Burrowing Sand Dragon

Native to Egypt, the burrowing

sand dragon

is one of the largest dragons currently known in mythology. Reports of said creature have dated back to at least 3000 BCE. They are long, wingless beings similar to a snake, though significantly larger in size. With an almost impenetrable hide and smooth scales that closely overlap helps prevent irritation from sand. The burrowing sand dragon can be one single colour or spotted with a pale underside. Dark spots dominate their backs, and progressively decrease in size closer to their stomachs; similar to the spotted pattern seen on narwhals. They have large round eyes that allow them superior vision at night and thick clear eyelids to protect them from the sand and other debris.

The species of the burrowing sand dragon can still be found in Egypt, with populations also living in surrounding regions. While they are able to survive hundreds of years in the desert they often return to fertile land - the Nile - to breed and raise their young; they quickly learn how to hunt, by means of stealth and speed.

The burrowing

sand dragon

is nocturnal and spends most of the day underground, buried under sand or taking shelter in rocky crevices. At night they use their keen senses to hunt. One favourite hunting technique is to remain underground and wait for the vibrations and shifting sands that suggest a creature above, they then burst out of the sand with astonishing speed, engulfing the creature with the dragon's jaws and swallowing it whole in a matter of seconds. Their jaws can open up to 15 metres wide which means their intended prey isn’t the only thing they consume; anything within the area of their prey may be ingested also. As a result, burrowing sand dragons commonly ingest sand and rock however it doesn’t provide any nutritional value, these are transformed in the dragon’s stomach in a process speculated to involve immense heat and pressure.

The following is an extract from Morrigan Darkwaters book, "Dragons of Islendor":

"The

Sand Dragon

is reported to be quite similar to the ancient dragons, as comparison can be made with the many fossils found in Akasuna. That being said, they are dramatically smaller in dimension than their ancestors. These dragons have four limbs, a long and spiky tail and, of course, a pair of very strong wings. Their colour varies from a sandy yellow to a red rust colour, which gives them a great advantage in hiding in the sands of the Akasuna desert, the reason why they hold the name of

sand dragon

s. While these dragons, like all their other cousins, are not easy to see, this species is one of the most common to encounter in the whole continent. The reason why they are considered rare has more to do with the fact that they live in a very harsh environment that few people dare to cross, the desert, than with the fact that they are extremely hard to find. In fact, the northern realm has many documented sightings of these animals during the ages, and many foolish people have died trying to acquire one to have as a pet.

Of course, not only are they untameable, but they also have an intelligence that is perfectly comparable to human intelligence. Moreover, like the majority of the dragons that remain today, they are creatures of magic. In fact, it is known that the sand dragons are able to breathe fire, which of course is one of the more classic magical abilities that the dragons own in the legends, but their affinity with fire doesn’t end there. They are also said to be able to control whatever flame is around them, which is incredibly impressive, but definitely extremely dangerous.

Thanks to the many academics that have studied these incredible creatures over the centuries, alongside other species of dragons, there is a common belief that their magic is deeply interconnected with the magical elements, similar to the magic of the elementals themselves."

For more detailed sources of information, see the following links: https://worldoflegend.eu/library/1174b187-5e15-4abd-bedb-92a52ca60e0c
https://umsu.unimelb.edu.au/news/article/7797/2021-03-05-the-world-of-dragons-the-burrowing-sand-dragon/