Chromaptera heteropteryx
With the extra protein in their diet and little competition for larger omnivores, as well as to be better able to way their main muscal prey, a population of J. alepouvola split off and started to get bigger. The result of this, J. heteropteryx, ranges between 50-65 cm in total length. It has better eyesight than its ancestor, a necessity for safe flight with its larger size; this new trait mainly comes from a clearer, more flexible lens. It has a few anatomical changes compared to its ancestor to support its larger size, most notably the shortening of its hind wings and the broadening of its front ones--an adaptation which makes it more aerodynamic and therefore better at flight.
To increase the efficiency of its hunting, J. heteropteryx--after distracting its prey with loose vegetation--catches its prey by swooping down from the branches at high speed, snatching the small creature in its mouth before making its way back up into the treetops, where it feasts. It also eats the leaves of various polyphs in its environment, just like its ancestor.
Like its ancestor, J. heteropteryx lays soft-shelled eggs in nests up in trees. It is sexually dimorphic, with the males being brightly colored compared to the females. As it inherits an ancestral ability to hear and vocalize, it locates potential mates with a high-pitched mating call.
J. heteropteryx feeds on all of the same things as its ancestor, and due to its increase in size it is significantly better at it--especially when eating S. spikus, its primary musculata prey, as it is better able to take them down thanks to its size and can even catch several in a short time period.
