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The dingo is an ancient (basal) lineage of dog found in Australia. Its taxonomic classification is debated as indicated by the variety of scientific names presently applied in different publications. It is variously considered a form of domestic dog not warranting recognition as a subspecies, a subspecies of dog or wolf, or a full species in its own right.

The dingo is a medium-sized canine that possesses a lean, hardy body adapted for speed, agility, and stamina. The dingo's three main coat colourations are light ginger or tan, black and tan, or creamy white. The skull is wedge-shaped and appears large in proportion to the body. The dingo is closely related to the New Guinea singing dog: their lineage split early from the lineage that led to today's domestic dogs, and can be traced back through Maritime Southeast Asia to Asia. The oldest remains of dingoes in Australia are around 3,500 years old.

A dingo pack usually consists of a mated pair, their offspring from the current year, and sometimes offspring from the previous year.

Etymology

The name "dingo" comes from the Dharug language used by the Indigenous Australians of the Sydney area. The first British colonists to arrive in Australia in 1788 established a settlement at Port Jackson and noted "dingoes" living with indigenous Australians. The dingo has different names in different indigenous Australian languages, such as boolomo, dwer-da, joogoong, kal, kurpany, maliki, mirigung, noggum, papa-inura, and wantibirri.

Domestic status

The dingo is regarded as a feral dog because it descended from domesticated ancestors. The dingo's relationship with indigenous Australians is one of commensalism, in which two organisms live in close association, but do not depend on each other for survival. They both hunt and sleep together. The dingo is, therefore, comfortable enough around humans to associate with them, but is still capable of living independently. Any free-ranging, unowned dog can be socialised to become an owned dog, as some dingoes do when they join human families

History

The earliest known dingo remains, found in Western Australia, date to 3,450 years ago. Based on a comparison of modern dingoes with these early remains, dingo morphology has not changed over thousands of years. This suggests that no artificial selection has been applied over this period and that the dingo represents an early form of dog.[40] They have lived, bred, and undergone natural selection in the wild, isolated from other dogs until the arrival of European settlers, resulting in a unique breed.

Hybrids, distribution and habitat

The wolf-like canids are a group of large carnivores that are genetically closely related because their chromosomes number 78, therefore they can potentially interbreed to produce fertile hybrids. In the Australian wild there exist dingoes, feral dogs, and the crossings of these two, which produce dingo–dog hybrids.

Dingoes occurred throughout mainland Australia before European settlement. They are not found in the fossil record of Tasmania, so they apparently arrived in Australia after Tasmania had separated from the mainland due to rising sea levels. The introduction of agriculture reduced dingo distribution, and by the early 1900s, large barrier fences, including the Dingo Fence, excluded them from the sheep-grazing areas. Land clearance, poisoning, and trapping caused the extinction of the dingo and hybrids from most of their former range in southern Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia. Today, they are absent from most of New South Wales, Victoria, the southeastern third of South Australia, and the southwestern tip of Western Australia. They are sparse in the eastern half of Western Australia and the adjoining areas of the Northern Territory and South Australia. They are regarded as common across the remainder of the continent.

The dingo's present distribution covers a variety of habitats, including the temperate regions of eastern Australia, the alpine moorlands of the eastern highlands, the arid hot deserts of Central Australia, and the tropical forests and wetlands of Northern Australia. The occupation of, and adaption to, these habitats may have been assisted by their relationship with indigenous Australians.

Prey

The study found that these canines prey on 177 species represented by 72.3% mammals (71 species), 18.8% birds (53 species), 3.3% vegetation (seeds), 1.8% reptiles (23 species), and 3.8% insects, fish, crabs, and frogs (28 species). The relative proportions of prey are much the same across Australia, apart from more birds being eaten in the north and south-east coastal regions, and more lizards in Central Australia.

Communication

Compared to most domestic dogs, the bark of a dingo is short and monosyllabic, and is rarely used. Barking was observed to make up only 5% of vocalisations. Dog barking has always been distinct from wolf barking. Australian dingoes bark mainly in swooshing noises or in a mixture of atonal and tonal sounds.

Dingoes have three basic forms of howling (moans, bark-howls, and snuffs) with at least 10 variations. Usually, three kinds of howls are distinguished: long and persistent, rising and ebbing, and short and abrupt.

Additionally, howling seems to have a group function, and is sometimes an expression of joy (for example, greeting-howls).

Behaviour

Dingoes tend to be nocturnal in warmer regions, but less so in cooler areas. Their main period of activity is around dusk and dawn. The periods of activity are short (often less than 1 hour) with short times of resting. Dingoes have two kinds of movement: a searching movement (apparently associated with hunting) and an exploratory movement (probably for contact and communication with other dogs). According to studies in Queensland, the wild dogs (dingo hybrids) there move freely at night through urban areas and cross streets and seem to get along quite well.

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[–] [email protected] 7 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago)

Welcome to hell, losers. I hate to be doing this, but I gotta. Discussion of Unjust Depths 13.8, ft. a side of sexual topics:

Open mouth, insert foot...

I hate Karuniya Maharapratham.

Die, Chaser Scum: An Essay (not really)

All of Karuniya and Murati’s scenes together in Arc 1, like up to book 3 when the Brigand departs, no problems no questions. Usage of gendered terms like "prince" and "husband material" spooked me, but I’m weird so sure, Murati is a tomboy, no big. I’m certain it’s just a Gender thing. Then there's that one time we get to follow Karuniya onboard the Brigand doing her science-y shit, she seems maybe a little sex-brained but whatever, it's not like that's a cardinal sin, okay. It is at that point though that the suspicions start to rise, because the way she uses "fuck" feels like it has a very specific charge. But still, sure, ok, no big.

By the time book 8 has rolled around and we get a Karuniya-POV flashback, I was all excited! Finally, she can become her own character! She spends it either condescending Murati’s ideological commitments through narration, or thinking about fat cock.

I was already primed to hate Karuniya for her dim view of Murati's little protest, when she chains herself to the simulator doors and demands 24/7 access and proper training so that academy students have a proper chance to become pilots. Great Murati moment; Karuniya’s reaction to this is mostly bemused and mean-spirited, thinking about possible physical ways to remove her, wishing to see every second that she’s on those doors, for her "entertainment". Like it's cute that she gets thinking about commitment to causes or whatever as a result of this but, you slanderous snake. Grrrr.

The vast majority of this flashback is spent on their first-ever date though, and oh man. Does Karu ever think about anything other than girldick?

She was 20 years old, in the middle of her undergraduate education and on a date with a cool, handsome upperclassman whom, it was rumored, boasted out of this world dick game.

I don’t even wanna know what “dick game” means lol. She also has mind-space to think about “pegging” though, I guess:

"I wonder if she would let me peg her."

Might be embarrassing myself here but I have only ever heard that particular term used for dudes, Idk. Even if you can square that it’s still weird though, Like sure Karuniya cares about Murati's career aspirations blah blah, but she goes into their date all dick dick dick dick dick and nothing else. Weird-ass cumbrained motherfucker.

Look right, Alexandra Genivov is a horny lady. Hell, Adelheid and Norn are basically doing a brat/brat tamer bit 24/7, and I still like those three. A lot, actually; Genivov's intro is kind of uncomfortable sure, but her thing with de la Rosa and how they nudge back and forth about their hobbies is cute! Similarly I know who Adelheid is outside of just being horny too, like her thoughts whenever they're tearing through that station and Adelheid is all concerned for Norn’s safety, or when Adelheid brings Norn back out of the Aer stream with her psy powers this very chapter right? I know that Adelheid is not just a freak about Norn because we've spent time in her head, seen how she feels generally. Hell, even given that I thought Adelheid’s dick-questioning was a bit strange, the whole subsequent scene coming after Norn was brooding in the shower is actually a great moment for them both. Yas, praetorian, slay, take out ur frustrations on that silly bitch(with aftercare)! Genivov only even has like three scenes before this chapter and I still have a better sense for who she is! Actually funnily enough, Genivov is having some silly character moments right after this, too. Her horny gamer bit is genuinely not that eye-rolling. "It'd be such a bottom move" is actually kinda funny, it would be a bottom move not to land that torpedo in time with the artillery round.

With Karuniya, literally all she does is think about dick, it seems. The one time we've been allowed to follow her perspective on the Brigand and hear about her thoughts, her occupation and stuff... gets interrupted with her thinking about dick. Rrrrrgh why is it like this, it’s worse because Murati is really charming in this flashback.

Also though Karuniya is a neurotypical; I get that there are gonna be neurotypicals in this best-selling webnovel, but it's so painfully weird to watch her internally commentate her own date and bitch at Murati, picking over her every word and griping at her alleged social gaffes:

Logistics huh? What's going on in that head of yours, Murati Nakara...

Karuniya found her extremely charming.

‘Teehee you’re so quirky, fuck me already!’ I hate this. Karuniya just does not stop with the “Play hard-to-get for a bit” and wanting to “poke fun” at Murati, she’s so fucking weird. No other character in this webnovel so far has actively repulsed me just with their manner of speaking, which puts Karuniya below Sawyer and Selene on the Unjust Depths Shit Character List.

It gets worse, though:

"You've been looking, so what do you think? Ladies love it when you flatter their ego."

My reaction in order was 1) die neurotypical bitch, 2) am I fucking mistaken, isn’t the person you are talking to also a lady??? Are you just deliberately being a freak, what is your conception of Murati, Karuniya, do I even want to know? Karuniya is apparently oblivious though, so when Murati kindly tries to let it slide unacknowledged, Karuniya must bring it up again, as if for effect:

"A lady loves to hear herself talked about in exacting detail."

Murati laughed a little. "I'm a lady too, you know."

"It's the principle- it's the principle of the thing, you understand."

I feel so fucking bad for Murati here. I get that the bit here is likely supposed to be that Murati is an oblivious dork and Karuniya is enjoying prodding her, it’s supposed to be cute, but instead this scene reads like Karuniya has made a social gaffe of APOCALYPTIC proportions, Murati tried to let it slide, but Karuniya just cannot stop being fucking weird. Holy shit, just ask for her dick size, cut the goddamn pretense.

"So, I always thought you were a really popular girl, a queen bee." Murati said. "I didn't think I merited your attention."

Karuniya giggled. She reached her hand across the table and briefly poked Murati's.

She is cute, but she's such a dork. How does she not see herself in the mirror?

What the hell is that even supposed to mean? Coincidentally this exchange is not helping Karuniya to beat the neurotypical allegations, I’m pretty sure “queen bee” does not have a positive connotation. What is it about what Murati said that was dorky? ^I^ ^don’t^ ^understand^ ^people...^ And one more, just to rub in how shitty and weird Karuniya is:

"Did you know there's rumours about you among the girls at the Academy, Murati Nakara?"

Was it the alcohol? Was it bringing out the sadist in her? Why did she say that?

WHY INDEED YOU ABSOLUTE FREAK, holy shit if I were Murati I'd be having a fucking panic attack, I'd be paranoid for fucking WEEKS.

Why exactly Murati wants to have sex with this woman after that, what the fuck she sees in this painfully unaware neurotypical fucker, is beyond me. That’s the lead-in to them fucking after the date, though; I must be missing something. After that ends we get a quick look at Karuniya’s perspective about their little disagreement at Thassalid station, something about feeling lesser, but by that point it becomes kind of late for ruminating on their relationship, whatever. I already know Karuniya is a fucking weirdo, I honestly kind of don’t care what she thinks anymore.

I consider this to be Karuniya's character assassination. These are her innermost thoughts: a garbage dump. I had been very mildly suspicious of her in prior chapters, but I brushed it away because eh, I’m probably just being paranoid or weird. Her behaviour in this chapter is basically my worst possible fears made manifest though, and to me this shit casts aspersions on all previous chapters. Maybe the "husband material" thing was her being fucking weird after all, since it potentially doesn't really seem like she'd internalised Murati as "female" by their first date, based on the evidence. Fucking gross!

That was such a fucking weird interjection, too, coming just after/before Karuniya and Murati launch in the “Helios” two-pilot diver. Marina’s flashback shows us what kind of life she’s led and why she’s still motivated to fight; why did we need to know that Karuniya is a fucking freak before she deploys? The intent was probably for the backstory to strengthen their relationship textually, but that fucking backfired. You truly could have just cut that dogshit flashback, because the subsequent fight is actually fun. Helios reporting for duty, y’know, it’s like Darling in the Franxx but less horny, I guess?

From this, I halfway get the sense that the Karuniya who exists when their relationship is under pressure or on the rocks, is a fundamentally different person from the one idly daydreaming about "dick-game-out-of-this-world" or Murati fucking her roommate years ago. Maybe we will get some actual character development, as a little treat, to see how Karuniya quit being a weirdo? But the text doesn’t seem aware that she is, so I’m not hopeful.

I hate this, someone please tell me I'm wrong for feeling this and logic it out at me.