Huburalut

Cetaceans! 

The Nea-contest is already going very well with more than 15 entries! So many cool ideas

But of course I can't stop, so here another creature of the Kurnugian sea. The Huburalut or black humpback porpoise is a small whale which prefers the shallow waters (up to 70 m deep) and mangroves of the Hubur delta. 
Its name comes obviously from the name of the river system where it is often seen and from the Arabic word الحوت (ahlut) meaning whale (the word for porpoise is خنزير البحر (khinzir albahr) but in xenolinguists not everything makes sense). 

The animals feed on fish and squids and in the mangroves even try leaves and fruits. They aren't acrobatic but still very playful and active. In difference to its terrestrial ancestor Neophocaena phocaenoides these animals are a bit larger mostly darker in appearance and have not just a ridge on their back but a row of 6 to 8 humps with sensory areas. 
Their eyesight is poor but they hear very well and find prey even in murky waters.

This species has a additional gene from other, deep diving, odontoceti which helps them dealing with the lower oxygen level of the planet. This gene helps them to produce more myoglobin which stores oxygen much better than hemoglobin (but this isn't enough to give it the subspecies name 'manufactius')

Nea: hyrotrioskjan.deviantart.com/a…