breeding problems in prax

As an adult, I've often wondered how Zaxes reproduce.

Maybe the Zaxes are passing through the Prairie of Prax on their way to some spawning opportunities. That's the only biological imperative I can think of for traveling all that distance. Maybe they're like salmon, and must return to their birthplace to reproduce, or their entire life is spent in a single trip from one pole to the other.

But if that's the case, do both males and females travel? There doesn't seem to be much mating taking place in the Prairie of Prax, so maybe the females stay at the poles, getting their young males bulked up with enough fat and energy reserves to traverse the oceans and continents. If that's the case, time must be of the essence so they don't shrivel up and die en route to the other pole, which explains the biological imperative of making a straight line and not deviating to the east or west and potentially consuming your stored fat on wasted trips.

With that reading, "The Zax" becomes a study in classic Darwinism, since clearly the two Zax depicted have reached an evolutionary dead end for their species. Their inability to budge, not an inch to the west, not an inch to the east, while it ensures that whatever males live long enough to breed, also forces them to stand in the Prairie of Prax for a hyperbolic fifty-nine years, long past the point that their stored fat will last. Even if it does last them that long, through some miracle of slowed metabolism, the two Zax are going to be too decrepit to attract a mate and maintain their claim against younger, more aggressive Zax.

This scenario of course raises questions about the wisdom of the Zax Bypass. I would expect the Environmental Protection Agency or other appropriate governing body to be more restrictive about putting a new highway right through the chief migratory of such a rare and unusual species as the Zax.

Copyright © 2006 by David Learn