Cryptid/ Mythological Creature Encyclopedia

Wyvern

Animal Class: Reptile

Diet: Carnivorous

Many people get Wyverns confused with Dragons, but the differences between the two species are: Wyverns have two legs instead of four( their wings are where the front legs of a Dragon would be), are much smaller than Dragons, and are unable to breathe fire.

Wyverns walk in a similar way to how it is believed that Pterosaurs walked. They fold in their wings and walk on their elbows. Due to this behavior, Wyvern wings are more heavily armored than Dragon wings and can take more hits. 

Wyverns can hunt alone or in small packs, but many have been known to follow Dragons and scavenge off the kills made by them.

Like Dragons and Hydras, Wyverns have been around since the end of the Triassic Period and share a common ancestor with them and Dinosaurs. But, unlike Dragons and Hydras, there is a theory as to how they managed to survive the extinction event that wiped out the Dinosaurs: Their ability to hibernate for extended periods of time is what saved them.

Like the previous fact suggests, Wyverns are capable of hibernating deep underground or deep in caves for extended periods of time. They can do this for centuries, but the longer they do it, the more ravenous they will be when they wake up.

It has been theorized that ancient Wyverns had a venomous bite that allowed then to prey on things as large as Sauropods.

While not as widespread as their Dragon cousins, Wyverns have been found living on multiple continents. They tend to live in desert regions( as well as mountainous regions)and because of this, the only continent that they are not found on is Antarctica.

Wyverns lay their eggs( they lay around 4 to 10) in caves and will guard them for the entire nine months that it takes them to hatch. Since pairs mate for life, one will hunt or rest, while the other guards the nest.

Wyverns have much shorter lifespans than their cousins do and usually only live to be around 150 years old. However, for some strange reason, they don't age at all while hibernating and because of this a Wyvern that dies at 150 could have been alive for much longer than 150 years. 

While they are not capable of breathing fire, they are immune to it and because of this ability, many Fire Fighters have trained Wyverns to rescue Humans and other creatures that are trapped in things like house fires and forest fires.

Extra Fun Fact: As it was stated in a previous entry, the characters Drogon, Rhaegal, and Viserion from "Game of Thrones" may be referred to as Dragons on the show, but would be classified as Wyverns if they were real.( Or possibly, Wyvern/Dragon hybrids due to their large size and ability to breathe fire)