Herbivore Ecology : Aptonoth, Popo, Apceros and Slagtoth in Monster Hunter

The often forgotten herbivores of the Monster Hunter world finally get their time in the sun! Join me to speculate how the smaller monster survive and thrive in a harsh world.

[@sharplosion1]

One thing I always found interesting was that in Tri, some Aptonoth could be absolutely massive. So large that it's probably be too risky for something like an Anjanath to try and predate. It would be cool to see that level of size diversity among the herbivores again as examples of super individuals that have likely avoided predation and could very well die of old age naturally.

[@unnaturalhistorychannel]

Yeah I do miss the mega-Aptonoth from Tri - it'd also be nice for different behaviours in them as well.

[@NightmareRoach]

And yet they still die in 3 hits. Would have been funny if the giant ones had the ability to body you in one swipe.

[@TsulaAngenati2292]

I had the idea for “bull herbivores.” Basically herbivores so lathe and strong they can contend with large monsters, it would be cool to see something like that in game

[@NightmareRoach]

@@TsulaAngenati2292 they had the bulldrome in the older games which I would say is the closest to that.

[@gellax111]

@@TsulaAngenati2292 That's basically the Diablos: they're herbivores, but so strong they're considered an apex predator, because they have no known predator.

[@thenerdbeast7375]

As cool as the predators are, I wish the herbivores would get more spotlight in the games.

[@grantowens7537]

A big-ass tank of a monster, we need more monsters like Gammoth. Hulking things on par with Deviljho

[@aeonmatter6976]

Like yeah! Some herbivores are far more dangerous then predators. Like thier is a species of cow so dangerous that natives call it the black death, because of how ferocious they are. They would ram into you until you are either dead or unable to move

[@grantowens7537]

Oooh! Or an herbivore elder dragon who’s grazing just uproots and flattens towns and attacks any living thing it sees because of its smaller juvenile form!

[@isaacm7934]

So the only herbivores are in the series that I can remember are Diablos and gammoth

[@draw2death421]

@@grantowens7537 arent Duramboros, Diablos, Monoblos and Bambaro also herbivores? Id call those hulking.

[@ganonsbaker3026]

Love seeing the little guys get coverage too. Player bias always makes people think there's infinite wyverns running around, but honestly every quest canonically happens only once. The unique ways the herbivores have adapted to their environments and predators is very interesting. I wouldn't be Suprised if Apceros have taken out many inexperienced brute or even flying wyverns with those spiked clubs

[@unnaturalhistorychannel]

Not to mention for smaller raptorial bird wyverns too a strike from a thagomiser would probably be fatal. Bring on tougher herbs!

[@1998topornik]

It is really shame that Monster Hunter lack so much in herbivores diversity. Gammoth, larinoth and epioth are ones of my favourite monsters design wise. I hope devs will add in the future something akin to giant hippo or buffalo. They are great fighters in real world and monsterized will be interesting to see.

[@unnaturalhistorychannel]

A hippo-like large monster would be a really cool water combat fight if / when it comes back!

[@furyfossil4407]

What I'm looking for in a fight is a gigantic sauropod-like Herbivore bigger than any of the carnivorous wyverns it lives with. It could have spikes under and on top of its neck as well as a thorny, whip-like tail that it constantly lashes at you to keep you on your toes. But if it swings in the air with all its might, it can cause a shockwave that knocks you off balance. It could also try squishing you with its pillar-like legs.

[@manie.8241]

I'd say take it a step further and make a game's final boss a really threatening Herbivore that everyone thinks is an elder dragon at first, like how everyone thought Ahtal-ka was a dragon at first! A giant hippo, mayb a rhinoceros even

[@jamieburn4577]

I know it's not mainline but Frontier had a buffalo/bison herbivore and a more mountain goat-like herbivore to live in the Highlands map :)

[@TsulaAngenati2292]

@@manie.8241 it could be this giant herbivorous elder dragon from the “tale of the five.” The one that “slept and became the forest.”

[@adamgrogory]

There’s been a suggestion on this channel before that the Monster Hunter world recently came out of an Ice Age, so maybe an additional reason why there are so few large herbivores in the world is because most of them died out at the end of the glacial period, and Aptonoth and the other herbivores have very effectively seized the near-entirety of the world due to lack of competition. Like how there were upwards of 60 million bison in North America pre-contact due to the extinction of mammoths, camels and horses there. Or like how Lystrosaurus became the most common vertebrate in the world right after the Permian Mass Extinction. Larinoth seems to be oddly large for an endemic island species, so it wouldn’t surprise me if Larinoth’s ancestral family on the mainland were the most common large herbivores during the glacial period (maybe they are the reason many of the predators are so much vastly larger than the current common herbivore guild) but then died out due to climate change and competition with Aptonoth and the like, leaving them as the new abundant megaherbivores.

[@unnaturalhistorychannel]

Agree with this myself, and it may have had quite sweeping impacts on various ecosystems and individual monsters too.

[@Dodoraptor4]

Perhaps it’s even more so the extinction that happened due to the start of the ice age. Many groups of herbivorous megafauna (as well as many others) succumbed to climate during the Pliocene-Early Pleistocene due to the shifting climate, from chalicotheres to giant hyraxes. Pretty sure that it was more severe than the climate only extinctions of the late Pleistocene-Holocene (which, barring Australia, generally weren’t the biggest factor, or at least the decisive one, in the continental extinctions) Perhaps the surviving herbivores are the ones that weathered both the cooling clime and the warming interglacials between them.

[@dianslabbert504]

A thing that always bothers me when people question how can the Herbivore class of monsters even survive in the MH world is that they often only take game play and in-game mechanics into account, and don't really think about it realistically. The larger of the Herbivore classed monsters I think that if they were real, would be dangerous to hunt and could seriously harm Hunter and predator monster alike if something goes wrong for their aggressor. Kelbis and Anteka rely a mixture of camouflage and their speed for survival. Mossswine most likely use camouflage and when it comes to the largest Herbivore classed monsters (Aptonoth, Popo, Apceros, Slagtoths and Larinoths) they are likely to be physically very strong and could injure their predator/s if they have to fight as a last resort. Aptonoth and Apceros have clubbed tails that when swung could likely kill a raptorial Bird Wyvern and severely injure something like a large Flying or Brute Wyvern. Larinoths too have a massive clubbed tail and have sheer size and that alone could likely deter many of the large predator monsters from even trying to hunt a healthy individual. In game a Larinoth's attacks barely do anything to a player wearing good armour, but in reality they would crush a human flat under foot with no problem. When it comes to Popo I think if they notice the predator in time they would form a defensive circle around their calves. That large wall of tusks and muscle would even deter something like a Barioth. Slagtoths when they get aggressive rear up on their hind legs and then smash back down on all fours with force. Slagtoths are obviously quite heavy beasts and this rearing up their hind legs is likely a defence mechanism against smaller Bird Wyverns and Flying Wyverns which generally do have their heads relatively low to the ground. So as the Slagtoth rears up and the predator lunges in for a bite, the Slagoth using its mass comes down with force on the head of the predator.

[@DJWeapon8]

If the next MH game is takes a slower paced approach to combat and introduces more and improves upon old survival and tracking mechanics, I'd be completely down for buffing up the large herbivore monsters to be as damaging as the large "boss" monsters. Even making them have 4x as much HP compared to previous games. Similarly, small herbivores could also become more flighty and agile. Needing stealth to be hunted effectively. Giving the crouching mechanic and hiding shrubs _some_ use.

[@dianslabbert504]

@@DJWeapon8 what you described in a way kind of reminds me of the Vespoid Queen and Shakalaka King in Freedom Unite. They were "boss" monsters but in a way were still "normal" monsters in a sense. They would die a lot faster than even a Prey Drome. They were like mini bosses. I can imagine if we take Popo for example there could be a Popo Bull that can be a mini boss fight that can trigger sometimes if you attack a Popo and could do some decent damage to a large monster in a kind of turf war. Or it can prevent your target monster from recovering stamina during a hunt when it gets tired by preventing it from killing and eating an individual of its herd. Therefore your target monster stays in an exhausted state for a bit longer than usual. When it comes to the smaller monsters there is at least some "stealth" involved. Anteka and Kelbi will run away from you and avoid you if they see you, but won't leave the area like Gargwa do. Typically for someone using a melee weapon is after Anteka or Kelbi materials it is the best for them to attack it from behind so that it doesn't hop away constantly, but in-game this isn't much of an issue considering that they aren't that fast in the first place

[@Hyper_Drud]

I do like that Apceros are the most aggressive of the herbivores. Popo, Aptonoth and Larinoth tend to ignore you until you attack them and Slagtoth roar at you from a distance and only attack when you get close. Apceros actively approach and attack you when they spot you.

[@HagdoBr]

In Lore, Larinoth can kill a fully grown Glavenus, this is sick.

[@rac1equalsbestgame853]

@@Hyper_DrudWon't be surprised if Apceros fall into the "hyperagressive herbivore" camp where they premetively attack anything that remotely looks like a threath to cancel it out before it becomes a problem. And even if an entire Apceros circle dies in the process of defending againsnt an Anjanath, if the wyvern comes out with broken tusks broken jaw or a broken nose frill, the 3 apceros will prolly be replenished shortly after, the crippled Anjanath is doomed to fail reproductively if not die to losing tools vital to hunting and will take much longer to replace. Otherwise even the single rathians that stay there likely avoid Apceros as much as they can

[@isaacm7934]

We need a lot more herbivorous large monsters

[@fistybaby9489]

God this is such an underrated channel. Can't wait till you get the recognition you deserve!

[@unnaturalhistorychannel]

Thank you! I think my videos might be a bit too stuffy for wide spread recognition - often stunned by getting to 3K!

[@SlightlyCivil]

There is a quest description in MH 1 that describes velociprey attacking a farmers cattle. Ive always assumed that the original games were trying to portray monsters as rare, and that they live along real world species. It is cool that over time we start to see the real world animals be slowly rplaced with monsters. They're outcompeting them

[@HagdoBr]

Large mosnters are rare, but smaller monsters are a comum problem.

[@frougee]

One thing i HAVE to say is: this is *EXACTLY* what happened in pokèmon.

[@The_PokeSaurus]

The unsung heroes of the Monster Hunter ecosystems. I'm very happy to learn more about how herbivores work in environments, and your videos are going to be a huge help for my future world-building projects.

[@unnaturalhistorychannel]

Glad I can help!

[@playnejaymes]

Look into made in abyss very well though out ecosystem as well

[@cerrack_7522]

The true underdogs of Monster Hunter, and some of the best designs as well!

[@timothyblinn9734]

On top of being super well thought out, another reason this channel is quickly becoming one of my favorites is just how often you discuss with and genuinely consider the comments and community you're building. Very well done as always :)

[@unnaturalhistorychannel]

Thank you! And with such great theories there's no way I can't include as much as I can!

[@powerbalancevathelastkitsu2504]

@@unnaturalhistorychannel hey man, if can give barioth some love, I'd appreciate it

[@powerbalancevathelastkitsu2504]

@@unnaturalhistorychannel I also hoping you'd go over epioth and larinoth

[@jamescampbell4416]

It’s great that a long-length video for some of the most under-appreciated monsters in the series

[@JaxDaHax1]

Its 5am, and I'm tired and shitty on my way to work But listening to this on the car trip single handedly saved my day

[@unnaturalhistorychannel]

Glad I could help!

[@pinkfridge6111]

As we all know aptonoth isnt in MHrise but is there a reason ? I believe yes ! If we Look at the First area (where bombadgy are) we can See that it has unusual Vegetation for the "forest" map in MH Games. Everywhere are These White plants that dont Look Like anything I have ever Seen in a MH game, maybe they are the reason Aptonoth arent in the game We always find Dung next to these plants, maybe they have a poison that increases Gas and waste production in the Body causing Dung tonappear wach Quest. The bombadgy most likely take adventage of that by being able to produce more of the explosive Fluid that is Part of their defense mechanism. TL;DR : My theory is that Aptonoth arent in the shrine Ruins because the plants have a poison that increases waste production helping the bombadgy but hindering the Aptonoth

[@unnaturalhistorychannel]

I like it! The density of seem to be bamboo like plants may also prevent aptonoth colonisation as well.

[@ninjag-o-g3150]

I like this! It's also worth noting that the Shrine Ruins is where the Rampage passes through (hence, being ruined.) Bombadgy are small enough and pack enough of a punch that they could probably defend themselves against any monsters who stray from the horde, then flee and find a safe place to hide. A herd of aptonoth, too big to hide in the kind of vegetation they have in game and likely unable to climb the more mountainous areas of the Shrine Ruins, would be sitting ducks. Just funnel them down one of the two valleys at the top of the map and pin them against the waterfall or the cliff, and a horde of rampaging monsters could slaughter an entire herd. There are numerous other areas like this where an entire herd could be cornered by even just normal predation.

[@unicorntomboy9736]

Yain Garuga could be a great monster to talk about in a future video. It's essentially the Honey Badger of the Monster Hunter world. As well as it's extreme tenacity and aggression, it's also shown to be extremely intelligent and cunning for a Wyvern (just look at it's MH World intro cutscene against Deviljho both both those qualities) both towards human hunters and other monsters, only surpassed by the primate/mammalian monsters like Blanganga & Kecha Watcha and certain Elder Dragons like Nergigante and Fatalis. It's a scrawny and crafty creature that could scare off larger predetors like Rathalos and Nargacuga, which is compelling

[@unnaturalhistorychannel]

Yian Garuga and it's smaller pink brother will definitely be covered in future!

[@gallixypegasuss1546]

Gog soon? Because Gog uses the chemical processes that hydrothermal creatures use. Plus with Hollow bones, and such a large size, Gog is a great subject for an episode

[@JanusHoW]

Gogmazios is an elder dragon, so it automatically leans heavily on the side of fantastical.

[@capitanpastabase6342]

@@JanusHoW Gogmazios is one of the most normal Elder Dragons, he is just big.

[@drakenzahn9149]

Two things I think would be interesting to cover are the herbivore brute wyverns and wyverians. Banbaro and Duramboros are pretty distinct from the rest of their class, by basically being theropod versions of moose and buffalo respectively, I imagine it's a case of convergent evolution and aren't actually related to other brutes or to bird wyverns; what I think makes it harder to place them in the family tree is the low number of large herbivore monsters. As to wyverians, it's one of those cases where I think the lore gets in the way of a more pausible solution, I would imagine they are more closely related to primates like blangonga, and them being descendants of wyverns is folklore, similar to certain cultures having dragons or lions as their ancestors.

[@marcusaaronliaogo9158]

They evolved from a kestodon like creature

[@TravellerWence]

Just gotta say I’d love a video on Larinoth , Sauropods are hands down one of the coolest dinosaurs and Larinoth is my favourite herbivore in the series. I’m still not over the fact you can’t have one as a buddy in the Stories games , massive missed opportunity.

[@thecanadiandane7262]

People complaining that monster hunter has too many predators and not enough prey forget how often aptonoth are portrayed as moving in herds that cover entire steppes in a sheet of grey

[@scorpiopede]

Really great video, it's so good seeing the herbivores get some love. I always wondered just how they managed to survive but all the points you bring up really manage to fit in-universe and don't outright contradict what is seen in games either which really helps the world of Monster Hunter feel that much more believable. Despite their higher population densities and success, I do wish we get more herbivores that at least co-exist on the same map. We got a bit of that already with Bullfango and Rhenoplos, but it was really taken up a notch with the additions of Kestodon and Gastodon in World, and heck those herbivores would be worth checking out too at some point I'm sure, along with Gargwa and Larinoth. The bit of Gammoth was incredibly interesting and not something I ever put together, I suppose in that way it really IS the Popodrome and not just a meme because of their similarities. Gameplay wise, it would be nice to see herbivores get a bit more added to them, maybe not to be as strong as large monsters, but it always seemed weird to me something the size of a Larinoth can go down in a few hits while smaller and obviously lighter bird wyverns like Great Maccao take far longer to kill.

[@unnaturalhistorychannel]

Thank you! It'd be really nice to see mixed herds in future yeah, and more dynamism in their behaviours as well as just more of them.

[@agisuru]

As someone who lives in America, the numbers of the herbivores are not surprising. There are so, so many deer. There's always a new roadkilled one every day on the same stretch of road, and there's always entire herds in every inch of forest. I have to imagine that the Monster Hunter world could never have a robust highway system because hitting an aptonoth would be such a massive hazard.

[@dima_keller]

Part about Apceros' defensive triangle kinda blew my mind. A bit of topic, but it's straight up insane to me that they do that IN GAME

[@Dranlia]

One thing I wonder about aptonoth is if they in some way benefit as a species from flying wyverns like rathalos. Like given that a lot of flying wyverns are so oppressive other herbivores just become more suited to the forests with plenty of cover. Meaning the aptonoth don't have to compete with them for the more open grassland areas we frequently see them in.

[@thecuriousone0680]

Lovely video as always! I always learn something new from these and it helps with my spec evo projects. When it comes to the herbivores, I love them all as well. Haven't had any experiences with Popo or Apceros since, until last week, the only MH game I had was 3U, game which made me fascinated with Aptonoth. The gigantic males that could appear in expeditions were a sight to behold, one time one of them even stayed behind and attacked a rathian I was hunting, it even managed to tank a fire ball and several hits from her before fleeing, so they're definetly not defenseless. When it comes to more hebivore variety, more small herbivores to represent different nieches are always welcome, but I would seriously love if we got more large herbivores. The blos, banbaro and duramboros are nice but I'd love some large herbivore with a body plant more akin to the smaller ones (Like gammoth and the popos) rathen than using the rig of majoritarily carnivorous classes (Flying wyverns and Brute wyverns in this case). A large dinosaurian herbivore with a more aggresive temper like that of a moose or a rhino would be great, perhaps being a rare species to encounter compared to the abundant aptonoth, similar to how stuff like greater Kudus are very rare compared to the closely related impalas.

[@unnaturalhistorychannel]

I do miss the Tri mega-aptonoth bull. And yeah a mix of more small-monster herbivores plus more actual herbivorous monsters to fight in game would be good. Thinking of it the bulk of the trophy hunting industry is supported by ungulates over carnivorans so they'd be no shortage of demand from the nobility for horns and hides to decorate their homes with.

[@kelambrown4033]

Great video! I find it neat that popo being one of the few mammal herbivores in mh and their thick fur and warn blood is one of the only things that allows them to survive in colder regions that none of the other reptilian herbivores could survive in. I really liked this video and it would be cool to see you do an endemic life video and information on the actual environment of the games

[@Cubey3]

I wonder how the wyverns stave off the cold though. Tigrex at least might be warm blooded as he flushes himself with blood when enraged getting a red hue

[@kelambrown4033]

@@Cubey3 I imagine most other wyverns a likely warn blooded that hang out in that area such as fulger anja, legiana is another case altogether because I want to say it's just adapted to the cold and may only have warm blood circulating in parts of its body that need ut such as internal organs while the wings and down the external part of the body of spiracle type air holes used for making his ice abilities I believe. Barioth is more than likely also warm blooded,

[@Cubey3]

@@kelambrown4033 that would make sense, i guess certian wyverns must have evolved to have warm blood. Barioth for sure is one of the more mammalian looking wyverns

[@rac1equalsbestgame853]

@@Cubey3 After a certain size just the biological proceses of being alive are enough to keep you warm If anything Tigrex needs a way to shed heat (probably why it still has it's wings) than anything else. Worst comes to be just take refuge in a cave to stave off a severe blizzard

[@BlackRaptor77]

As someone who enjoys speculative takes on fantasy creatures I really do believe your channels deserves more attention. Keep it up sir!

[@JanusHoW]

I think the "small" herbivores are often forgotten about because 1) Their parts don't make for very good gear; and 2) They die so much more easily than the "large" monsters you are mostly tasked with hunting. Even the absolutely colossal Larinoths, which are the first monsters you see out in the field in Generations, die in a few hits from even the starting weapons - unless it's Level 1 Normal shot from a bowgun; that can't kill ANYTHING in one hit, even the small Neopterons! I do like how Monster Hunter has been giving us powerful, threatening herbivores like Duramboros, Banbaro and Gammoth, especially since the latter is essentially the "Popodrome". Bloodbath Diablos being the "leader" of the otherwise predatory Deviants was also a breath of fresh air.

[@Ymryrth]

My favorite small monsters are the popo. I started with monster hunter freedom ultimate and their design just warms my heart. The tusks remind me of a mix be between moose antlers and elephant tusks and their fur looks nice. Also I have a weakness for gentle giants.

[@spiritvdc5109]

My favorite small monster is Kestodon. Given my favorite dinosaur is Stygimoloch, the hammer-skulled biped made famous by her role in Jurassic World 2, I find the design of the Kestodon very aesthetically pleasing, and their habit of ramming the player makes the world feel alive since they're rearing to interact with you instead of just being a mobile set piece. I wish more small monsters were spooked by or hostile toward the player, to make it feel like we're traversing a living ecosystem.

[@hexacockadrom_7898]

Oh I can’t wait for the next video, despite the inaccuracies in this documentary it’s still one of my favorite ever created and still is responsible for my love for dinosaurs and animal ecology today. I anticipate the video to come and absolutely adore the content you produce. I’ve always wanted to have someone look into the theoretical biology of the MH universe and you really do deliver, good stuff.

[@unnaturalhistorychannel]

Thank you so much! Should have it up in the next week or so!

[@CreatureMan934]

its finally here!! fantastic video as always, i would have loved to hear more about larinoth personally because i think its adorable, but i enjoyed every bit and especially the part at the end where you brought up what comments from the last video anyway YAY HERBIVORES!

[@manie.8241]

I can't believe I just found your channel right now, you have no idea how much I needed your channel

[@jimb4549]

You have such an incredible knowledge base from which you derive your points. I’ve learned a tremendous amount about real world ecologically from your monster hunter videos

[@anthonychessar7179]

Nice video! It's good to see spotlight given to what is probably the lower part of the food chain in Monster Hunter. I would definitely like to see what you would for all the other herbivores like the pigs, the bipedal creatures from world, even the sauropods from 4(even including the 2 from Frontier)

[@anthonygorman94]

I am so glad I stumbled upon this channel! I can't wait to see all the other vids. Definitely subscribing.

[@draw2death421]

Since you went over 'Plesioth and Lagiacrus' and 'Jyuratodus and Cephadrome' in a single video are you gonna do someting simular like 'Beotodus and Somnacanth' in a same video and 'Lavasioth and Agnaktor' in a same video?

[@mudshrooze]

I like that you mentioned Gobul. He is in My top 30 monsters and honestly out of every monster in Tri. I miss him the most

[@hubhikarilives]

Your content is so high quality, thank you for the efforts!!

[@unnaturalhistorychannel]

Thank you for saying, glad you're enjoying them!

[@delmerputnam1679]

Always nice to see herbivores not get immediately shit on. I love your analysis of these guys and agree that seeing more varied ones would be awesome. YES!!! To this day, one of the best dino docus ever, even as it continues to fall behind scientifically. It's portrayals of the dinosaurs as animals truly is timeless. Honestly, that can be said of the animals in any walking with property (with exception to the movie from a few years ago). With regards to the video, will it be looking at Walking with as a whole or just Walking with Dinosaurs?

[@unnaturalhistorychannel]

Thank you! And walking with as a whole.

[@DoodersDen]

I vey much like how you've akined the Slagtoth to that moreso to a manatee than the seemingly more "popular " thinking of it being more of a hippo in niche! I had always had a hard time really figuring out what they truly reminded me of until now! Also I CANNOT wait for the WWD video!

[@dragonstame]

I never gave much thought to the monster hunter herbivores, but you managed to make them just as interesting as the other critters!

[@CyberJellos]

Now that you have done a herbivore video, I would love to see one on omnivores, such as bulldrome. Really enjoy every monster hunter ecology video you put out, and re-watch them a lot.

[@chancegivens9390]

I absolutely love this channel!

[@doragoonlelagoon6728]

This was an interesting topic for discussion, the herbivores usually get less attention than the main predatory monsters in the series so this was nice to see. And I also love Popo, so cute ,so fluffy .

[@noahsbasement1343]

This is one of the most unique channels that I've seen on KZbin.

[@incredibilis4024]

Hi, love your content! Would it be possible to look at the speculative evolution of Primeval's future mantis and those burrowing insect things. Love both primeval and monster hunter!

[@1YCARADOFACAO]

The herbivores are actually mu favourite creatures in MH. I mostly enjoy the mammals, like Rajang, for the main boss ones too. Gammoth is my favourite monster in MH

[@rattled6732]

Honestly I wish they put up more of a fight in the games. Like in world they just deflate the second a large monster touches them. Makes it kinda weird literally everything isn’t eating them with how easy they are to take down.

[@TheGreatCragWyvern]

In the beta world build, the Aptonoth would run away, but Anjanath was running at the same speed as them, heck, the Aptonoth used the environment to escape an Anjanath by squeezing into a space that Anja was to big to fit though. However, someone mentioned on a game perspective, that most of the fight would be a chase as the predator would try to eat the prey when it was hungry and need to replenish energy during a fighr

[@juanisol8275]

wow I had never thought about the distribution of herbivorous species in that way and thinking about it well that would explain many things. Hopefully they also attribute redesigns to the other species of the old world or even new variants similar to gigantism or island dwarfism. Interesting how you explained its diversity, anatomical attributes and its unique defense mechanisms. I love your Channel!

[@unnaturalhistorychannel]

Thank you! And dwarf aptonoth on an island would be fantastic.

[@juanisol8275]

@@unnaturalhistorychannel 😍👍

[@greathannah4035]

I sometimes wonder if smaller herbivores travel alongside these big fellas for protection, but by looking at predator response large herbivores have in game and cutscenes and the fact we rarely see large and small herbivores together in maps I doubt so The Kelbi in the Wildspire Waste seem to avoid direct contact with Apceros and don’t really seek out for protection when a predator is around (again due to gameplay over anything else), another example I could mention are the Anteka in the Frost Islands that feed alongside a Popo family, I’m just curious of how much protection or security an Aptonoth herd could provide to a herd of Kelbi or a family of mosswine and how could an Aptonoth herd benefit from the presence of smaller herbivores

[@remygallardo7364]

Slowly binging my way through your monster hunter content as a MH junkie myself and while I didn't study ecology I love to speculate. That being said I would love to see you cover the OG pandemic the Magala family at some point. You likely could cover the Hazaks at the same time since they have such strong similarities in their parasitic method of miasma.

[@PoorHub]

I think the reason monster hunters herbivores are so underrated is because they aren't much of a fight during gameplay. Maybe if capcom made more large herbivores I think they would become more popular. I always thought Diablos, Monoblos, and Gammoth were much worse than the majority of the predatory monsters during gameplay, due to the raw aggression and the fact that they hit like a damn train. Maybe a fanged beast with inspiration of a bison would cool.

[@BIGHlevel7]

Do you think you'll cover the smaller endemic life sometime as well? Keep on keeping on, these videos are fire!

[@christianbontempo8859]

I just looked up Larinoth and Epioth, and now I’d like to see ecology videos about then. Cause they remind me of my favorite dinosaur group, the sauropods. Plus a video one Gammoth would be nice too.

[@dinosaurkin5093]

Yeah, I'm thinking this is my favorite KZbin series. Also, more herbivorous monsters please Capcom.

[@galadrinihrinor4863]

I love the apceros triangle

[@Dracomasterthefirst]

I bet Popo benefit from their mutualistic relationship with Gammoth. Gammoth mothers leave their cubs with Popo herds, and follow it around and protect it, which keeps tigrex away because Gammoth adults go out of their way to attack tigrex.

[@Cubey3]

I feel like these videos are so well put together that you could literally talk about anything and it would be an interesting video. For non monster hunter related video ideas, maybe the kaiju universe might be worth taking a look at? Idk, maybe it might be a bit too far removed from reality?

[@williamgeorge3111]

I'm hoping for an episode on the small predators like Jagras, Shamos, and Wulgs.

[@unicorntomboy9736]

There should have been a Great Shamos and Great Wulg in MH World

[@aeonmatter6976]

Video idea!! You should check out the strange creatures from the manga and anime Made in Abyss although it's character driven but the creatures are quite fun to speculate what their ecology, biology and evolutionary history is like

[@Wyvern201]

As much as I love the carnivores I genuinely do wish we’d get more quadrupedal herbivores and/or even upgrade the original herbivores to be more in-line with the dromes and greats

[@drsharkboy6568]

I really like this series, and would love to see an ecology episode on Dodogama. I know it’s a bit of an oddball given its diet, but it’s just so chunky and I’d love to be surprised if there is an explanation to its diet.

[@lilvalko5096]

my fav was always apceros, ankylosaur was always one of my favorite dinosuars and it just makes me a little sad how they are just fodder like the rest of the prey monsters.

[@ScaleHunt]

Love the videos!! I'm surprised that you didn't bring up Rhenoplos in this vid?

[@manie.8241]

May I suggest a video topic for the future? I'd like to know if you could possibly set up a common ancestor link between the cephalopodal elder dragons and the hexapodal ones, I always thought that they may be more related evolutionarily than one might think, though I might just be crazy for this. Have you ever given the idea consideration before?

[@paleopotato736]

I'd love to see some form of Apceros drome or other large monsters based on the herbivores. Showing that some of adapted to deal with the wide range of predators in their environment.

[@minaashido518]

Gammon live in popo herds

[@garangolm5924]

I love the idea of more herbivore monsters to mix it up!

[@deathshand4248]

I love that you made a video on these guys prehaps a video on deIux or rembora and other wingdrakes or the medical wonder the kelbi? would also love to a video on the uragan/rababon family as well as the nargarala family and nargacuga partially the lucent and Silverwind. Side note I also a little sad that there is not Megalocero type fight I think MHfifying these ancient deers would awsome and unique

[@wegdhass5587]

Would be cool if you made an ecology video about the various insects in monster hunter’s world, and how they survive and what they do in the ecosystem. I have literally 0 clue what a vespoid or hornetaur could be doing to benefit the ecosystem, so that would be interesting to see.

[@spikezilla54]

I enjoy the fact that in more recent games like world and rise, when on am expedition I can be part of the food chain. Hunting them if I'm out of rations or well done steaks I can go and hunt a few to cook up and even take on monsters hunting them as well.

[@paleface171]

Popo are my favourite Herbivore, they are pretty chill, and so fluffy.

[@bonemarrow3439]

I've always wondered about these guys. Imma sleep listening to this.

[@reubencaldwell8494]

It recently came to my knowledge that apceros in world will eat the severed tails of other monsters. They may actually be omnivorous as opposed to being strict herbivores.

[@dinosaurkin5093]

Anyone else remember when Lystrosaurus comprised 95% of land vertebrates?

[@pinkfridge6111]

Day was garbage but unatural history vids aalways bring back my joy !

[@user-yw9mw9hv8o]

Ayyyy i love my desert succulents. While cacti and euphorbias are most well known for being an example of convergent evolution, with succulence to make it through dry seasons and spines (and or toxic latex) to discourage herbivory, I do want to highlight that some genera of cacti have also gained adaptations for camouflage, where spine coverage would be short and thick, with a color mimmicking the sorrounding geology, like limestone. Meanwhile in africa there are species of Anacampseros and aizoaceae genera that use pigments (and trichombs) to closely resemble pebbles or match the sorrounding soils, Ttanopsis, Lithops "living stones". Some of these and some cacti will also grow flush with the ground for even better camouflage, like Lophophora williamsii. This part is what i have no clue about, but i propose diablos also go for large populations of opuntioids as can be seen in the sandy plains, while it might be worthwhile for apceros to actually look for smaller cacti, in order to make their target food more varied and avoid competition. They might also be forced to, if the diablos defend their territory with large growing succulents. I suppose that beak can shear through big plants but could also help dig up the receded growing succulents. (even though we haven't seen any in game, i believe)

[@unnaturalhistorychannel]

This was really interesting! I'm not especially good with plants myself but the world of MH must have some fascinating adaptations to deal with things like frequent bush fires and elders and etc. If you're into them you should consider a similar channel albeit with fictional plant biomes!

[@user-yw9mw9hv8o]

@@unnaturalhistorychannel well i'm glad you liked the comment! but i'm nowhere near knowledgeable enough, lol. Botany is an interest of mine but i'm actually studying chemistry, that's only vaguely related, sadly.

[@sharksuperiority9736]

26:20 Just random note, I totally heard “What are my thoughts on eggs”

[@unnaturalhistorychannel]

Love them in case you were wondering

[@sharksuperiority9736]

@@unnaturalhistorychannel Ah good, glad we cleared that up

[@StockGoat]

I would love for Wilds to have actual active hunting, I mean I know predators in World need to hunt to regain stamina, but its not really hunting its really just walking up to the prey and oneshotting it. Ik it is for gameplay purposes, but I would love if there was an actual hunting mechanic: for exaple with herbivores such as Aptonoths who prefer to run away from predators, the predator should chase them, and it could end either way with either the predator manages to catch one of them or it gives up the Chase, maybe a fifty fifty scenario; or for other herbivores that rather fight like Apceros, they should form the defensive position and then the fight could end in either the predator getting too damaged and running away, or it manages to break the formation and kill one of them, then the rest would flee. Maybe there should be a more complex mechanic for that type of hunt, where every "round" the game would roll a dice to decide if the predator would actually hit the prey, or prey would be faster and counter the attack with its own attack, each of them need to be hit three times (so the predator needs to be countered three times in order to go away, and the defensive formation of the herbivores needs to be hit three times aswell in order to be broken). Idk this might be cool.

[@edryu9688]

Glad someone is giving these ecological powerhouses the spotlight they deserve. Have you ever considered how creatures like slagtoth, and to an extent ludroths, deal with parasites with their physiology? (ie their loose skin and porous manes)

[@KrazyMateo]

Still working my way through the lists, but is there more content coming out?? If so, I would love to see a video for the Barrioth!! Such an intense fight and imposing monster.

[@dima_keller]

After World's extreme focus on the ecology, compared to literally every other game in the series, it'll be a crime if they don't continue with it's ideas. So I'm certainly expecting even more small monsters including herbivores and endemic life, especially considering we already got a glimpse of a herd of new monsters in the trailer for Wilds

[@leilaclarridge5807]

I was thinking that Slagtoth are some sort of non-mammalian synapsid. While I stand by the headcanon that Aptonoth are hadrosaurs, I've seen a paleoartist on Deviantart suggest they are actually thyreophorans. Could Apceros be turtles that convergently evolved to be more like ankylosaurs, or are they ankylosaurs that evolved to be more like turtles? Popo resemble tapir to me, but while tapir are odd-toed ungulates with four front toes and three back toes, Popo have four toes on all feet. Perhaps they evolved extra toes to increase surface area for walking on top of snow, similar to snowshoes?

[@gore6065]

the thumbnail pic goes hard af

[@killercompy631]

I love this videos can you next time talk about why only 2 species of birdwyverns exist in the new world and a loot more fanged wyverns than in the old world

[@redhunter9669]

Remember kids, the diablos is an herbivore. (Although not classified as such)

[@lliamswick8507]

You should do a video over diablos monoblos and duramboros. The three largest herbivores.

[@zachtopritzhofer7161]

Babe wake up a new unnatural history video was uploaded! As always fantastic job!!

[@unnaturalhistorychannel]

Thank you!

[@waywardwriterryu7185]

if I may may I point you towards Monster Hunter Spirits and Stories, the games have the juvenile forms of many monsters in the series so I think it would be a good thing to look at for these videos as I've seen you question what certain monsters are like as adolescents

[@tomm8218]

fun fact: in the german version of Monster Hunter, the Popo is called a Pepe. Make of that what you will

[@minaashido518]

Slagtoth be like

[@Uragaans_Chin]

I hope with the travelling we seem to do in Sunbreak, wherever we go has Aptonoth again. It felt really wierd to me when i noticed they werent in base Rise

[@dalekrenegade2596]

Cool video, I was also wondering if you heard the novel Fragment by Warren Fahy?

[@jameswilliams2075]

I would love an episode on nargacuga from all the cut scenes its aparently a small prey specialist and it being shown hunting the small bird wyverns and kelbi. Wich raises an interesting question of why are large prey specialist like rathalos and such so aggressive to them? My main theory is nargacuga might hunt the young individuals of other large predators over Kelbi and raptors when available

[@unnaturalhistorychannel]

Narg and his prey preferences will be covered for sure!

[@Zmirremi_iasmin]

boy, I also really want the next generation to have more herbivores, I would like big ones, like a gammoth or something the size of a larinoth and small animals, like kelbi and anteca. give more biodiversity to the game, I also really wanted presentation trailers or really something that we could see in the game, that showed inter and intraspecific interactions, even the ones we have, I would like to see the creation that the Aptonoths do, like hatch (probably making an incubator out of leaves) how do they care for the chicks?

[@contentthemaker]

On the part where he talks about how Tigrex isn’t agile the mh4u intro backs this up The hunter was able to escape him despite being slower because the forest was thick Tigrex was fast but kept getting stuck

[@Deoix9877]

I think it could be interesting to talk about the fated four, since they have an interesting trait where all the gammoths you hunt are females and all the mizus, astalos and glavenus are male, I think it'd be neat to see your theories about the differences in behaviour and anatomy between the sexes of each of the species that explains why we only need to hunt one of them

[@hag8752]

Diablos is a great aggressive herbivore, but i need more angry moose and bison. Big risks for big rewards for the predators like gammoth

[@Ninjaman176]

a year late but for some reason I feel like the Popo will end up getting domesticated in like 100 years or so

[@zafirkes7328]

Will you do a video on endemic life?

[@marbledfrog2515]

I got mentioned!!!!! Yay!