Bowfish

''"They're called bowfish 'cause you'll never see one off the stern of a ship. They like to race and they race to win. Sure, some high-powered vessels can outrun 'em but they're smart. They learn real quick that the ship's faster and won't even try. 'Cause they like to win." - a Meditersari fisherman''

Bowfish live in the shallow tropical waters of equatorial Caspar near the coastline. They feed on shellfish, a ready source of food, and apparently have enough spare time to have developed a pattern of 'playing' with the sentient population of the ocean. Legends abound of bowfish mistaking small vessels for toys, trying to throw them into the air, and then rescuing the fisherman they just unceremoniously dumped into the sea. Invariably the stories tell of an almost apologetic approach by the errant fish, from a few meters below the surface to come up beneath the swimmer and haul them toward their upturned boat or the nearest dry land. However the bowfish aren't so apologetic that Sarians engaged in watersports don't occasionally find themselves being rolled in the waves by a playful creature.

Averaging two meters in length at adulthood, but occasionally growing larger, bowfish are near the top of the food chain. Their skin is usually some shade of blue or green, spotted lighter, though some gray specimens have been documented. Like other Sarian fauna, both their skin and their eyes evidence a metallic sheen. Their flesh is edible, delicate and finely flavored by their shellfish diet, but has never been a staple food. Some fisherfolk consider them intelligent and speak out against killing them, a very few consider them rivals or hazards but even then prefer to frighten them off rather than kill them wantonly. Tales also exist of ill luck after the killing of a bowfish.