The majestic creatures of the ARA

The ARA is a starkly untamed wilderness, wild with creatures of all shapes and sizes serving their purpose in the delicate ecosystem. For your education, THE FLIPSIDE is providing the following field guide (and handy sight-seeing score tabulator) for your edumification.

Rushed

This creature has little time and is therefore difficult to spot amongst the herd’s speedy grazing pattern. Look for the eating, if there’s food on the face, bingo! Tag ‘em and bag ‘em! +2 points

Bassackwards

This confused beast doesn’t understand which way to turn when it’s finished gathering its foodstuffs and always turns so that it bumps into the creature behind it, inevitably resulting in a disastrous spill. Listen for the crash. +4 points

Spread

Spreads are famous for taking up more space than needed to eat. Generally, it’s with elbows, but pretty much any appendage works. You’ll want to keep your distance from a Spread, but it’s not like you’ll have a choice! +2 points

Chaw

Chaws are famous for chewing with their mouths wide open, lips smackin’, food dribblin’ out, the whole nine yards. That this behavioral pattern still exists in this particular herd is quite surprising considering the ages of these specimens. +10 points

Reacher

The Reacher is blessed with long arms and generally great height. The Reacher doesn’t wait for the grazer ahead of it to finish gathering foodstuffs. Nope, it just reaches right in, a bumpin’ and a spillin’. +5 points

Sloth

This cute little guy is most noted for its inability to eat quickly. Other grazers laugh as they eat its food. +4 points

Sleepy

This characterization is actually a subspecies of The Sloth. Both can be equally slow, but the Sleepy has flamboyant coloring, dark circles around its eyes, and generally wears pajama pants. Sleepys are most active during the weekend meals and, surprisingly, during dinner on any weekday. Be wary though, Sleepys can be dangerously cranky. +3 points

Sickly

Warning! Although a Sickly may look like a Sleepy from a distance, the crucial difference becomes readily apparent up close…Keep a bottle of hand disinfectant at the ready. -2 points

Chef

This personality can be difficult to distinguish from the Sloth, but the difference is apparent once you spot its heaping plate of seemingly unrelated food masterfully transform into a delicious feast. +15 points

Shouter

All herds must have a dominant member…and the Shouter isn’t it. But, this grazer thinks it is. Its calls can easily be heard across the feeding grounds, causing distress in the other grazers. Notice how they all turn to look and scatter from its presence. But the Shouter continues to assert its dominance! +1 point

Peppermint

Of all magnificent creatures in the ARA feeding grounds, she is the rarest. She is a maneater - toned and trim and looking for fresh meat. Too bad she’s at Rose where the odds are good but the goods are odd. +30 points

Cutter

The specimen can’t seem to understand the grazing pattern and continuously inserts itself at the beginning of a line instead of the end, frustrating and irritating other members of the herd. The Cutter oftentimes is a crossbreed with the Shouter. +3 points

Prospey

If you’re able to sight this particular specimen keep a keen eye for its parents close in tow. Count yourself lucky, because this fella is the true king of this jungle. Notice how all other grazers give it the most room, leave it alone, and it gets the best service! Bonus points if the Prospey is being led by one of the more common variety of ARA eaters. +5 points