It is time. Welcome, everyone, to my GrishaVerse wildlife analysis!
First of all some disclaimers. My comments are based on the books and since we are talking about a fictional world, not every rule from our universe must apply there. I remember a post about how it’s stupid that Game of Thrones has got pumpkins because Westeros is European-themed and I call this bullshit. Westeros is inspired by Europe, but it IS not Europe, so pumpkins can be native there. Applying this logic, my assumptions about the GrishaVerse nature are limited. Just because Fjerda is inspired by Scandinavia, it doesn’t necessarily have all the animals and plants that live there. But to make it easier, I will assume that Leigh Bardugo mentioned every animal she invented and everything else that lives there is a creature that exists in real life. And also, this is waaaaay too much stuff for just one post, so today, I will be only analysing Fjerda. The other countries will follow.
The Seawhip: Certainly the most spectacular animal, but actually kind of boring. It is unclear if dragons are a species in GrishaVerse or if the Seawhip is just one of a kind, just as the Firebird. Does it belong to the same species as Juris? Probably not, because they are pretty different. One must assume that there is only one Seawhip and this limits the influence it can have on an ecosystem. It uses to live in the Bone Road and preyed on probably anything. That’s it.
Whales: There are at least two species of whales in the True Sea, but probably a lot more. They have dolphins that might even live as far north as Fjerda and are MAYBE hunted. But there’s no doubt there is at least one big species of whales that is hunted by the Fjerdan and maybe also the Ravkan and Kaelish for probably centuries. A habitat as big as the True Sea allows much diversification and there will probably be whales that prefer deep waters as well whales that live close to the coast. These will have been the first one to be killed by humans, just as the right whales in our world, and they are probably already close to extinction during the time of the books. Hanne mentions whales in the bay of Djerholm. Whether they belong to the already rare species that lives close to the coast or to the one that usually prefers deep waters, they are probably unusual guests to Djerholm. The whales migrate, probably spend the winter somewhere south of Kerch, give birth and then swim north. The Bone Road carries ice even in summer, so it must be totally frozen in winter. This limits the range of the whales territory.
Bears: What kind of animals do live on the ice? Does the GrishaVerse have polar bears? We know that there are white bears in Tsibeya, but they probably aren’t polar bears. They couldn’t survive there. It is pretty likely that brown bears live in Fjerda, Ravka and Shu Han, with several subspecies. Ivan mentions a kodiak bear, probably from Tsibeya. Sankt Grigori also came across bears. The white bears might be a exceptionally bright subspecies of brown bears or there are two different species of bears in Tsibeya. If this is the case, it would be interesting to know the differences between their niches. Either way, it’s safe to say Fjerda has got brown bears. Polar bears are more speculative, but I think they exist, too. There are many seals in the sea and something must prey on them.
Reindeers: It is canon that there are reindeers in Fjerda, and this totally fits to everything else we know about this country. The North of Fjerda must be tundra, it’s too cold for trees. Reindeers migrate through the whole year, so they are probably roaming the tundra of Fjerda all the time. The sea must freeze in winter, so it’s possible they spend the summer in Kenst Hjerte and move south as soon as the island is surrounded by ice. They are probably kept by the Hedjut, there isn’t much else in the tundra a culture can subsist on. And THIS is really interesting, because you cannot force reindeers to stay at the same place all year. You must follow them. If they have got reindeers, the Hedjut are nomads.
Wolves: There are two subspecies of wolves in Fjerda. Grey wolves life in the south while polar wolves, the wild brothers of the Isenulf, follow the reindeers. The end of the forests probably marks the frontier where the land of the grey wolves ends and the land of the polar wolves begins.
Deers: How many species of deers can be found in Fjerda? The answer depends on Morozova’s stag. The stag itself is apparently very old, but are the other deers also nearly immortal or are they just a population that survived since the days of Morozova? They are white, but they are no albinos. The one-million-kruge-question is: How do the other deers of Fjerda look like? Are they white, too, and this is just one population? Or are they brown and Morozova’s herd is unique? Either way, there is at least one species of deer in Fjerda (wapitis?), maybe a second one, and they also have a lot of mooses. These might also be found in northern Ravka, or maybe Ravka had mooses, but they are extinct now. The deers do live in river valleys and light forests, but won’t be found in the tundra, the Permafrost and Elbjen.
Seagulls: There are a lot of seagulls, probably more than one species.
Rodents: There a small rodents in the woods, probably mice and rats, also squirrels, because Fjerda’s conifers offer them a lot of food. I’d also expect lemmings. There are also muskrats. Fjerda is also a great place for beavers, though we don’t know if they actually live there, as well as groundhogs.
Fishes: The northern sea is very eutrophic and this isn’t only appreciated by the whales and seals, but also by tons of fishes, squids, mussels and clams. Fish plays a huge role in the Fjerdan society. They’ve got herrings, squids, oysters, codfish, pollacks, salmons, haddocks and devilfish and perches, eels and sturgeons from the rivers. But apparently, they also eat narrow-banded mackerels, which is interesting, because these fish prefer warm water. So either there are warm currents in the True Sea or they import the fish or Fjerdan fishtrawlers navigate as far as the southern seas.
They must have owls and also birds that feed on fir cones such as red crossbills. There are probably eagles in Elbjen and maybe also in the west.
There are a lot of foxes in Ravka and they will probably also live in Fjerda. Maybe arctic foxes in the tundra. There is also certainly at least one small predator, such as a marten. Elbjen is a good place for chamois, ibex or mountain goats. We know there are lynx in Ravka, so they probably can also be found in Fjerda. As long as there are no very big predatory fish, there must be otters in the rivers.
The Fjerdan have got honey, so there must be bees. Fjerda cannot be a frozen country for the whole year. In spring, there are a lot of flowering plants blooming. It is canon that Fjerda has got lilies and I also expect lupines. Much of the landscape must look like a meadow in Sweden or Canada. There are mountains in the east and the northwest and in the North we have nothing but the tundra, but especially the area between Djerholm and Halmhend is probably pretty mild and has got a lot of agriculture.
The forrests are coniferous with a few broadleaf trees and include firs, larks and pines, but also willows, birchs and of course Djel’s sacred ash.
And finally, since the Fjerdan use wool, there must be sheep. Fjerda doesn’t offer particularly amazing meadows for sheep, but it could be a good place for moorland sheep or something.
A big thank you to everyone who kept on reading! Next time, I’m gonna analyse Shu Han.
