The Pinnatono, Pinnatono amarus, is a large, colorful, herbivorous, flightless, wingless, moa-like notopalaeognath from the jungles of Skull Island. It measures 5-6 feet tall to the hip.
The Pinnatono is a flightless bird with a small head to reach inside thorny bushes for hidden berries and other fruit.
Though outwardly defenseless, a Pinnatono has one ace up its feathered sleeve. Making up about a quarter of the Pinnatono’s diet is a rather noxious berry that most other species leave alone for its extremely hot flesh. Immune to its gut-scaring qualities, a Pinnatono bulk loads the fruit. In the acidic stomach of the bird it acquires newfound potency, giving off a foul gas that rises heavily from the feces, breath and pores.
On command, a Pinnatono can recall its stomach contents into an inflatable gullet in its throat and regurgitate it, with surprising accuracy and projection, to discourage threats. Even the most armored of predators, like V. rexes and Scimitodon, will avoid the acidic pulp, which causes extreme discomfort to the eyes and other sensitive parts.