Allison writes...

Hey, Greg! Love Gargoyles, excited for Rain of the Ghosts, and I just reread the comics and have a question about the clones.

We know that if gargoyles A and B are cloned, the clones, C and D, will have photo-negative coloration. Now, let's say A and C are female, and B and D are male. Let's also say that A and B do not become mates, but C and D do. The egg, E, is not artificially sped up, but develops over the ten year period. When E hatches, will its coloring resemble that of A/B or C/D?

Just curious about the practical application of the clones. Also, I think a Gargoyles Kickstarter would be a great idea! Have a nice day!

Rebel writes...

Which part of the world did gargoyles first arise in? For example, humans apparently arose in Africa and then migrated almost everywhere else, and then evolved. I'm curious to know which continent gargoyles first came from. If you'd care to narrow it down even further, that'd be great, since a continent is a really big place.

I did a search to see if this had already been answered, but I didn't see anything. If you've answered it already and I missed it, my apologies.

Joseph writes...

what would be the science behind how goliath and his clan glide,and climb almost anything except solid steel?

Rick Maloney writes...

How can Thailog and the Clones be cured of the clone virus when they're solid stone, and incapable of intraveneous injection? If science is a kind of magic, as Titania mentions in 'The Gathering' two-parter, no mage could meddle with it.

Jacob writes...

If someone would bring a gargoyle by plain very far into eastern or western direction during he's stone, would his internal clock notice that or would it be a way for him to be awake at day?

Demona Taina writes...

Hey, Greg:

I was checking the archives, and I think I can explain why sometimes, the gargoyles turn to stone slowly, and sometimes just slowly solidify until they're completely in stone. In Awakening 1, Goliath and Hudson could've turned to stone slowly because they were struggling, so the body couldn't solidify as quickly. So it starts down and spreads throughout their bodies until they're trapped in stone. When they're sitting/standing still, the body can solidify at normal speed. Anyway, that's what I think makes sense. What do you think, oh wise Greg?

matt writes...

if all the female gargoyles on Avalon only are able or ready to reproduce when the Earth 20-year cycle comes around wouldn't that mean that they would be laying their eggs within a very short time on Avalon? i mean, on Avalon that cycle would come around every 10 months! would the females on Avalon be ready to concieve after just laying an egg?

and lets say that its too soon to be laying another egg and they skip a cycle, that means that they will only lay two eggs in their lifetimes, and if that happened it would be bad for the Avalon clan. first of all, their population would never grow, in fact over time it would probably shrink due to the unequal distribution of males and females, a couple has to have more than two children for any population growth to occur. another problem is that over time (and may i remind you that time is way faster on Avalon) there would be a huge amount of inbreeding, esspecially as the population dropped.

so, the problem is, either Avalon females are birthing their eggs twenty four times faster than gargoyles typically do, or the Avalon clan is doomed to die out.

i'm a bit worried about the fate of the Avalon clan, whats going to happen with them and this problem?

Kelly L Creighton/Kya White Sapphire writes...

Okay, we've asked you this question before, and you've never really given a strait answer. Nothing says you will now, but here goes:

1) What happens to the stone sleep cycle of gargs in space?

I know the sleep is a biological process that's triggered by the sun. So, would they keep their normal cycle of 12 hours, or would the cycle change.

If you dont want to answer that question:

2) Have you yet figured out what happens to gargoyles in space, and you just dont want to tell us, or are you waiting for divine inspiration? :)

Steven L. writes...

Gargoyles mate for life. Does that mean that once two gargoyles show interest in each other, and become intimate, that they've mated, and are officially forevermore monogamous?
If so, what happens if, over the years, the two gargoyles come to drift apart, or realize they have nothing in common? Do they stay together simply because of tradition? I take it there's no gargoyle equivalent of divorce. (Or at least there wasn't until Goliath and Demona kinda set precident).
And in that vein; should a gargoyle have an affair, then what happens if that affair is discovered? Does the unfaithful gargoyle and the one he/she had the affair with get banished from the clan?
Hope this hasn't been asked before.

matt writes...

i'm going to try to guess the date you're reading this and i think it'll be a bit less then the current two month wait cuz i bet you'll try to catch up before the next contest so: is it August 8? lol, do i get another prize if i'm right?

by the way, your most recent batch of questions was extremely interesting and hilarious, as usual. esspecially Arthur's other Avalon adventure, and (LOL) masturbating gargoyles. its been a while since i've laughed that much!

ok, question time:

1. you recently said that if a gargoyle slept in caves for day after day after day they would begin to have ill effects from lack of sunlight, but you've said that the Korean and Loch Ness clans live in caves. so, did you mean that they sleep outside the caves, i guess?

2. do gargoyle eggs need sunlight ever or are they fine spending their ten year incubation in caves and rookeries?

maybe i'm just really tired or something and kinda giddy, but i'm still laughing about masturbating gargoyles. interesting you won't tell us about gargs going to the bathroom, but you'll tell us about them masturbating! LOL

Mary Mack writes...

I was just skimming through the Garg Science archive, and I ran across a post by Faieq asking about colored irises, and whether or not gargoyles had them. She came to the conclusion that gargs had no irises, since the dim moonlight would be enough for them. I don't think that works, biologically, because sophisticated animals (humans included) have irises-- involuntary sphincters which control how much light enters the eye, constricting to prevent damage from too much light and expanding to let in more light in darkness. Gargoyles, like cats, probably have excellent night vision, being all noctournal and stuff, so they HAVE to have irises.

Maybe their eyes are just predominantly dark, like horses and dogs, with light blue eyes cropping up occaisionally.

Dunno why I went on so long. I was actually just checking for your next Gathering ramble (It's still June at this writing), and for some reason I just had to mention the horse/dog/iris thing.

Thanks for your time.

matt writes...

you said gargoyle fetuses turn to stone inside their eggs to store energy. what do you mean? i doubt they would store energy collected from the sun seeing as how they are inside eggs deep inside a cave and probably don't see much sunlight. what energy are they storing?

Gipdac writes...

1) How long do female gargoyles carry their eggs?
2) Could a female gargoyle ever have a miscarriage while they were pregnant for their egg? Or if their egg dose not hatch is that considered a miscarriage?

Jacob writes...

Hi I'm back.

One time I asked you "Are gargoyles at day really heavier than at night? If they are, where does the wheight come from?", and you answered "I never said they were."

Actually, I got this information from a collection-card I found in the internet, and it says, at night he weighs about 130 and at day something about 900 kg.

1. Does it mean that this information is wrong or

2. Don't you want to say it this time?

matt writes...

any ideas yet why the English gargs have evolved to look like they do and so different from other garg clans?

btw, if you don't have an idea yet, i do! i really have a plausible and good idea why they look like that, but if you don't want to hear it...

matt writes...

grrr, because anonymous had to bring it up again i thought i should once more say that i seriously doubt gargoyles evolved from dinosaurs, maybe they had a common ancestors or something, but it seems really unlikely that gargs are saurian descendants. i mean, look at the English gargs! they don't look anything like dinosaurs or even reptiles. i think its more likely that the English gargs evolved from lions, horses, and birds then other gargs evolving from dinosaurs, and Greg has said that they didn't. i think Gargs are so different from most higher life forms of life that the gargate family seperated from the rest of the animal kingdom far back in history, before dinosaurs, maybe even before reptiles!

sorry, i had to rant about that again...
"Why do the little things always frustrate me!" -Demona
geeeez, Greg, do YOU think gargs evolved from dinosaurs? i know you're not a biologist, but what do you think?

Angie I. writes...

Hi, Greg

I have a few questions about the gargoyles' healing abilities.

1a.) What are the limits of their healing abilities by stone sleep? What types of injuries or abnormalities are beyond its power to heal?

1b.) Can they heal the physical abnormalities that occur over the course of old age? Loss of vision, hearing, possible internal problems such as with the heart. Things like that.

2.) How does the severity of the injury determine how long it takes to heal? For example, a severe bruising and maybe a few small cuts caused by a beating by either fists or blunt objects compared to more lethal and grievous wounds and lacerations caused by either blades, guns or even another gargoyle's claws.

3.) I think you may have been asked this before, but what happens if an appendage is somehow broken off while in stone sleep such as a hand or a part of their tail or horns (if he/she has them)? Would it eventually regenerate the lost part or would it be gone for good?

4.) How severely do you have to injure a gargoyle until it causes a permanent scar? Example, Hudson's scar.

5.) Would partaking in stimulants like alcohol, smoking, drugs and caffeine cause permanent damage as it does in humans? Could they heal it to any degree?

Epantiras writes...

Why Gargoyles have horns if they don't use them?

Anonymous writes...

Our ancestors are apes and our distant ones are a bunch of rodents that resemble lemurs or rats. The ancestors of the gargoyles are lizards and dinosaurs. Who exactly are the ancestors of the fay? Blobs of energy or something else entirely?

Dracolich writes...

Hey again! Here's a Gargoyle health q.

1. Back in April, someone asked about the chance of Gargoyles getting viral diseases. So, what about mental disorders, birth defects and genetic diseases?

2. This probably falls under genetic diseases, but what about cancer? How would it affect them?

3. Now, here's probably a silly one. It sounds like one that might have been asked, but it's been awhile since I had the free time to check the archives. So, what would happen if a gargoyle lost a limb?

OK, enough with the morbid thaughts.

matt writes...

i have a question about the process of gargs turning to stone, i've noticed that they turn to stone differently at different times. sometimes they convert to stone all at once, sometimes they do this fast and sometimes they do it slowly, and sometimes they turn to stone from the ground up or from one direction to another. my question is, why do they turn to stone different ways? is it because of their mindset at dawn or is it just random? i've noticed that they turn to stone slowly from the ground up when they don't want to turn to stone, like when Goliath and Hudson were returning to Wyvern the night of the massacre, or when Goliath was told Elisa was shot, or when Broadway was caught in midair at dawn. in a way are they trying to to forstall the change to stone and this causes the change to happen in a different way? am i looking at this way too hard, i don't think i am, the stone changing process just seems slower and more "forced" when the gargs are in distress or don't want it to be dawn...

i think thats all i have to say...

Anastasia writes...

Hello Greg!
I loved the show, especialy the Goliath/Elisa story. But I have a question, I heard that gargoyles age at half the rate that humans do. Would that affect Goliath and Elisa's relationship as the years whent on?
(Oh yeah, and just a daft one...do gargoyles shave? Hudson is the only one with facial hair of any description, I just wondered...)
OK. That you very much. How are you today?

Punchinello writes...

Hello Mr. Weisman.

I don't come here often, but occasionally I'm struck by the urge to quiz you on something. I was browsing the questions you're fielding, and I was struck again by something I notice every time I visit this page. There seems to be some preoccupation here with "the mind of the other." I noticed another poster make reference to your interest in it (although I cannot find any record of your having initiated the discussion).

While the series was still active I saw you invoke this theme frequently whenever you emphasized the cultural shock that the gargoyles experienced in modern America, and I appreciated the fact that you treated our linguistic tendencies to "name everything" as a curious human social construction. It helped to push the idea that these creatures were _not_ human and that we could not understand their natures or their motivations from within the context of human sensibilities. I see there is some similar talk here of the fay, and the notion that their essential nature might be something that is sufficiently far removed from humans so as to be outside our understanding. All of this puts me in mind of the anthropomorphic problem that the SETI administration outlined for dealing with the idea of extraterrestrial intelligence's. Human beings have a tendency to ascribe human values to non human species, and beyond that have considerable difficulty in contextualizing "the mind of the other" without unconsciously resorting to the context of human sensibilities.

Which brings me to the reason for this post; because being a student of the sciences (and probably less attached to my humanity than most people), I have found reason to be extremely critical of some of the aspects of the way the anthropomorphic problem is treated within the natural sciences as it applies to non-human animals. Generally speaking, my problem is that some of the more archaic ethical distinctions that are made between humans and other animals have their foundation in the premise that the ascription of certain mental capacities ( reflection, emotion, etc.) are the ascription of _uniquely human_ qualities. The fact that this premise, itself, is socially constructed rather than informed by data, seems to be lost on at least most _social_ scientists. What is troubling me is that I have begun to observe this kind of thinking migrate into the popular domain through science fiction. I don't really follow sci fi, but I've seen star trek, and I have had occasion to see the half-dozen or so other popular sci fi programs that one can find on television. I see a trend wherein the heroes casual disintegration of a planet is commonly justified with the hazily defined and indistinct ethics of "It did not harbor any sentient life."

This trend is scaring the hell out of me; because the expression "sentient" is not really used within the scientific community, so it does not have any agreed upon definition attached to it and there is no objective data informing the idea of it. The word seems to have infiltrated popular culture, however, where it finds frequent expression. That's what's bothering me. I see a lot of the same hazy ethical reasoning on this board. A number of messages expressing the confusion that humans in your story were subject to when they "mistook the gargoyles for animals rather than sentient beings" and in doing so, justified a campaign to exterminate them.

I would hope that a reasonable group of people would be given pause by the almost casual disregard for life that is being demonstrated with the prioritization of one life over another based upon the presence or non-presence of this seemingly magical endowment. Because if I am reading the intentions of the contributors to this board accurately, then it would appear their position is that if the occupants of that clock tower had been a group of stray dogs or a family of polar bears, then annihilating them with a wire guided missile would have been perfectly reasonable. "It's all right. It didn't harbor any sentient life." I would encourage the fans that come to this site to give some thought to what it is they mean by "sentience." What is the content of this sentience? If it entails that a creature can react to it's environment, anticipate, reflect and emote, then it should be pointed out that what available data exists indicates that this capacity is only about as exclusive a domain as most land based vertebrates.

I guess they shouldn't have disintegrated that planet after all. I hope to encourage others to give this issue the thought that it requires. I am also hoping to elicit some commentary from you, on the matter of how you perceive "the mind of the other." What mental distinctions do you draw between humans and gargates or faeries. I would be interested in hearing you address the notion.

Punchinello

matt writes...

1. do either Broadway or Lexington shave their heads? do either have hairy heads if they wanted to let it grow?

2. do some beast have hair in the same way that some gargs have hair and some don't?

matt writes...

1. are beast egss different from regular garg eggs in any way? like size, color, markings, texture, etc.

2. are most gargoyle rookeries pretty similar? a dark, humid cave as we saw in "Awakening"?

3. what was that smily green stuff that who-would-be-Broadway find and eat on the rookery wall?

4. what was causing the rookery to glow? was it that grenn smily stuff?

5. do all gargoyle eggs look like each other among the different clans? would a wise gargoyle be able to tell the difference between a London garg egg and a Guatemalan garg egg for instance?

matt writes...

are there any gargs out there who can naturally fly or are there any that perhaps have a rare talent among gargs and are able to fly?
oh, and this excludes the Coldtrio, Goliath with the Eye of Odin, and any other gargoyles inhanced by science or magic, i mean fly under their own natural power!

geeez, with you i always have to cover my bases... you're a sly one.

Rob Irwin writes...

Hi there. I just found out some time ago that I love the show Gargoyles, although I have yet to see the last 13 eps.
Looking through this site, a lot of questions started coming to my mind. I have a lot, but they are pretty differnt amd it says I shouldn't post them all at once, so here is my first.

When Sevarius gives his genetics slide show, he said that gargoyles get the energy they need to fly by soking up solar energy while asleep. If he is right, how does this apply to gargs who turn to stone underground or if it's a cloudy day?
Are they more weak when they wake up, or was severius just incorrect?
Thanks, and once again, great show.

Shavri writes...

My last question brought some others--what is the average biological age a male gargoyle first produces enough sperm to fertilize an egg? For that matter, what is the average biological age a gargoyle(male or female) start puberty? And do some gargoyle males experience something similar to _ahem_ "wet dreams?"(Their stone while they're asleep, so does something like that happen while they're awake?) Thanks, and I hope my questions were not too offensive.(You know how some people are...)

matt writes...

you said that the cross-generational love between Yama and Sora isn't the norm, but isn't unheard of, so:

1. are there gargoyles (esspecially among the Ishimura clan) that are against relationships between non-rookery siblings?

2. have Yama or Sora ever wondered if perhaps they are biologically closely related, like brother/sister, uncle/niece? are they ever insecure about having a non-traditional relationship?

3. will they still be able to have 3 children if they want to? obviously, Sora being younger should be able to concieve 3 times, but are male gargoyles able to fertilize an egg at any time in their life? if they have 3 eggs, Yama will be a generation older than most the other fathers in the clan...

Anonymous writes...

Can stone sleep heal damages done to the nervous system such as to the spine?

LSZ writes...

The issue of gargoyles turning to stone being a biological and non-magical process seems important to you, and it does make a more interesting universe; it was also firmly mentioned in the Gargoyles' bible..so out of curiosity, if this fact was so important, why was it never mentioned in the series itself, when other biological details like the solar and aging thing were mentioned?

Siren writes...

I looked and looked for these questions, figuring they were asked already but didn't find them. I apologize if they was asked before...

1.)When the sun rises, do the gargoyle embryoes/fetuses turn to stone as well? Is it something right from the beginning or do they develop it in the egg through the years before hatching?
2.) Do the hatchlings use their hands or do they have an egg tooth as many birds and reptile species do? I'm sure the adults help them as well.
3.) Is the shell of gargoyle's egg hard like a birds or leathery like a reptile?
4.) Do gargoyles die in labor as humans do? Or is labor easier for them, as it is a little more round and they are usually larger.

Jacob writes...

Sorry, my fault.
I asked you: "What happens to a gargoyle if he is at the north pole during the long night in the winter? does he sleep like humans?".
You answered: "Over time, he or she would adapt.".
What I really was meaning with the "long night" was the polarnight(hope it is called that in English) when it is dark for a few months.

Sapphire writes...

Was there ever any gargoyle creatures like gargoyle cats, birds, besides gargoyle beasts and humanoid gargoyles

matt writes...

how many eggs can a female garg beast usually lay in its lifetime?

matt writes...

what is more rare among gargoyles, a gargoyle giving birth to twins or a female gargoyle being able to lay more than 3 eggs in a lifetime?

matt writes...

besides the gargoyles and the garg beast had you thought of any other gargates that once existed or perhaps still exist? like what they looked like and stuff...

Siren writes...

On the eye color thing...
What biological and creative reason is it that females have red glowing eyes and males white?
I found this is a strange, but really cool thing on the show.

matt writes...

do baby gargs need to have diaper changes?

this question is a feeble attempt to find out if/how gargs go to the bathroom, sorry, couldn't resist!

Jacob writes...

Are gargoyles at day really heavier than at night? I ask this because I have no idea where the mass comes from when they are turning into stone. Do they pick up dust from the air during their petrifaction?

matt writes...

would a biologist or Sevarius or someone be able to tell a sleeping gargoyle from a regular stone gargoyle? i would guess so since gargs don't actually turn to stone. would they be able to clone a garg from a few flakes of the sleeping gargs skin?

Pyro X writes...

Greg;
Do Gargoyles suffer from diseases as we do?

Can a gargoyle get Polio? AIDS? Schistisomiasys? Meingitis?

Would the Dawn cure them of the disease, or would they die?

How does a gargoyle die? Sleep, Heart Attack, or from a disease?

Anonymous writes...

Why do the Ishimura gargoyles resemble the people of Japan?

Cotten writes...

Hey Greg,

By The Nine, you get asked alot of questions! Ok, this is a bit nerve racking here so let me think. Ok. What is the general life span of a gargoyle? As in how many years can they live if they aren't killed in battle?

Well, that's about all I can ask. Hope to see you again. It has been two years, right. Time for me is illrevelent.

Anonymous writes...

Did gargoyles originate from Asia? Afterall half of the eight clans originated there and in east Asia there is about three clans presently living there meaning that there might have been a large abundance of gargoyles clans living there and also the people in Ishimura don't fear the gargoyles meaning that gargoyles must have lived there quite along time for the humans to get use to them.

Scott Iskow writes...

1) Can gargoyles experience any of the sleep disorders defined by humans?

2) Does a gargoyle somehow feel (or otherwise notice) the difference between being unconscious during the night and being in stone hibernation during the day?

3) Can gargoyles oversleep or stay up past their bedtime?

Scott Iskow writes...

If a gargoyle took up smoking, would he or she experience health problems over time, or would the rejuvenating effects of the sun negate the damage?

Tomoyo writes...

I have read that the gargoyles are reptils, but Bronx is a gargoyle too. Bronx could be a reptil too, but, does this mean that Goliath, Demona, Brooklyn..., are from the same specie than Bronx?
The same if the humans are from the same specie than the dogs.

wingedbeast writes...

In response to your question about a gargoyle using some form of timetravel to poof into a daylight situation, you said that it was something of a pavlovian response. Does this mean that Gargoyles can, if they chose to exert however much effort it took to do this, change their sleepcycles or their sleepques?

matt writes...

in the London clan the feathered wings were the most common, and in the other clans the Goliath and Demona type wings were quite common, among the clans we've not see (Loch Ness, New Olympus, Xanadu, and Korea) are Lexington's wing type the most common? or are Desdemona's?

José Mº writes...

I have seen that the gargoyles when the sun go down are lives, and a little stone skin fall from their skin, are they more small??

matt writes...

warrioress's question reminded me of one i've been meaning to ask, i read somewhere that because of his smaller profile Lex and other gargoyles with similar wings can actually glide faster... any truth to this? i guess they should get an advantage cuz they can't really use their hands when gliding...

Josh Goldberg writes...

Can Demona get pregnant by a human at anytime? That is, is she fertile as a human at the same times as she is fertile as a gargoyle, or is she fertile like a regular human? What's Demona's fertility cycle as human and garg? (Garg's are only fertile every ten garg years, right?)

matt writes...

oh, and if i remember correctly, you said that March 21 was not only the Spring Equinox, and the possible hatch date for gargoyles, but its also your son's birthday, so, Happy Birthday Ben even though its belated by now... talk to you later!

Siren writes...

In the Gargoyles Universe, are there gargoyles without wings at all? Earthbound ones.

Jacob writes...

What happens to a gargoyle if he is at the north pole during the long night in the winter? does he sleep like humans?
Give a smart-ass answer if you want to, but I woud be pleased if you don't.

Angie I. writes...

Howdy, Greg! I'm not a regular visitor to this area, so I apolgize in advance if you've already been asked about this. I looked through the archived responses, but I might have missed something.

In the episode "Grief," Goliath mentioned that gargoyles age at half the speed of humans. Does that mean that a young gargoyle that has been alive for 20 years would only appear to be a 10 year old equivelant to a human child? Because if Jackel aged the Gargoyles for the same amount of years as he did Elisa, wouldn't they really have become half of what Jackel had intended? Aging 40 years ahead instead of 80? If it's true that they age at exactly half the rate of humans, I'm sure Angela would look worn and maybe a grey hair or two, but I doubt that she would look as near death as she did. Please clear this up for me. What is the exact rate that Gargoyles age when compared to humans?

Thank you. :)

Anonymous writes...

Where did gargoyle race orignate from? Asia? British Isles?

Bruno writes...

Hi, Greg,

Does the gargs have problems with tooth decay?

I'm asking this because I'm in the middle of a root canal treatment, and it HURTS!!!

Anonymous writes...

The Children of Oberon who are the gods of legends thus they must be the first race and they are made of pure magic. The gargoyles who are the second race have some magic in them since they can turn themselves and their equipment into stone. While humans who are the third race can't perform any feats of magic unless they have a spell book. So my question is the magic energy on the Earth diminishing?

Duncan Devlin writes...

In the Guatemala episode, Jackal carved his face into Goliath's in his dream. If a person were to do this to a Gargoyle and he woke up at dusk, what would happen?

matt writes...

so garg beasts reach adulthood by age 2, and live about as long as regular gargoyles? so, can they mate more often than regular gargoyles? i hope so cuz that could really save them from extinction given there are so few garg beasts left...

matt writes...

would Zafiro and Una's lack of claws on their feet cause them to have alot of trouble climbing walls/cliffs? if not, is it because gargoyles mainly use their arms when climbing a wall/cliff?

matt writes...

in response to "The One":

i've been thinking an awful lot about gargoyle genetics and biology lately and i have some theories, not ideas, personal theories.

in evolution, the weak do not survive to pass on genes, and the strong do. among other things this makes most beings of a species very similar in appearence, at least from outside that species. gargoyles are different obviously, even us humans can see major differences among them, like the ones you mentioned. the reason for this, i think, is because they have bypassed evolution by not raising their young individually, but communally. the strong gargs help in raising the weak gargs and vice versa, this means that strong and weak gargs make it to adulthood to have their own children, this also means that weaker traits arn't dying off and any physical mutations that occur are accepted and continue on. generally though, gargoyles are pretty similar if you look at bone structure or DNA, its like dogs, we've selectively breed them to look different or be able to do different things, but a Poodle is virtually identical to a St. Bernard in its DNA. the fact that gargoyles don't keep track of who's kid is who's also means that occasionally two cousin's or second cousin's will mate and this may cause mutations that further vary what the species looks like.

as for the rookery generations, as Greg as said, there are never actually biological brothers and sisters among a generation, the closest relation is cousins, i even did the math and found that an uncle and niece for instance can't be in the same generation. i have another personal theory that gargoyles, to prevent much inbreeding, biologically find gargoyles attractive that are very different looking from themselves. i know alot of people would say, "What about who they love?" and i agree, but don't we all have some biological prefrences?

i have no idea why the London gargs evolved the way they did, i'm anxious to see Greg's answer to that one...

ok, i'm done with my ramble, what do you think Greg?

The One writes...

1) How do you explain the vast genetic difference in the Gargoyle gene pool? e.g. demon like appearance of the scotish breed, a lower half of the body resembling a snake in the South American, animal-like appearances in the english.

2) Why is there a particular convergance of traits in the English gargoyles to resemble animals? It seems to serve no evolutionary purpose.

3) Since the Gargoyles don't keep track on who are their biological parents and given the nature of their isolated populations, it's highly likely that the Gargoyles have inbred over successive generations. (Even in clans they refer to each other as brother and sister) Do the Gargoyles have the same stigma on inbreding that the humans do? If so, how do they avoid it?

Patrica writes...

Heya, was reading through the Garg Science section, when I came upon this thought, correct anything I say if its wrong. First I'll state what I found, then I'll sum it up with what I came up with.

Females can conceive every 20 years. It takes 6 months for the eggs to develop and be layed. Then it takes 10 years for the eggs to hatch.

Going by this, there would be eggs hatching and eggs laid every ten years. So, in the rookery, every ten years, on the Equinox (I forgot spring or fall... most likely spring) there would be eggs hatching, AND eggs being laid.

So, basically, every 10 years, a different set of females would be conceiving. It'd go every-other-10-years.

Example: Female A conceives and lays an egg. Female B hatches from that egg, 10 years later. At this same time, Female C would lay an egg. 20 years later, Female B conceives and lays an egg. Females A and B are on the same cycle, while Female C is on a cycle set off by 10 years.

Or, to put it another way:
Female A lays an egg. Female B hatches 10 years later. Female A lays an egg 10 years later. Female B lays an egg 10 years later.

Basically: Mother and Daughter alternate on the 10 years. If Daughter has a child, then that child, Granddaughter, would be on the same cycle as Mother. If Granddaughter has a child, Great-Granddaughter would be on the same cycle as Daughter, and so on.

I just looked at how many times I tried to simplify what I was saying... a lot!

I hope I got whatever point I had across.

Here's a note: It's almost midnight here, so if things don't line up well, let me know :).

LSZ writes...

Do gargoyles need to bathe, or are body odours etc disposed of via stone sleep?

Pyro X writes...

Greg;
I am a little confused on Gargoyle Generations... let's see if this is correct.
Ex)
Hudson - Gen 1

Goliath/Demona Gen 2

Trio/Bronx Gen 3--|
| |- from same gen, but different hatching
Angela Gen 3------|

Samson (Is that his name?) Gen 4

1) Is this basically a correct assumption?
2) Does a Gargoyle ALWAYS find a mate in his hatching? IE) did all the Avalon Gargoyles pair off?
3) If the above is not true, then, would a Garoyle look to the next hatching, or would they be too young?

matt writes...

1. will Tom and/or Katherine live to see Gabriel, Opheila, and Boudikka and the other Avalon gargoyle's eggs hatch?
2. will the Avalon clan continue the naming of the hatchlings?
3. will they have a rookery or will they raise their eggs and hatchling's individually as humans do?

oh, and i was thinking about the Earth rythmn and its effects on gargs reproductive cycles on Avalon and i thought that maybe Avalon produces its own rythmn that may mimic or duplicate the rythmn of the Earth so that Opheila and the rest still lay eggs and hatch as if they were in the real world. afterall, from what evidence we've seen in the series and that you've given us, Avalon doesn't seem to be a place you can locate on Earth, just a theory...

matt writes...

you've said numerous times that Bronx mated and will mate again with Boidekka, but since Bronx was born a generation after the trio wouldn't he be way to young to mate? if the fertility cycle is different for beasts than can they mate and concieve more often in life than the standard gargoyles? i understand that Boidekka, being older than Bronx, is probably able to concieve, but Bronx just seems too young. does it matter that he is male, as in males can mate and concieve earlier in life than females?

matt writes...

i have a question about when a gargoyle wakes up. in many times throughout the series we would see the gargs' eyes glow shortly before they would shed their stone skin and that makes sense to me because you've said that at sunset their entire body reverts to flesh except a thin layer over their skin, their eyes probably don't have this layer since that would probably be kinda painful to have stone flying out of your eyes. so we see the eyes first because it doesn't have to break out of a stone shell. am i at least roughly correct on this?

Justin writes...

Greg,
A few weeks ago Anonymous writes
<Are there any female gargoyles who are obese? How about muscular or extremely skinny? Are any females bow-legged?
Are there gargoyles with differnent wing and ear types than the types that were shown on the series?
You know how some gargoyles have a sharp elbow or knee spike that juts out, I was wondering if any gargoyles have them on both knees and elbows because it was always on or the other.>

To which you replied...
<Obese? Not likely, but possible, I guess.

Look, it's all sounding possible.>

Now why is not likely for a gargoyle woman to be obese? Must all of them be fairly skinny like Demona? I don't know man, it seems like a sexist notion of what the female form is supposed to be! Sorry if offends you but with the gargoyles anatomy being similar on the surface, this might boys the neanderthal idea of what female beauty is supposed to be, and girls an impossible standard to live up to. Now don't get me wrong I love the show. Another thing that yerked me. You have mentioned that the original Broadway was going to be a girl. But you changed your minds out of fear of feminist groups being concerned about the evil/fat issue among the two female characters.

Now I would think that feminist groups with all sorts of "agendas" as you put it would love to see a none picture perfect woman in the series. Trust me having the two main female gargoyles in the series model thing didn't exactly endear the show to them I'm sure ;)

Sorry if this sounds like a rant. I just wanted your honest thought on what I've said.

Thank you

matt writes...

among the British gargs would a female gargoyle that has the lion genes still have the mane that Leo has? i would think she would because Leo is not a lion and while he looks like one probably shares very few of the same characteristics of a lion.
i've also noticed that Maggie the Cat has lion genes and is the only mutate with hair and i assume this is because of the animal she was mutated from but of course Leo wasn't created from a lion...

matt writes...

no offense to anyone who has posted stuff about gargs evolving from dinosaurs, but i think that it is extremelly unlikely that they did. only Greg and God could convince me that they are saurian descendants.
dinosaurs were all wiped out!!!! what does a garg evolve from? bones? and as for the triceratops head frill and the pterydactyl wings and whatever else, why would all these dinosaurs mate with each other anyway? for that matter, pterydactyls arn't even dinosaurs!
gargs are far more likely to be related to the platypus, the bat, or some other mammal, not dinosaurs.
sorry if i seem like i'm ranting, but for some reason the dinosaur connection just really bugs me...

Fire Storm writes...

On 02-01-2001, you anwsered a question by Anonymous.
He/She wrote: How long is a female gargoyles' gestation period?

You replied: Didn't I answer this already? Check the Gargoyle Science archive.

I checked the Science archive, and then the entire archive, and the closest you have said is "6 months to a year".

So I pose these questions to you:
Have you refined your anwser to this question?

If so, how long is the gestation period for gargoyle females? (The time span the female gargoyle carrys the egg before laying it, for those non-scientifically inclined people reading this.)

And, when gargoyle females do end up laying their eggs, do they lay them on the same night or just generally around the same time?

See you at G2K+1!

Shavri writes...

1. When gargoyles are hatched, do they have any teeth? I would hope they didn't have teeth, because if the females breast-fed the hatchlings, I'm sure it wouldn't have been a very pleasant ritual to have gone through if the little ones did. OUCH times 10!! And wouldn't it have been a bit difficult for the hatchlings with beaks to breast-feed?
2. How helpless are hatchlings when they're first born? Are they almost as helpless as human babies? What is the average age a gargoyle hatchling learns to walk; also, to glide? Oh, and at about what age do hatchlings learn to talk?

Bruno writes...

Hi, Greg,

I have some biological questions. Nothing too hard, I hope.

1-There are blood vessels in the gargoyle's wings membranes?

2-I know that Gargoyles are warm-blooded. Then, does they sweat? Or the wings are a natural radiator? (A lot of animals have them). And how about the beasts? (The dogs sweat by the tongue, you know?)

3-Some Gargs are furry, as Leo, Una & Griff. And about the non-furry Gargs, does them have any body hair? (And yes, I mean the Manhattan clan :-)

4-No, I will not ask if gargs go to the bathroom.

5-I don't know _why_ I'm asking this, but: does Gargs has nipples? They don't appear to have, but in "Leader of the Pack", Wolf rip his T-shirt and (I believe) he doesn't has also. S&P things?

6-At what age does the beasts become adults? In 1996 Bronx is biological 9 and Boudicca 20, and both look adults to me (they even mated).

7-A comment about the eggs; They hatch in ten years. Yes, It's a long time, but not too long: Some insects late 13 years to become adults. The eggs are slow, but they're not irreal.

Jim R. writes...

Would a gargoyle be any different in space than a human? Does their physiology differ that much from ours if they were to be sent into space? And do gargoyles have a lesser tolerance for gravity then us seeing how they are more like birds and bats that have wings? (I would think their skeletal structure would be hollower than that of a human so they could generate lift)

matt writes...

you've said numerous times that there are no aquatic or amphibious gargoyles, however in "Ill Met by Midnight" as Katherine, Goliath, and everyone are arriving at the castle at the beginning of the ep there is a Avalon clan garg shown that looks extremely aquatic. he has what looks to be gills, fins, fishy looking eyes, webbed appendages, and on top of everything else is a aquamarine hue. i just thought i'd mention it...

matt writes...

you told me once that the Mayan clan and any other clans native to the Americas migrated over the Bering Strait from Asia like humans did about 10,000 years ago. so, where did the gargoyle species evolve from? humans came from East Africa and spread out across the world, the gargs must have had a starting place too. what about the beasts, where did they evolve from?

Yttrium writes...

You'd mentioned in the archive that gargoyles may be capable of having twins, yet it would be extremely, extremely rare. My question is, if a gargoyle did have twins, would they be born from the same egg, or would two eggs be laid?

---Ytt

Aris Katsaris writes...

A question about rookery generations...

1. If the Wyvern massacre had not happened, would the Trio normally have been considered rookery parents to the eggs that would have hatched in 998? Or was the generation of the first rookery parents the one immediately older than them? (Goliath, Demona, ColdTrio, etc)

In short are rookery parents 40 or 60 years older than their first rookery children?

2. What if one of the gargoyles had mated really young (teen pregnancy) and contributed an egg by the time she was biologically 15? Ten years later would she *not* be considered a rookery mother even though she had biologically contributed an egg? Or would she be treated as an exception among her generation?

3. For that matter would Iago be considered a rookery father to the eggs simply because of his generation, even though he was mateless and hadn't contributed an egg himself? Or not?

Eric Daniels writes...

yes hi I was wondering if you could tell me why gargoyles satnd for on buildings and what are they? Are they god's creatures, like "angels" or are the devils creatures? if you could, could you email me at Danielse@gatorzone.com thank you for your time, Eric Daniels

Anonymous writes...

Are there any female gargoyles who are obese? How about muscular or extremely skinny? Are any females bow-legged?
Are there gargoyles with differnent wing and ear types than the types that were shown on the series?
You know how some gargoyles have a sharp elbow or knee spike that juts out, I was wondering if any gargoyles have them on both knees and elbows because it was always on or the other.

Anonymous writes...

Are there any female gargoyles with wings like Lex's, or male gargoyles with wings like Desdemona's?
Are there any female gargoyles who have a beak like Brooklyn's? Or an overbite like Lex and Broadway?
Save Una, most females I have seen look pretty similar, no offense.

Anonymous writes...

How long is a female gargoyles' gestation period?

Anonymous writes...

Between what ages are gargoyles able to reproduce? (youngest/oldest)
Do female gargoyles have menopause?

matt writes...

would there be any biological problems with two gargs of different races (i.e. Guatemalan and London) mating and having a hatchling? i know interracial humans don't generally have any medical problems but i'm wondering if it is any different for gargs.

matt writes...

ah, Jim, i almost got the last post of yesterday too!!! oh, well.
Greg, garg eggs take ten years hatch, why? that is a mean blow for nature to give the gargs. do the embryos inside the eggs turn to stone? even so, that is egual to five years in incubation! why does it take so long for these embryos to mature?

gedoena writes...

Greg,

[ Gargoyle Science Question: ]

This probably looks a little silly, but I was just rereading my last posting and decided to reverse my thoughts on the matter.

Because gargoyles mate for life, it is probably very important to them to have someone fill that role in their lives. In an isolated clan with an unequal number of each sex for one generation, there would be very little hope of finding a mate for some of the clan members. With no possibility of mating with the equivalent of a widow, this would doom the "left-over" clan members to a lonely life, with a great gap to fill. Would this feeling cause them to bond to one-another?

This explaination is probably much less romantic then the one you would give, but I feel that there must be something in the biology and culture of a species that will at least allow for any given behavior to exist (just as you said that you did not think gargoyles would be found with a particular pashion or talent for architecture, as this was not an area where their talents were likely to be useful).

I guess this was much more of a ramble then a question. But again I would be very interested in hearing your response.

Thanks,

Gedoena

Gedoena writes...

Greg,

[ Gargoyle Science Question: ]

I have been reading through the archives lately, and was surprised to see that you believe that there would be homosexual relationships between gargoyles. This is not because of any personal moral problems; I was just wondering about the background of it within this species.

According to your other posts, gargoyles mate for life, and are driven by biological urges tied to certain scents peculiar to their mates. I would assume that even though each gargoyle has a particular scent, females' scents would be much more similar to eachother then to the scent of any male (and vice-versa). Therefore, I don't understand how two members of the same gender would become attracted to one another.

Furthermore, gargoyles only mate once every 20 years, and only lay one egg at a time. Being a warrior race, there is a probably a fair likelihood that at least one of the parents has died before more then one or two eggs have been laid, making it hard to keep up a sustainable population. It would seem that it would be of great import to the clan to have as many mated pairs as possible.

I guess this was more of a comment then a question, but I would very much like to hear your response to these thoughts.

Thanks,

Gedoena.

matt writes...

is it possible that Demona could lay an egg every twenty years since she is biologically a middle aged garg and (probably) still responds to those Earth rythm things? do gargs mate any time they want or only every twenty years? did Demona have sex with Thailog? sorry about the vulgar questions... :)

Basilisk writes...

You've said that gargoyles concieve eggs every twenty years and the eggs take ten years to hatch. What are the intervals for gargoyle beasts?

IMPFAC Goldberg writes...

Hey Greg, I found this at IMDB and wondered what it was:
http://us.imdb.com/Title?0120911
You and some others from Garg. are named. Just wondering.

'Nother question: How many eggs to gargs lay at once? Can it be more than one?

The One writes...

1) If a Gargoyle dies at night, what happens to the remains, do they turn into stone? If they do turn into stone, do the reamins continue to rot at night?

2) How exactly do Gargoyles have eggs? Does the female carry the eggs for a term and then lay out those huge eggs? Or do they lay something small that slowly matures and get larger?

3) Are Gargoyles warm-blooded? Cold-blooded?

4) Where do Gargoyles get the extra bodily mass when they turn into stone?

zakhur writes...

Hey Greg, i Was wondering, what's the maximum amount of eggs, that a gargoyle female can lay in a lifetime?

matt writes...

is it possible that the closest living relative of the gargates would be the platypus? i mean, if you compare them its interesting. both are warm blooded, egg laying while still nurse their young, have claws and beaks! they are probably even more similiar but i'm trying to remember the features of the platapi from a discovery channel show from a long time ago. this is probably a really stupid question but its really late and i can't tell. good night.

JADE writes...

I was just wondering, if a gargoyles died in battle would they turn to stone, or stay in their flesh form? Because I belive that in "Future Tense" it showed Hudson in stone and he was said to dead, or was that just some type of a memorial? Just wondering....

matt writes...

was sevarius' theory of gargs storing solar energy ever confirmed? i assume it was.