Fictional universe in Avatar facts for kids
The 2009 science fiction movie Avatar, made by James Cameron, takes place on a made-up world called Pandora. Pandora is a tropical moon that feels a lot like Earth. It orbits a giant planet named Polyphemus, which is located in the Alpha Centauri star system.
Creatures of Pandora
Pandora is home to many unique and amazing animals. Here are some of the most well-known:
Direhorse: The Six-Legged Steed
The Direhorse (called Pa'li by the Na'vi) is a large, six-legged creature that looks a bit like an Earth horse. It was designed by James Cameron and Stan Winston Studios. Cameron described it as a "six-legged alien Clydesdale with moth-like antennae." These powerful animals are used by the Na'vi for riding.
Great Leonopteryx: The Sky King
The Great Leonopteryx (or Toruk in Na'vi) is a huge flying predator that rules the skies of Pandora. This creature is very important in Na'vi stories and culture because of its fierce beauty and noble look. It is honored in dances, songs, and with special totems that show both fear and respect.
The Leonopteryx is seen as key to the Na'vi's understanding of their own future and how everything is connected. Before the movie's story, only five Na'vi warriors had ever managed to tame a Toruk. These riders, known as Toruk Makto, helped bring peace among the different Na'vi tribes. The Great Leonopteryx and the smaller Banshees were designed with bright colors. These colors were inspired by Earth's birds, poison dart frogs, and Monarch butterflies, but their patterns were changed to make them look truly alien.
Hammerhead Titanothere: The Charging Giant
The Hammerhead Titanothere (Angtsìk in Na'vi) is a very large plant-eating animal. It has a head shaped like a hammer, similar to a hammerhead shark. This creature can get angry very easily, so it's best to stay away! It looks like a mix between a rhinoceros and a hammerhead shark.
Hexapede: The Gentle Deer-like Creature
The Hexapede (Yerik in Na'vi) is a six-legged animal that resembles a deer from Earth. They are generally peaceful herbivores.
Mountain Banshee: A Warrior's Companion
The Mountain Banshee (Ikran in Na'vi) is another flying predator that lives in the mountains of Pandora. For Na'vi warriors, trying to bond with a Banshee is a dangerous but necessary rite of passage. Once a Banshee bonds with a Na'vi warrior, they stay together for life.
The designers spent a lot of time making the Banshee look real when it flew or landed. It was tricky to make it look convincing with a Na'vi rider on its back. The design was influenced by manta rays, skates, and ancient flying reptiles like pterosaurs. Like the Leonopteryx, Banshees also have bright colors inspired by Earth animals, but with unique patterns.
Thanator: The Ultimate Predator
The Thanator (Palulukan in Na'vi) is a large, six-legged land predator. James Cameron himself designed this creature. It looks similar to a panther, but Cameron described it as "a panther from hell." He explained that the Thanator is the most frightening creature on Pandora, saying it "could eat a T-Rex and have the Alien Queen for dessert."
Viperwolf: The Night Hunter
The Viperwolf (Nantang in Na'vi) is a six-legged meat-eater that hunts at night. Cameron described them as "hairless with shiny skin that looks like overlapped armor." He also noted their "leathery hands" for paws, which makes them even more unusual.
Plants of Pandora
Pandora's plant life is just as amazing as its animals, with many glowing and unique species.
Helicoradian: The Sensitive Plant
The Helicoradian is a carnivorous plant with red, spiral-shaped leaves. These plants can grow up to 3-4 meters tall. If you touch them, they quickly curl up and collapse into themselves!
Obesus rotundus: The Puffball Tree
The Obesus rotundus is a tree that looks like a giant puffball mushroom.
Pseudocycas altissima: The Tall Cycad
The Pseudocycas altissima is a plant that looks like a very tall version of an Earth cycad.
The Hometrees: Na'vi Homes
The Hometrees (Kelutrel in Na'vi) are enormous trees that are big enough to house hundreds of Na'vi clan members. Inside, these trees have many natural hollows and spaces where the Na'vi sleep, eat, weave, dance, and celebrate their connection to their spiritual guide, Eywa. Adult Hometrees can be over 150 meters tall and about thirty meters wide.
The Omaticaya clan, featured in the movie, lives in a Giant Hometree that stands about 460 meters tall. This huge tree is a very important part of the movie's story. Like many sacred places on Pandora, the Giant Hometree sits on top of a large amount of the valuable mineral unobtanium. Sadly, it is destroyed by humans using rockets, which causes the Na'vi clans to unite against them.
The Tree of Souls: Pandora's Connection Point
The Tree of Souls (Vitraya Ramunon in Na'vi) is a special tree where the Na'vi can connect with the huge biological network that links all life on Pandora. James Cameron described it as a "big input-output station." He was inspired to design it by the glowing light he saw during night diving.
The Tree of Voices: Ancestral Whispers
The Tree of Voices (Utraya Mokri in Na'vi) is the second most important tree to the Na'vi after the Tree of Souls. It is smaller but looks similar and also glows. Neytiri tells Jake that it allows the Na'vi to hear the voices of their ancestors. This tree is destroyed during a bulldozer attack by the humans.
Woodsprites: Floating Seeds
Woodsprites (Atokirina in Na'vi) are the seeds of the "holy tree." They look like tiny, floating jellyfish in the air.
Familiar Flora
Pandora also has many other plants and trees that look similar to Earth's ferns, palm trees, and grasses.
Related pages
Images for kids
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This image shows how big Polyphemus is compared to Jupiter.
See also
In Spanish: Universo ficticio de Avatar para niños
