Ava: Elves
Elves are a flightless avian species. They have short necks, raptorial hooked beaks. Their bodies are covered with feathers except for their hands and feet which are scaly as in birds. Each of these extremities has three long fingers or toes with very sharp claws. The male Elves tend to have large eye brow ridges, which are in turn often hosts to massive eye brow feathers.
Elves are lightweight predators with a great deal of natural weaponry, but they can also use tools with their strong hands and opposable fingers. They have large eyes and good night-vision, and extremely excellent directional hearing-ability, so they are often nocturnal hunters.
The Elf is a very hearing oriented race. They easily recognize and mimic animal calls, and have almost no barrier to understanding what other intelligent species are trying to pronounce. They have a natural language talent that makes them particularly valueable when trained as interpreters, allowing Elf centered cultures to maintain larger, more loosely connected civilizations. They tend to be naturally good trainers of both animals and other intelligent species.
Elf languages usually have deep pitch, and use a complex variety of sounds, but may also include important silent hand and head gestures. Elf languages tend to be extremely complex and almost impossible to understand by other intelligent species.