Headcanon Book WIP: Tatzlwurm

Behold! I come bearing sneak peeks for the limited edition version of the book! O:

First up is the WIP sketch of the Tatzlwurm, as well as its actual entry to the book! I've decided to color these digitally with either simple or no shading (so long as it's relatively clean), but there's more on that later. For now, here's the worm's headcanon (please note that it hasn't been spellchecked yet):

Location: The Tatzlwurm tend to favor very arid, dry, and/or desolate areas, and are native only to one of the most dangerous areas in Gaia, the Badlands (sometimes known as the "Edge of Equestria"). There is a subspecies of Tatzlwurm known to the world that reside deep in the Frozen Lands, specifically the Frozen North. The Tatzlwurm as a species is slowly going extinct.

Description: The Tatzlwurm gets its name due to its worm-like tendencies and overall appearance, however is actually a legless lizard based on these qualities: the possession of eyelids, the lack of broad belly scales, slightly notched tongues instead of forked, and the possession of a skeleton. The Tatzlwurm grow rather large, able to reach lengths of over 100 feet in length and a whopping weight of over 150 tonnes. With the exception of the head (which has a very thick layer of skin lain almost on top of the surface of the skull) its body is covered in tough, nearly diamond-hard scales that are seemingly smooth to the touch, which protects its muscular body from wear and tear when burrowing around underground.

Its head is peculiar in that it has the appearance of three separate upper-jaws that have been fused together, where in reality it has dislocatable jaws with each separate jaw harboring its own muscular structure. It has small eye atop its head and a pair of "false eyes" upon its two lower jaws, giving it the appearance of having three pairs of eyes (possibly a method of protecting itself from larger, stronger predators). It has three very long, prehensile, tentacle like tongues that each have barbs on the undersides, which allow a strong grip for when its attempting to capture prey (as well as when the creature is giving itself a tongue bath)

Behavior: The Tatzlwurm spends most of its life burrowing underground, surviving primarily upon the minerals within the soil, roots, and leaves. That said, the creature is omnivorous, and when it hunts it uses its burrowing and its ability to feel vibrations in the earth to its advantage. Its hunting technique involves it slowly burrowing underneath the prey of choice, only a slight tremor in the earth being the only warning the creature receives before the Tatzlwurm ultimately breaches the ground underneath its prey to snatch it up in its jaws. 

Alternatively, the Tatzlwurm has exceptional hearing and, when hunting flying critters, will lie in wait until it finds an opportune moment to breach the ground and catch its prey by surprise. When it breaches, it can propel itself in the air of about 100 feet. While generally remaining underground for most of its life, the creature is very territorial and will get extremely aggressive if a competitor enters its claimed territory, but if the fear of injury is prevalent it typically will not engage in a conflict unless it deems it absolutely necessary, especially in times of food shortage.