Open Questions

Generated from ## Open Questions sections across source docs.

Aphid Stabilization

Source: lore/ecology/aphid-stabilization.md

Which host-tree species and types respond best to aphid and sap-feeder stabilization across Sahul regions?
What level of sap-feeder density remains productive before host damage rises sharply?
Which predators, parasites, and seasonal conditions matter most in different regions?
How much of the system is active management versus repeated selection of favorable orchard ecologies?

Aphid-Ant Relationships

Source: reference/ecology/aphid-ant-relationships.md

Which sap-feeder genera in Sahul produce the most stable mutualism with honeypot ant lineages under repeated seasonal cycling?
What is the maximum sustainable sap-feeder density for key Sahul host tree species before plant decline becomes irreversible?

Bird evolution evidence and uncertainty

Bird Evolution: Evidence, Reconstruction, and Uncertainty

Source: reference/bird-evolution-evidence-and-uncertainty/index.md

When did the major neornithine lineages diverge relative to the K-Pg boundary, and how many distinct lineages were present before the extinction? Molecular and fossil evidence do not agree on this.
What conditions drove differential neornithine survival at K-Pg? Proposed factors are plausible but none is confirmed as the primary driver.
Was the common ancestor of Palaeognathae flighted or flightless? How many independent origins of flightlessness occurred within the group? The nested position of tinamous makes this unresolved.
How should enantiornithines and other extinct avian lineages be incorporated into ecological reconstructions of ancient environments given that they left no living descendants?
What is the irreducible uncertainty range in molecular clock estimates for early Neornithes divergences, given current fossil calibration options?
How many distinct bird lineages went extinct at the K-Pg boundary without leaving any descendants, and what ecological space did they occupy?

Bird geography and Australasian evolution

Bird Geography, Gondwana, and Australasian Evolution

Source: reference/bird-geography-gondwana-and-australasian-evolution/index.md

Which bird lineages used Antarctic movement corridors during the Paleocene and Eocene, and how does that bear on southern neornithine biogeography?
How important was Antarctica as a refuge or dispersal corridor for neornithine lineages in the aftermath of the K-Pg extinction, before full glaciation?
When did the major Australasian drying phases most strongly affect bird evolution, and which lineages show the clearest signatures of aridification-driven range contraction?
What proportion of ratite distribution reflects vicariance versus over-water dispersal, and which specific lineages require which mechanism?
Where did the earliest passerine radiation most intensively occur, and how quickly did the initial dispersal from Australasia to other regions proceed?
Which modern Australasian bird distributions are the most contracted remnants of wider ancient presences, and therefore most mislead inference about historical range?

Bird geography and dispersal

Bird Geography and Dispersal

Source: reference/brief-history-of-birds/bird-geography-and-dispersal.md

Which southern fossil records — Antarctic, South American, Australian — best constrain early neornithine geographic distribution around the K-Pg boundary?
How important was Antarctica as a survival refuge versus a dispersal corridor for southern neornithine lineages in the early Paleogene?
Which ratite distributions require flighted ancestors to explain, and which can be accounted for by vicariance alone?
When did the cassowary-emu lineage (Casuariiformes) become established as a Sahul-regional clade, and by what route?
How much of Neoaves' global spread was initiated from Gondwana-derived landmasses versus later dispersal from northern or equatorial centres?
How should uncertain movement routes be represented in reference documents without converting inference into false maps?

Brief history of birds

A Brief History of Birds

Source: reference/brief-history-of-birds/index.md

Which crown-bird lineages are confirmed as present before the K-Pg boundary on the basis of unambiguous fossil evidence?
Which proposed K-Pg survival traits are strongly evidenced versus plausible but unresolved?
How much of the apparent post-K-Pg radiation of Neoaves reflects true rapid diversification versus gaps in fossil preservation?
Was ratite flightlessness lost once in a common ancestor of all ratites, or independently in multiple lineages after dispersal? The nested position of tinamous makes this a live and unresolved question.
When did the cassowary-emu lineage diverge, and what constraints does that divergence impose on claims about cassowary deep history in Sahul?
Which pre-K-Pg avian lineages — particularly enantiornithines — occupied ecological roles now held by modern bird groups, and what does that mean for ecological inferences drawn from modern-bird behaviour?

Browsing, grazing, and habitat mosaic

Browsing, Grazing, and Habitat Mosaic

Source: reference/ecology/browsing-grazing-and-habitat-mosaic.md

What was the typical patch size and edge-to-interior ratio in northern Sahul monsoon woodland during the ~2 MYA glacial maximum period?
How did the interaction between fire and megaherbivore browsing differ in northern Australian monsoon woodland versus New Guinea lowland zones with different fire regimes?

Cassowaries

Source: reference/species/cassowaries.md

What is the spatial extent of cassowary ancestral range during early Pleistocene glacial maxima, particularly during rainforest contraction?
How does male parental care behaviour interact with female territorial behaviour to shape settlement density constraints?

Cassowary Forelimb Manipulation Pathway

Source: lore/biology/cassowary-forelimb-manipulation-pathway.md

What anatomical intermediate best explains the transition from chick clasping to adult body-supported carrying? Which intermediate bone, muscle, and tendon changes are most plausible?
How much adult forelimb lifting strength is plausible before changes interfere with balance, running speed, or thermoregulation?
Which behaviours emerge first among chick carrying, egg relocation, low climbing, and object probing? Are there regional or ecological variants where order differs?
How often can egg relocation succeed without increasing egg breakage or nest abandonment rates above the baseline risk of stationary incubation?
Which food sources create the strongest selection pressure for improved manipulation: difficult fruit, insects, larvae, eggs, or fire-exposed foods?
How early does cockatoo guidance become a stable interspecies behaviour rather than occasional opportunistic following?
Which parts of the pathway require biological evolution across generations, and which can emerge culturally once minimal manipulation capacity exists?
How does fire-following behaviour interact with predator avoidance and group movement during fire events?

Cassowary naming and kinship terms

Cassowary Naming and Kinship Terms

Source: lore/language/cassowary-naming-and-kinship-terms.md

What is the oldest self-name used by the speaking lineage in their own action-language or derived speech system, and does it already encode a kinship or categorical distinction?
Do forest cassowaries receive taboo names, kin names, ecological names, or avoidance terms in different regional traditions? Do some communities name individual forest cassowaries?
How do scientific speakers and classificatory traditions distinguish the biological cassowary genus from the speaking lineage in contexts where precision is required?
Does the naming distinction generate active ethical debate within the speaking lineage? Are there positions that argue for broader kinship recognition or positions that argue for stricter categorical separation?
Are non-speaking forest cassowaries protected, avoided, studied, ritually acknowledged, hunted, or some combination depending on era, region, and institution?

Cassowary Neurodevelopment And Predator Management Transition

Cassowary Neurodevelopment and Predator Management Transition

Source: lore/biology/cassowary-neurodevelopment-and-predator-management-transition.md

What anatomical model supports late executive integration without destabilizing balance or thermoregulation?
Which predator species are the primary drivers in each region?
Which behaviors emerge first: mobbing, den targeting, coordinated fire use, or territorial patrol systems?
How much of late executive development depends on father-led apprenticeship versus wider coalition training?

Cassowary Wing-Claw Divergence

Cassowary Wing-Claws — Claw Development Era

Source: lore/divergences/cassowary-wing-claws-claw-development-era.md

Which intermediate anatomical stages between chick clasping and adult body-supported manipulation need more detailed biomechanical modelling?
Which intermediate stages need technical documentation?

Ceramic Vessels And Nest Chambers

Ceramic Vessels and Nest Chambers

Source: lore/infrastructure/ceramic-vessels-and-nest-chambers.md

What is the minimum reliable firing temperature achievable in Sahul contexts for producing low-permeability storage vessels?
Which local sealant materials in Sahul ecologies are effective for sealing fired clay at the relevant time window?

Cockatoo-Cassowary Signal Coevolution

Cockatoo–Cassowary Signal Coevolution

Source: lore/biology/cockatoo-cassowary-signal-coevolution.md

Which cockatoo species or functional cockatoo types are most plausible as early signal partners in Sahul forest and woodland ecologies during the relevant era?
How much vocal imitation can cassowaries plausibly achieve given their altered anatomy? What frequency range, spectral flexibility, or call complexity is realistic?
Which signal categories emerge first: food, danger, follow, chick, nest, or fire? Is there a consistent developmental or ecological ordering?
How much of early cassowary language remains cockatoo-derived versus internally innovated after several generations of cassowary-only reuse?
How stable are cockatoo-derived signals across regions with different cockatoo species and ecologies?
When do cassowary-only calls become recognisable as dialects rather than rough borrowed mimicry?
How do body posture, head orientation, forelimb position, and movement direction combine with calls to carry meaning, and which of these components is primary?
At what point does action-language become capable of supporting early institutional coordination beyond the parenting dyad?
Can cockatoos act as message relays before formal domestication — carrying a cassowary-associated call to a distant location — or does that capability require a later lore document?

Cockatoos

Source: reference/species/cockatoos.md

Which cockatoo species are confirmed as Sahul residents during the ~2 MYA representative window, and which are relevant to the northern Australian and New Guinea range?
What is the upper bound of cockatoo object manipulation complexity under natural conditions, and how does this vary by species?

Companion Cockatoos In Cassowary Civilisation

Companion Cockatoos in Cassowary Civilisation

Source: lore/domestication/companion-cockatoos.md

At what point in the Ecological Management Era do cockatoos transition from opportunistic wild companions to selectively bred domesticated lineages?
Which functional breed categories emerge earliest, and which are late developments?
How does the administrative use of cockatoos in the First Basin Civilisation differ from the more status-oriented use in the WTA era?
What formal institutions or legal frameworks govern the transfer, training, and liability of administrative and messenger birds?
How are outdated institutional bird scripts updated in practice, and who holds authority over training revisions in museum and archive contexts?
What role do companion birds play in maintaining oral traditions through the long post-First-Basin-Civilisation interval?

Diprotodontid Domestication And Working Lineages

Diprotodontid Domestication and Working Lineages

Source: lore/domestication/diprotodontid-domestication-and-working-lineages.md

What breeding success rate is plausible for controlled diprotodontid lineages under cassowary management?
Which Sahul regions support true working lineages versus only occasional taming?
How do thylacoleonid, varanid, crocodilian, and thylacine predators shape juvenile intervention and herd protection?
Are mature working animals owned by institutions, handler lineages, route authorities, storage centers, or private elite households?
Which harness, sled, drag, or cart-like systems emerge first under cassowary anatomy and available materials?
How does diprotodontid water dependency shape road placement and political control over wells, waterholes, wetlands, and river crossings?

Diprotodontid Haulage And Road Economics

Diprotodontid Haulage and Road Economics

Source: lore/transport/diprotodontid-haulage-and-road-economics.md

What distinguishes WTA-style trade systems from earlier regional redistribution networks?
Which road surfaces and drainage methods are minimally viable for heavy diprotodontid haulage?
Do early haulage systems use dragged loads, sleds, wheelless platforms, carts, or multiple regional solutions?
Which institutions maintain water stops: route authorities, storage centers, handler lineages, or local communities?
How much does heavy haulage change tribute volume before writing and formal accounting exist?
Which regions develop WTA-style trade systems first?

Dromornithid Prestige Handling

Source: lore/domestication/dromornithid-prestige-handling.md

Did dromornithid handling ever become true domestication, or did it remain elite prestige taming across all documented societies?
Which dromornithid lineages, if any, were small, calm, or socially tolerant enough for even limited ceremonial handling?
How geographically widespread is dromornithid handling across Sahul societies, and which regions have documented access?
Does the practice spread through trade in specialist knowledge, or does it develop independently in multiple locations?

Dromornithidae

Source: reference/megafauna/dromornithidae.md

Which dromornithid genera are confirmed present in the northern Sahul region during the ~2 MYA representative window?
What was the spatial overlap between dromornithid populations and cassowary range during the relevant period?

Early Pleistocene Sahul ecosystems

Early Pleistocene Sahul Ecosystems

Source: reference/ecology/early-pleistocene-sahul-ecosystems.md

What was the precise extent of continuous rainforest canopy in northern Sahul during the ~2 MYA representative glacial maximum?
How did the productivity and extent of New Guinea highland grasslands (nothofagus zones) vary with glacial intensity?
Which river systems in northern Sahul maintained permanent flow through glacial maxima, and what was their corridor width for forest species?

Extinct Sahul fauna catalog

Extinct Sahul Fauna Catalog

Source: reference/megafauna/extinct-sahul-fauna-catalog.md

Which dromornithid genus is most appropriate for the ~2 MYA representative window in northern Sahul?
Was Thylacoleo carnifex present at ~2 MYA or does the ~2 MYA window represent an earlier thylacoleonid species?
Was a large varanid predator confirmed in New Guinea at ~2 MYA, or was its presence restricted to mainland Australia in this window?

Fire Incubation And Extended Juvenile Development

Fire Incubation and Extended Juvenile Development

Source: lore/biology/fire-incubation-and-extended-juvenile-development.md

When does fire-assisted egg incubation first become common in cassowary households?
How does fire incubation interact with the cassowary neurodevelopment transition timeline?
How much longer can egg and juvenile development plausibly extend under domestic fire and food-processing conditions compared to wild nesting?
Which bird species are incubated first, and what drives early choices?
Which Sahul giant bird lineages cross from chick rearing into true domestication rather than prestige handling?

First Basin Civilisation

Source: lore/frameworks/first-basin-civilisation.md

How many independent basin systems were incorporated into the First Basin Civilisation's administrative reach, and how tightly integrated were they?
Was the First Basin Civilisation a single polity, a regional hegemony, or a cluster of related states sharing common institutional forms?
What was the physical form of its largest storage centres, and where were they located relative to the basin flood margins?
How did the collapse play out regionally? Were some areas abandoned before others, or did fragmentation occur across the basin system simultaneously?
What marks or recording practices survived the collapse in recognisable form, and how long did they remain in use?
Does the later Ecological Management Era preserve any institutional memory of the First Basin Civilisation, or does the later system develop independently with no continuous tradition?
At what point in the later recovery does administrative specialisation re-emerge at levels comparable to the First Basin Civilisation?

first cassowary arrival in New Zealand

First New Zealand Arrival

Source: lore/transport/first-new-zealand-arrival.md

Which glacial maximum or low-sea-level window best fits the first arrival timing?
Was the arrival accidental, exploratory, storm-driven, or mixed?
How large was the founding cassowary population?
Did early settlers retain memory of Sahul, or did Sahul become mythic before reconnection?
Why did cassowaries reach New Zealand but not Indonesia or Southeast Asia? Is it crossing distance and sea conditions, ecological incompatibility (crops, food systems), danger, or some combination?
Does the deep-water channel barrier toward Indonesia fully explain the westward limit, or are other factors involved?

Food Preservation And Storage Systems

Food Preservation and Storage Systems

Source: lore/infrastructure/food-preservation-and-storage-systems.md

Which preservation method becomes dominant first in different regions: drying, sugar paste, or mixed storage?
Which storage environments are common enough to matter at scale?
When do preservation vessels become standardized enough for accounting?
How much preservation infrastructure is household-scale versus institutionally controlled?
How does heavy haulage change acceptable vessel size, batch movement, and storage-node spacing?

Forest refugia and arboreal species

Forest Refugia and Arboreal Species

Source: reference/ecology/forest-refugia-and-arboreal-species.md

Which specific upland zones in northeastern Queensland functioned as continuous refugia across multiple consecutive early Pleistocene glacial maxima?
What was the minimum corridor width along river systems between New Guinea highland zones and northeastern Australian highland zones that was sufficient to maintain gene flow for cassowary-like large frugivores?

Giant Goose Domestication And Ridability

Giant Goose Domestication and Ridability

Source: lore/domestication/giant-goose-domestication-and-ridability.md

Which dromornithid or Australian anseriform giant bird lineages are small, calm, or social enough for true domestication rather than prestige handling?
Which Sahul regions provide enough overlap between cassowary settlements and suitable giant bird nesting grounds?
When does giant goose domestication begin relative to moa domestication in New Zealand?
How long does selection need to produce reliable load-bearing or riding lineages?
Which uses emerge first: prestige display, pack transport, route work, or riding?
Which military uses emerge first: courier work, scouting, raiding, pursuit, elite shock display, or battlefield formation?
Does giant goose management remain regional, or does it spread through specialist handler lineages and exchange networks?

Haast's eagle

Haast's Eagle

Source: reference/predators/haasts-eagle.md

What specific vigilance and grouping behaviours in moa lineages are directly attributable to Haast's eagle predation pressure versus other factors?
Did North Island moa populations show measurably different behavioural patterns from South Island populations in the absence of equivalent aerial predation?

Honeypot Ant Harvesting

Source: lore/honeypot-ants/honeypot-ant-harvesting.md

Which ceramic forms emerge first: nest-assist vessels, storage jars, or transport containers?
What harvest intensity can a managed colony survive without long-term decline, and does this differ by lineage and ecotype?
Which predators, parasites, or pathogens most strongly threaten harvested colonies?
How much labor is required to inspect, harvest, and replace vessel-contained storage clusters across a managed orchard cluster?

Honeypot Ant Nest Splitting

Source: lore/divergences/honeypot-ant-nest-splitting.md

What biological mechanism makes nest splitting viable in this lineage?
Does nest splitting occur naturally first, or only under cassowary management?

Honeypot Ant Orchard System Management

Source: lore/honeypot-ants/honeypot-ant-orchard-system-management.md

Can managed honeypot ant colonies be selectively bred directly or indirectly for larger or more numerous repletes?
Which honeypot ant lineages are relevant across different Sahul regions, and what traits distinguish them?
What predators, parasites, or pathogens most strongly threaten managed colonies in each ecotype?
What labor and land area ratios are required to support urban populations through this system at tribute-district scale?

Honeypot Ant Sugar Preservation

Source: lore/honeypot-ants/honeypot-ant-sugar-preservation.md

How long does preserved sugar paste remain stable under different sealing materials and climates?
What storage life is plausible for preserved sugar paste under different ceramic and sealant methods?
When do preservation vessels become standardized enough for tribute accounting?
What labor and land area ratios are required to support urban populations through this system?

Honeypot Ant Yield And Surplus Capacity

Honeypot Ant Yield and Surplus Capacity

Source: lore/honeypot-ants/honeypot-ant-yield-and-surplus-capacity.md

What is the plausible range of colonies per orchard-ant cluster across different ecotypes?
At what cluster size does tribute yield become meaningful enough to support a non-producing administrative class?
How much does yield vary between good and bad seasons in savanna woodland versus wet-margin systems?
Which ecotype produces the most stable inter-annual yield for tribute reliability?
How does yield respond to political extraction pressure beyond sustainable harvest levels?

Honeypot Ants

Source: reference/species/honeypot-ants.md

Which honeypot ant genera are confirmed present in northern Sahul and New Guinea during the ~2 MYA representative window?
What is the natural range of replete counts per colony for relevant Sahul lineages under seasonal conditions?

K-Pg extinction and bird survival

K-Pg Extinction and Bird Survival

Source: reference/brief-history-of-birds/k-pg-extinction-and-bird-survival.md

Which crown-bird lineages are confirmed present before the K-Pg boundary based on unambiguous fossil evidence?
Which proposed survival traits are strongly evidenced versus plausible but unresolved?
How much of the apparent post-K-Pg radiation reflects true rapid diversification versus gaps in fossil preservation?
How should molecular divergence dates for neornithine lineages that predate the K-Pg be interpreted when fossil evidence is absent?

Living bird family origins

Living Bird Family Origins

Source: reference/brief-history-of-birds/living-bird-family-origins.md

When did the major Australasian bird lineages (including ratite ancestors and early Neoaves lineages) become established in Sahul?
Which Neoaves families have credible Cretaceous-era stem records versus relying primarily on molecular divergence estimates?
How should extinct bird groups phylogenetically close to living families be handled when fossil evidence is fragmentary?

Managed Honeypot Ant Lineages

Managed Ant Lineages

Source: lore/honeypot-ants/managed-ant-lineages.md

How many generations of management pressure are needed before chamber-friendly behaviour becomes reliably heritable in an orchard lineage?
Do elite large-replete lineages emerge through deliberate selective practices or through long-term management pressure on surviving colony founders?
Which specific real-world ant genera are the best biological candidates for each functional lineage class?
How mobile are managed lineages across ecotypes? Can chamber-friendly orchard ants be moved from savanna woodland to wet-margin environments without long re-adaptation?
When does control of elite ant lineages become a formalised institutional or property claim?

Marine life around early Pleistocene Sahul

Marine Life Around Early Pleistocene Sahul

Source: reference/ecology/marine-life-around-early-pleistocene-sahul.md

Where were the major exposed reef platforms along the glacial-maximum northern Sahul coastline, and how accessible were they at low tide?
What was the extent of seagrass beds in the exposed Arafura Shelf zone during the ~2 MYA glacial maximum, and what dugong densities did they support?
Which early Pleistocene coastal zones along northern Sahul had the highest intertidal shellfish density per unit shoreline?

Megafauna and landscape pressure

Megafauna and Landscape Pressure

Source: reference/ecology/megafauna-and-landscape-pressure.md

What was the population density of major megaherbivore grades in productive northern Sahul zones during the ~2 MYA representative period?
How far from permanent water did ranging zones extend during the dry season for animals at Diprotodon-grade body mass?
What is the spatial radius of significant trampling impact around a permanent waterhole used by a population of megaherbivore-grade animals?

Missing animal groups in Sahul

Missing Animal Groups in Sahul

Source: reference/biogeography/missing-animal-groups-in-sahul.md

Which specific ecological functions performed by ungulates in Eurasian systems were most significantly absent from Sahul, and which marsupial analogues came closest to filling them?
Did the absence of large manipulative mammals (elephants, apes) affect the distribution or accessibility of food resources in ways that later shaped the evolution of Sahul's fauna?

Moa Domestication And Ridability Mechanism

Moa Domestication and Ridability

Source: lore/transport/moa-domestication-and-ridability.md

Which moa lineages became rideable, and what were their specific traits?
Were female moas universally the primary riding animals, or were lineage and individual variation more significant?
Which combination of egg incubation, imprinting, captive breeding, harnessing, and route training best explains ridability?
Were the first managed moas hatched from stolen eggs, captured chicks, or both?
How long does the New Zealand isolation period need to be before the moa system is mature enough for Sahul import?
Which parts of moa handling are inherited from Sahul giant goose management, and which parts are New Zealand-specific innovations?

Moa Mounted Warfare

Source: lore/transport/moa-mounted-warfare.md

Which moa lineages are most suitable for warfare and heavy transport use?
How does Sahul breeding continue the selection work begun in New Zealand?
Where do moa mounts replace giant goose mounts, and where do the two systems remain complementary?
Which tactical roles remain better suited to Sahul-native giant geese than imported moas?
How do mounted bird units coordinate with slow diprotodontid haulage in campaign logistics?

Moas

Source: reference/species/moas.md

Which moa species inhabited New Zealand's North Island versus South Island, and how did their ranges and densities vary with climate and habitat?
What is the documented degree of male parental care in moas, and how does it compare across species?

Modern Kati Thunda — city framework

Modern Kati Thunda — City Framework

Source: lore/frameworks/kati-thunda-modern-city.md

What specific WTA-era structures are currently the major tourist attractions, and what are they identified as?
What is the physical form of the buried First Basin infrastructure directly beneath the current museum district?
Are there local oral traditions that have preserved fragments of First Basin knowledge through the intervening periods?
What triggered the most recent major archaeological debate in Kati Thunda, and how was it resolved?
Who specifically controls excavation rights at the deepest accessible site layer, and what is their position on further investigation?
What would the economic and political consequences of publicly confirming a major First Basin layer beneath the current museum district look like?

Orchard Lineage Management

Source: lore/agriculture/orchard-lineage-management.md

Which propagation methods emerge earliest: seed, transplant, grafting, or mixed systems?
Which tree lineages are most important to early orchard continuity as sap-flow hosts?
How much lineage management is household practice versus institutionally coordinated?
How often do regional substitutions preserve function without changing the broader orchard role?

Orchard Sugar Tree Lineages

Source: lore/agriculture/orchard-sugar-tree-lineages.md

Which tree families or types are most plausible as sap-flow hosts in different Sahul regions?
Which propagation methods best preserve honeydew-supporting traits: seed, cutting, grafting, or transplanting?
How often can regional substitutions preserve orchard function without preserving exact species?
When does knowledge of specific grafted lineages become a contested institutional resource rather than household knowledge?

Pottery-Assisted Ant Nest Architecture

Source: lore/infrastructure/pottery-assisted-ant-nest-architecture.md

What shapes and sizes are most plausible for nest-assist pots, harvest bowls, household jars, and tribute jars given cassowary anatomy and orchard conditions?
Which ceramic forms emerge first: nest-assist chambers, household storage jars, or tribute vessels?
How do wet-margin nest pots manage drainage, airflow, and fungal risk in practice?
How long do nest-assist pots last before cracking, clogging with organic matter, or being abandoned by colonies?
What materials are used for tribute jar seals across different Sahul regions with different access to resins, waxes, and clay?

Predator systems of Sahul

Predator Systems of Sahul

Source: reference/ecology/predator-systems-of-sahul.md

Was the thylacoleonid predator at ~2 MYA Thylacoleo carnifex or an earlier lineage member, and how did body mass differ?
What was the actual body mass of the large varanid predator at ~2 MYA, and how does this constrain prey size range?
Which large terrestrial predators were present in New Guinea versus mainland Australia during the ~2 MYA window, and did Torres Strait connectivity affect their range?

Regional Honeypot Ant Ecotypes

Source: lore/honeypot-ants/regional-honeypot-ant-ecotypes.md

Which real-world honeypot ant lineages are the best baselines for dryland, woodland, wet-margin, upland, and coastal shelf ecotypes?
How far can honeypot ant systems be extended into wet environments before pottery and drainage demands become unsustainable at the scale of a village orchard?
Which sap-feeding insects besides aphids are plausible honeydew partners in different Sahul regions?
What is the earliest period at which wet-margin ceramic nest management becomes technically viable?
How much does regional ant lineage selection require active selective breeding versus repeated preference for colonies that survive and recover well?

Sahul and Pleistocene climate

Sahul and Pleistocene Climate

Source: reference/geography/sahul-and-pleistocene-climate.md

How stable are specific New Guinea and Australian rainforest refugia locations across repeated early Pleistocene glacial cycles?
Which exposed shelf and coastal plain regions remain productive enough for orchard-capable ecologies during representative glacial maxima?
How quickly do land-bridge openings and closures alter regional connectivity relative to institution-building timescales?

Sahul food forest functional crop portfolio

Sahul Food Forest Functional Crop Portfolio

Source: lore/frameworks/sahul-food-forest-functional-crop-portfolio.md

Which species set is viable in the earliest domestication phase versus later institutional agriculture?
When does a functional crop-portfolio model become an explicit planning framework rather than local practice?
Which preservation methods pair best with each crop class?
Which crops become tribute staples rather than household staples?
How much of the system depends on active grafting versus managed wild stands?

Sahul predator roles

Sahul Predator Roles

Source: reference/predators/sahul-predator-roles.md

Did thylacoleonid predators depress thylacine density through mesopredator suppression, and if so, how did thylacine density and range vary with apex predator presence?
What was the realistic prey size range for the large varanid lineage at ~2 MYA given conservative body mass estimates?
Which specific predators were present in New Guinea versus mainland Australia during the ~2 MYA window, and did Torres Strait connectivity affect predator range?

Sahul-New Zealand maritime trade and contact

Sahul-New Zealand Maritime Contact

Source: lore/transport/sahul-new-zealand-maritime-contact.md

What is the minimum institutional capacity required to sustain a Sahul-New Zealand crossing?
How does knowledge of the route pass across generations before it becomes regular trade?
What do New Zealand communities receive in exchange for managed moas?

Sap-Feeder Lineages And Honeydew Flow Management

Sap-Feeder Lineages and Honeydew Flow

Source: lore/ecology/sap-feeder-lineages-and-honeydew-flow.md

Which sap-feeding insects besides aphids are plausible honeydew partners in different Sahul regions?
What sap-feeder density remains productive before host-tree damage rises sharply, and does this threshold differ significantly between lineage types?
Which predators, parasites, fungi, and environmental conditions most strongly limit wet-tolerant lineages in wet-margin systems?
How is knowledge of specific sap-feeder lineages preserved and transmitted across generations without writing?
When does sap-feeder lineage management become institutionalised enough to be a form of property or inheritance?

Sap-Feeding Host Trees

Source: reference/ecology/sap-feeding-host-trees.md

Which tree lineages in Sahul rainforest and forest-margin ecologies show the combination of high sap sugar content, high sap-feeder tolerance, and fast recovery required for sustained management?
How does canopy fragmentation during glacial dry periods affect the viability of managed honeydew systems in specific Sahul regions?

Sea level and Sahul connectivity

Sea Level and Sahul Connectivity

Source: reference/geography/sea-level-and-sahul-connectivity.md

What was the extent of exposed shelf land in the Arafura region during the ~2 MYA representative glacial maximum, and how productive were those exposed areas?
Did the Gulf of Carpentaria basin form a freshwater lake during the ~2 MYA glacial maximum, and how did that affect regional fauna distribution?
Which shelf zones remained above sea level across multiple consecutive glacial maxima, providing habitat continuity beyond a single cycle?

Storage And Ceramic Technology

Storage and Ceramic Technology

Source: lore/infrastructure/storage-and-ceramic-technology.md

Which ceramic forms emerge first: nest-assist chambers, storage jars, or transport containers?
When does vessel standardization become important enough to require social enforcement?
What measurement or standardization systems are needed before tribute units become comparable across settlements?
Which sealants are regionally available and durable enough for preserved sugar storage?
How much container production is household craft versus specialist labor?

Transport Networks

Source: lore/infrastructure/transport-networks.md

Which transport modes dominate earliest by region?
How early do formal route-maintenance obligations appear?
Which chokepoints become stable political centers?
How much transport is seasonal versus year-round?
When do maintained routes become road-like enough to support heavy diprotodontid haulage?

Tribute Collection Counting And Enforcement

Tribute Collection Counting and Enforcement

Source: lore/tribute/tribute-collection-counting-and-enforcement.md

At what scale do memory-and-witness audit practices fail, requiring tally marks or other symbolic record systems?
What is the minimal set of institution docs needed to support early urbanization claims?
How many seal-recognition marks can be reliably managed with memory-and-witness systems before symbolic tallying becomes necessary?
How are mixed tribute goods handled before abstract cross-product accounting emerges?
How early do formal route-maintenance obligations appear?
What kinds of chokepoints become politically central?
How does heavy haulage change collection-node spacing and forwarded tribute volume?

Tribute Seal Integrity And Authority Marks

Tribute Seal Integrity and Authority Marks

Source: lore/tribute/tribute-seal-integrity-and-authority-marks.md

Which seal materials are durable enough in humid Sahul regions for multi-season custody?
How many seal-recognition marks can be reliably managed with memory-and-witness systems before symbolic tallying becomes necessary?
What loss rates from seal failure remain politically tolerable for centralized storage centers?
How common are false marks or imitation seals before later accounting systems emerge?

Tribute Sealed Vessel Units

Source: lore/tribute/tribute-sealed-vessel-units.md

What vessel volume ranges are most plausible for hand-carried tribute in cassowary anatomy and terrain conditions?
How many standardized vessel classes appear before later accounting systems?
How are mixed tribute contents normalized, if at all, before abstract accounting?
What seal-failure and breakage rates are tolerable before centralized ceramic tribute storage loses political reliability?
Does heavy haulage encourage larger vessel classes, or does breakage keep vessel size conservative?

Tribute Storage Custody And Redistribution

Tribute Storage Custody and Redistribution

Source: lore/tribute/tribute-storage-custody-and-redistribution.md

How much storage remains household-scale versus controlled by communal or political institutions?
How are ownership and storage rights formalized once surplus storage becomes politically important?
At what scale do part-time custodians become a stable administrative class tied to regional storage centers?
What loss rates from breakage, spoilage, theft, or seizure remain politically tolerable for centralized storage centers?
Do regional storage centers emerge first in honeypot-ant surplus regions or in transport chokepoints with mixed storage economies?
How much does diprotodontid haulage expand the storage catchment area before writing and formal accounting exist?

Uncategorised

CORE_LOGIC

Source: docs/core-logic.md

Which systems are required before a first coherent timeline pass can move beyond placeholders?
How should preservation and storage milestones be placed relative to early tribute systems?
Which generated validation warnings should become errors after existing docs are cleaned up?

World State — Collapse Era

Source: reference/world-state-collapse-era.md

What triggers the initial cascade in each region: drought, epidemic, political succession conflict, external military pressure, or some combination?
Which political forms survive the Collapse Era in recognisable condition?
Do handler lineages emerge as a new autonomous political class with more independent power after collapse, and what institutional forms do they develop?
Which coastal and riverine regions become the core successor political centres, and why?
Does the Collapse Era produce new documentation or recording practices — attempts to preserve institutional knowledge against future loss?
How long does the Collapse Era last, and is recovery gradual or punctuated by new secondary collapses?
What are the approximate calendar dates for the Collapse Era in years, and how does its duration compare to the Early History Era that preceded it?

World State — Contemporary Era

Source: reference/world-state-contemporary-era.md

What is the precise political structure of contemporary cassowary civilisation — unified polity, federated states, regional confederations, or something else?
How does the contemporary cassowary relationship with New Zealand and New Guinea cassowary communities compare to the old maritime contact systems?
At what point in the 2,000 years since the WTA period did the current level of technological complexity develop, and what were the major transition moments?
What is the current state of cassowary writing systems — have the old scribal traditions been continuous since their re-emergence after the First Basin collapse, or were there further breaks?
Which First Basin sites are currently recognised and excavated, and which remain buried under later settlement?
How do contemporary cassowary historians understand the First Basin Civilisation — as mythology, as confirmed ancient history, or as incompletely understood archaeology?

World State — Early History Era

Source: reference/world-state-early-history-era.md

What distinguishes WTA-style trade systems from earlier regional redistribution networks?
Which Sahul regions reach Early History Era institutional stability first, and which remain in Protohistoric Expansion Era conditions?
How does the geographic uneven development of this era shape political competition, marriage alliance, and warfare between regions?

World State — Kati Thunda Ant Revolution

Source: reference/world-state-kati-thunda-ant-revolution.md

Is the Kati Thunda label a later retrospective name for a recognized threshold, or a contemporary term used by those living through it?
Which Sahul regions reach the storage threshold first?
What sealing and preservation methods create the first reliably multi-season ant storage?
How quickly does administrative specialisation emerge after storage becomes reliable?
What are the first forms of early logistic notation? Seal marks, tally notches, vessel shapes, colour or texture coding, or something else?
At what point does control of storage become a heritable institutional position rather than a personal authority claim?
What are the approximate calendar dates for the Kati Thunda threshold — how many years before or after neighbouring era boundaries does it fall, and how long a transition period does it represent?
How precisely did the Kati Thanda basin's wetter phases align with the storage threshold crossing? Was the First Basin Civilisation built during a single long wet interval or across multiple cycles?
How extensive was the First Basin Civilisation geographically, and which other interior basin systems were incorporated into its administrative reach?
How long did the collapse take, and were there recognisable phases of intensification, fragmentation, and abandonment before the basin-scale state fully ceased?
What proportion of writing-like notation survived the collapse as inherited marks, and in what contexts did those marks continue to be used?
At what point in the later recovery does the accounting pressure for writing re-emerge, and does it produce a system continuous with or independent of the Basin Civilisation's scribal tradition?
The repository currently uses "Kati Thunda" for the named storage threshold revolution and "Kati Thanda" for the basin geography. These are treated as related but distinct references. Naming consistency across files should be verified and standardised in a later pass.

World State — Logistics Stabilisation Era

Source: reference/world-state-logistics-stabilisation-era.md

What is the original political form of the first WTA-framework institutions — a coalition of route authorities, a dominant regional polity, a mutual-guarantee compact among storage custodians, or something else?
How does WTA handle route authority defection — those who damage the network for short-term advantage?
Which regions join the WTA network earliest, and which remain outside it longest?
What notation or record-keeping systems become standardised within WTA operations, and what physical form do they take?
How does WTA interact with tribute systems inherited from the Early History Era? Does it absorb, transform, or operate alongside them?
Is there a single WTA framework institution, or is WTA a distributed set of compatible institutional practices with no central authority?
What are the approximate calendar dates and duration of the Logistics Stabilisation Era in years, and how does the full era sequence from Orchard Era through WTA Period map onto an absolute timeline?

World State — Orchard Era

Source: reference/world-state-orchard-era.md

What triggers the transition from seasonal cooperation around orchards to multigenerational lineage investment?
At what scale does graft-cutting exchange become a formalised political institution rather than an informal alliance?
Which Sahul regions reach stable orchard investment soonest, and which remain in mobile-foraging conditions?
How much does tree maturation timescale shape the length of cassowary political alliances and succession expectations?
What prevents orchard knowledge from being preserved through collapse events, and what allows some of it to survive?
What are the approximate calendar dates and duration of the Orchard Era in years, and how does it bracket relative to the Fire and Extended Development Era and Ecological Management Era?

World State — Protohistoric Expansion Era (Representative Glacial Maximum)

Source: reference/world-state-protohistoric-expansion-era.md

Which Sahul shelf and exposed coastal plain regions remain productive enough for orchard-capable ecologies during representative glacial maxima?
Which upland, volcanic, or river-corridor regions provide the earliest continuous agricultural viability under Protohistoric Expansion Era climate conditions?
Which exposed land corridors create durable transport chokepoints rather than short-lived seasonal routes?

WTA arena culture and animal spectacle

WTA Arena Culture and Animal Spectacle

Source: lore/frameworks/wta-arena-culture-and-animal-spectacle.md

What is the specific physical form of major WTA-era arenas in Calisander — size, materials, seating capacity, relationships to other civic structures?
Which animal lineages specifically appear in WTA arena rosters and are subsequently extinct or critically endangered by the Contemporary Era?
What is the regulatory history of arena gambling — when was it formally recognised, what oversight bodies existed, and how did they fail?
How do handler lineages maintain and transmit specialised animal knowledge across generations, and what happens to that knowledge when the arena system ends?
Are there regional variations in arena culture between Calisander and WTA frontier settlements — what does a frontier outpost version of arena culture look like with reduced resources?
What specific cassowary sports or athletic traditions have their origins in arena culture and survive into the Contemporary Era in modified forms?
Which companion cockatoo gambling-information incidents are famous enough to have become cultural references?