Unidentified tusked creature

The title of this article is conjectural. Although this article is based on official information from the Star Wars Legends continuity, the actual name of this subject is pure conjecture.

A non-sentient tusked creature lived on Endor, a forested moon orbiting the planet of the same name. This animal had a strong odor and was sometimes used as a bait by the native Ewoks, a species of bear-like furry bipeds. In 4 ABY, the heroes of the Rebel Alliance Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, Chewbacca, C-3PO and R2-D2 fell into the net of an Ewok hunter, whose trap used one such creature as a bait.

Biology and appearance

This mammal was a non-sentient species living on the lush Endor,^[2] one of the nine^[4] natural satellites orbiting the gas giant planet also named Endor.^[5] Its coarse and short fur was mostly tan, except for the white hair on the underbelly and around the mouth (the latter of which acted as a mane), and its flesh, when exposed, had a pinkish hue. The creature had a small mouth with four protruding tusks, two of which protruded upward. It also had a white mane on the ridge of the head, as well as small eyes with golden irises. It also had cloved hooves, as well as equestrian-like legs. The body of such animals released a stong odor that some meat-eating species found appealing.^[1] The Wookiees, a race of furry giants from the planet Kashyyyk,^[6] were very receptive to the smell of that Endorian tusked creature, which made their senses go wild, in some sort of "olfactory delirium."^[3]

History

In 4 ABY,^[8] a dead member of this tusked species was used as the bait of an Ewok trap, which consisted^[2] of several^[9] shanks of raw^[3] meat hanging from a wooden pole at the center of a glade. Rebel Alliance members Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Chewbacca, C-3PO and R2-D2, arrived on Endor as part of a mission of inflitration, were caught in.^[2] Chewbacca had detected the animal's odor through the trees, as its scent was very appealing to the hungry Wookiee, who was unable to resist and rushed to the stake.^[1] Upon seeing it, C-3PO described it as "someone's lunch"^[7] while Solo wondered if somebody hung it out to cure.^[10] Unable to resist,^[11] the moment Chewbacca tried to remove a piece of flesh from the carcass, a huge net sprang up all around the adventurers, instantly scooping them up high above the ground.^[2]

Behind the scenes

The Endorian tusked creature was first seen in Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi, the third installment of the original Star Wars trilogy, which was released in 1983.^[2] It was also featured in most adaptations of the movie, including the novelization,^[3] the comic series^[10] and the radio dramatization.^[7]

This present article assumes the tusked creature is non-sentient, since both Return of the Jedi^[2] and the 1998 CD-ROM Star Wars: Behind the Magic explicitly call it an "animal."^[1] Due to the full coat of hair covering its body, this species is likely mammalian,^[12] but no Legends source ever mentioned it.

While in the film the creature has a leg that ends with a hoof,^[2] in the manga adapatation it ends with three claw-like fingers. In the manga Chewie manages to bite the carcass.^[13]

In the current Canon, the species has been identified as a "verkle".^[14]

Appearances

• Chewbacca the Wookiee
• Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi
• Star Wars: Return of the Jedi novelization (and unabridged audiobook) (First appearance, in book)
• Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi junior novelization
• Return of the Jedi: The Storybook Based on the Movie
• Return of the Jedi: A Storybook
• Return of the Jedi 3 (colorized in Star Wars: Episode VI — Return of the Jedi)
• Star Wars Manga: Return of the Jedi 3
• The Ewoks Join the Fight storybook (Mentioned only)
• Return of the Jedi radio drama — "So Turns a Galaxy, So Turns a Wheel"

Sources

• Return of the Jedi: The National Public Radio Dramatization
• Star Wars: Return of the Jedi: The Illustrated Screenplay
• Star Wars: Behind the Magic (as "dead animal")

Notes and references