Dug

Dug
Homeworld	Malastare
Language	Dug
Distinctions	Arms used as legs and legs used as arms [1]

Biology and Appearance

The Dugs have leathery, grey skin and small, beady eyes. They can easily walk on their hind legs, their forelegs, or all fours. They used their four hands to help them move through the trees of their homeworld of Malastare. Much of their language is punctuated with knuckle rapping and foot stomping.

Dugs were slender, powerfully built beings with a somewhat humanoid build and a unique method of walking that hailed from the high gravity world Malastare. Their primary means of locomotion were their strong arms, and their lower limbs and feet were used for grappling and other fine motor manipulation. They hardly ever walked on their lower limbs. Sebulba was only once seen standing on his legs. Although most Dugs may walk on all four limbs, others liked to use their strong arms as legs and their feet as hands like they would normally do. [1]

Dugs had smooth skin, which hung loosely around their tall necks, only to inflate during mating season calls. They also possessed fin-like ears and pronounced snouts. [1]

Society and Culture

Dugs became the sworn enemies of the Gran when the latter established a settlement on Malastare. They fought viciously for many years before the Old Republic intervened. Unfortunately for the Dugs, the Republic ruled in favour of the Gran, and the Dugs were pushed to the fringes of Malastare's economy.

Dug society became insular, and they turned into self-congratulatory braggarts. Well-known for being a disreputable lot, and could often be found in dingy cantinas or dark alleys with all four arms into something illegal. However, with a casual glance at their culture on Malastare, you could be forgiven for thinking such stories were mere rumours. The arboreal Dugs lived in primitive villages in the trees, seemingly in touch with nature, though their culture was actually filled with violence.

They lived mainly in the forests of the western continent of their homeworld in primitive tree villages called "tree thorps". [1]

Due to their oppression under their Gran rulers who colonized Malastare, many Dugs often felt the need to throw around their strength in bids to establish dominance. As a result, they were known for their ill-tempered demeanor, and many were bullying thugs. [1]

On their homeworld of Malastare, the vast majority of Dugs were little more than laborers toiling for the enrichment of the Gran. With the species excluded from much of the power and money on Malastare, many Dugs turned to podracing as their only means to achieve fame and fortune. In all other areas, the Dugs were exploited and disenfranchised. [1]

Dug mating is very reminiscent of some reptiles, which may indicate their ancestry. The loose folds of skin around the males neck will inflate during the mating season, showing a display of color. An interested female may pester or disturb a male in a few different ways until his balloon-neck deflates with a screech. After this, the two are considered mated. Mates remain loyal to each other, even though they may bully each other through their time together. [1]

Because of their experiences with the Gran, the Dugs were xenophobic and rarely left their homeworld. If they were seen off-planet, they were often seen in groups of their own kind. Most Dugs in the galaxy were criminals or risk-takers, leading many Dugs into podracing and gambling. [1]

History

In ancient times, the Dugs were first to fight for their lives against the massive Zillo Beasts, which were their primary predators. However, they eventually managed to use the planet's fuel reserves to kill off all but one of the creatures, which would remain hibernating underground for thousands of years. [1]

Circa 8,000 BBY, the Galactic Republic established an outpost on Malastare since it was located at a key spot along the Hydian Way trade route. Later, in ca. 1,000 BBY, a contingent of Gran colonists settled on the planet. First contact between the Gran and the Dugs was bloody, and a long, brutal war ensued.[1]

Because of the power and influence the Gran wielded in the Galactic Senate, the Republic settled the violence in the Gran's favor. The Dugs were demilitarized, stripped of political power, and relocated to the western continent of their own planet. The Gran ruled Malastare and represented the planet in the Galactic Senate. Dugs were little more than subservient laborers treated as slaves and paid minute wages.[1]

References: [1] - http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Dug