Imagine a planet of endless sand and scorching sun.
A world where every day is a race for survival, and every night a fearsome competition for
resources.
The infamous desert planet of Tatooine — located in a galaxy far, far away — is known for
being an inhospitable wasteland.
Yet the creatures that brave this unforgiving environment are among the most fascinating,
and possess hidden intricacies that deserve to be studied further.
So, for this entry into the archive, I’ll be documenting this arid biosphere firsthand
— analyzing the biology of these extreme lifeforms, and seeing how their survival strategies
compare to those present in Earth’s deserts.
So, join me in a landspeeder on this voyage across the desert, as we uncover the mysteries
of Tatooine.
The planet of Tatooine orbits a rare binary star system, meaning it has two suns — with
the smaller sun in a stable orbit around the larger one.
On the surface of Tatooine, one can certainly feel the heat of both suns at all times — as
can the animals that live here.
Beginning our journey on the vast expanse known as the Dune Sea, life in this region
is highly specialized to survive the merciless heat.
Peering through my Macrobinoculars, I spot a group of wooly Banthas.
These hardy mega-faunae are the preferred method of transportation for the local Tusken
populace, and a staple of Tatooine wildlife.
A large, furry animal might seem poorly suited for a hot desert environment, but we can find
a lifeform with a similar strategy in the Earth camel.
Camels are experts at keeping cool, in part through specialized shaggy fur that helps
keep their body temperatures low and prevents excess moisture loss.
It’s likely the Banthas can endure the deserts of Tatooine thanks to similar adaptations.
But beating the heat is one thing.
To survive on Tatooine, the Banthas must also find food, and water.
To discover the Bantha’s food source, one must dig underground.
This is a black melon, a cactus-like plant species which, like many forms of cacti, is
a precious source of water in this arid ecosystem.
Once again, Earth camels sustain their bulk on a similar food source, grazing on cacti
whenever they get the chance.
While you or I might struggle to stomach plants like this, it’s no trouble for desert specialists
like the camel or the Bantha.
So, while the Dune Sea seems barren, the surprisingly dense network of underground vegetation means
large creatures such as the Bantha don’t go hungry — if they know where to look.
But it’s not just Banthas who drink of the Black Melon.
The Tusken Clans, groups of mysterious sapient life-forms that call this unforgiving desert
their home, also know all the ins and outs of the Dune Sea.
I initially hoped to document some of their knowledge, but Tuskens are highly distrustful
of off-worlders.
They weren’t interested in conversing without their masks—or even with them, so my questions
about this planet’s ecology go unanswered for now.
Feeling my welcome is well past worn out, it’s time I set off on my landspeeder once
more, and document the next lifeform of Tatooine…
Heading through a narrow canyon, I spot a fearsome Massiff.
And unfortunately for me, these mid-sized reptilian predators move in packs, coordinating
in intricate groups to take down their prey.
The Massiff pack structure is similar to those of spotted hyenas on Earth, with both species
living in large factions that coordinate to apprehend animals far larger than themselves
— and sharing in the spoils once the hunt is over.
Fortunately for me, this pack, surprisingly, isn’t wild, but are domesticated allies
of the same Tusken Clan I spoke to before.
As it turns out, domesticated Massiffs serve as loyal guard dogs across Tusken societies.
Deciding to spend another night with the clan, I learn more about the Massiffs, like how
their dorsal spines aren’t just for defense, but also show the creatures’ age through
their length.
And although I’m still a little worried the Massiffs haven’t stopped thinking about
eating me, I’m excited to find the Tuskens are opening up to my questions.
A Tusken storyteller I interview informs me that their people believe that thousands of
years ago, Tatooine was covered in rainforest, and the Dune Sea itself was an ocean of flowing
water.
Such an extreme transformation might seem unlikely, but shells and other fossils found
in the Dune Sea on a prior expedition corroborate this theory.
The process by which fertile land becomes desert is called Desertification, and it seems
this process began on Tatooine around 25,000 years ago.
Some claim the desertification of Tatooine was brought on by off-worlder activity, while
others theorize it was a natural process brought on by the planet’s twin suns.
In any case, it’s something I’ll have to keep in mind as I consider the lineage
of the species that live here.
The next morning, a commotion stirs through the camp.
A trap has caught a nocturnal Worrt.
Twisting out, the toad-like creature careens across the sand.
Typically, Worrts are most active at night, when they feed on rodents like womp rats…
and anything else they can ambush with their shockingly long tongues.
These tongues resemble those of Earth chameleons, which can also lash out with amazing speed
at unsuspecting prey.
Like the Wortt, the Chameleon’s tongue is stretchable to almost twice the animal's length,
and is powered by spirally wound protein fibers, which can store energy like a stretched rubber
band.
Yet soon this predator will become prey.
One quick blaster bolt… and it’s all over.
This Worrt will help feed the clan and their Massiffs a little longer.
To survive on Tatooine, one must take what one can get…
Setting off towards the western reaches, I spot, in the distance, an intimidating creature
rising up from the sand.
This six-limbed feral beast is a Tatooine Sand Ape.
Its target is a wild Massiff, which the giant Sand Ape makes short work of.
This is not a creature one should mess with.
While their name and muscular anatomy mirror large primates like gorillas, the Sand Ape’s
ambush hunting strategy is actually much closer to a very different kind of lifeform.
In the Sahara Desert, a slightly smaller predator swims under the sand.
The Sandfish is a type of reptile that buries itself within the dunes.
Then, when prey gets close enough it surfaces and snatches it up — just like the Sand
Ape of Tatooine.
And now that this Sand Ape has subdued the Massiff, it’s time to head in the other
direction, before it makes me its next meal…
Cresting over a sand dune, I spot a herd of lethargic Dewbacks.
These thick-skinned reptiles are frequently used as mounts, both by travelers, and those
of a more sinister nature.
Their name, however, comes from their seldom glimpsed habit of licking the morning dew
from their backs to stay hydrated.
A desert animal drinking collected dew might sound miraculous, but Namib Desert Beetles,
which I’ve discussed on this channel before, actually have a convergent survival strategy.
On misty desert mornings, they stand on their heads and let the dew that collects on their
backs drip down into their mouths.
And with fog in the air today, these Dewbacks likely have the same idea.
On a world with Twin Suns, all water is precious…
But there are more dangerous creatures under the Twin Suns I’ve yet to document.
Rancors are massive predators prized in the underground market for their fighting capabilities.
Paying to study one specimen, I’ve found they live up to their fearsome reputation.
With their long arms, they seem somewhat unsteady on two feet, with a posture reminiscent of
the fighting stance of a territorial grizzly bear.
With their long claws and powerful brawn, grizzlies are perhaps the closest things on
Earth to a Rancor.
On their hind legs, these bears can tower over seven feet, or two meters tall.
But as imposing as grizzlies are, a full-grown Rancor can easily reach sixteen feet, or five
meters tall — which puts into perspective just how dangerous these gigantic hulks of
muscle really are.
And since Rancors are not native to Tatooine, their introduction has wreaked havoc on the
local ecosystem…
But much like grizzly bears, there’s another side to the seemingly vicious Rancor.
My studies suggest young Rancors actually imprint on whatever species they first interact
with during an early period of development.
Imprinting isn’t unheard of in earth’s animal kingdom, and is present in young birds
especially.
But it might be a little surprising to see such a behavior in a beast as brutal as a
Rancor.
Like most creatures, Rancors are much more complicated than they might first appear.
There’s one in particular that I’ve been apprehensive to study up close.
In the Pit of Carkoon dwells the carnivorous Sarlacc.
Appearing as a giant mouth buried in the sand, local testimony indicates that under the surface,
the Sarlacc’s body is over 300 feet, or 100 meters long.
A diagram from the field guide of the interplanetary naturalist Terryl Whitlatch gives us a more
complete look at the Sarlacc’s body underneath the sand.
This diagram shows us that feeding tentacles extend from the creature’s posterior end,
drawing nutrients from the surrounding sand like the roots of a plant.
Indeed, the ever-confounding Sarlacc may be more plant than animal.
But the Sarlacc still feeds on live prey that falls into its fanged mouth.
While an organism relying on prey to fall into its domain might sound strange, one species
on Earth does something quite similar.
This pit belongs to an Antlion, an insect predator that digs steep holes in the sand
that almost look like miniature Sarlacc pits.
The Antlion waits at the bottom of the trap for an ant to tumble down the slope, which
the Antlion then slowly devours.
Curiously, there are rumors that the Sarlacc also digests its food over a long period of
time.
But the only way to determine whether or not this is true, is to get a closer look.
So I’m lowering a flashlight-equipped camera inside the creature’s gullet.
This is a nerve-wracking operation, as the creature might attack the light at any moment.
Navigating the camera down a stomach cavity, I find it’s difficult to see anything.
Turning on the high-powered beam, we’ve found the half-digested remains of an unlucky
former meal.
While gross, this discovery seems to confirm the theory of the Sarlacc’s slow digestive
system.
Unfortunately, it seems the Sarlacc has had enough of our prodding, and turns aggressive.
Time to quickly pull the camera back to the surface, and leave this place forever…
On Tatooine, one might assume the Sarlacc would be the top predator.
But there is a single, final lifeform on Tatooine large enough to eat Sarlaccs…
While refueling at a town, I notice the sand begins to vibrate.
When the ground shakes like this, every lifeform — from the tiny scurriers, to the largest
Banthas — know it means trouble.
One older Bantha isn’t quick enough.
From the ground bursts an enormous predator, which vanishes just as quickly with its meal.
That was a Krayt Dragon, the most elusive and deadly creature on Tatooine.
The bones of juvenile Krayt Dragons can sometimes be glimpsed upon the dunes.
But when Krayt Dragons reach their adult form, they’re virtually invincible.
This will be a very challenging species to study indeed…
Reuniting with the Tusken Clan from earlier, I agree to travel with them to the site of
a Krayt Dragon’s cave.
The Tuskens make a pilgrimage here every month, as they’ve studied its digestive cycle for
generations, and feed Banthas to the beast to keep it satiated.
From the depths of the cave, the creature emerges.
This time, the creature seems satisfied with its meal, and retreats back under the sand…
for now.
According to the Tuskens, the Krayt Dragons have another terrifying habit when they feel
threatened: projecting corrosive venom directly from their mouths, which causes their target
to dissolve.
While spitting venom might seem unusual, there are several species of Spitting Cobras that
have a similar defense.
When threatened, these snakes can contract muscles around their venom glands and launch
venom from their needle-like fangs.
And like the Krayt Dragon, some spitting cobras can launch their deadly venom more than three
times the length of their bodies.
Krayt Dragon venom, however, isn’t true venom, but an acidic fluid that helps them
digest their food.
We’re fortunate the Krayt Dragon wasn’t in a spitting mood today…
Yet one way or another, eventually everything on Tatooine meets its end.
To the south, an adult Krayt Dragon has died, and other species benefit from the resources
its body leaves behind.
The clan I’m traveling with is particularly effective at breaking down the different parts
of these leviathans after they expire.
But there is one body part in particular they seem to be searching for…
A young hunter has found a rare Krayt Dragon Pearl.
These pearls are formed the same way as the pearls of Earth mollusks.
The process begins when a small irritant like a grain of sand finds its way inside a lifeform.
A crystalized substance known as nacre then forms around the irritant, and over time the
layers build up and form a pearl.
But it’s an uncommon occurance in Krayt Dragons, and hence finding this valuable pearl
is a tremendous triumph for the clan…
It's been an incredible trek across Tatooine.
While all lifeforms here have to endure the same brutal conditions, no two lifeforms have
adapted to this planet’s unique challenges in the same way.
We’ve learned much about these survival strategies on our expedition, but with the
twin suns high in the afternoon sky, the time has come at last to say goodbye to this unexpectedly
teeming planet…
As always, thanks for watching.
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