Yelniks
| Yelniks | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Biological Classification | |
| Common Name | Yelniks |
| Type | Insectoid |
| Physical Characteristics | |
| Average Height | 2.3 Metres |
| Skin Colour | Reddish Brown |
| Sexes | Males (Tiny Minority), Females (Vast Majority) |
| Respiratory Gas | Oxygen |
| Locomotive Method | Bipedal |
| Distinctions |
|
| Average Lifespan | 67 Years |
| Demographics | |
| Inhabits |
|
| Population | 148.8 Billion |
| Endangered | Least Concern |
| Sociocultural Characteristics | |
| Intelligence | Sapient, Sentient, Hiveminded |
| Homeworld | Kieln'yan |
| Habitat | Grasslands |
The Yelniks are a sapient hiveminded insectoid species native to the planet Kieln'yan, from which they have expanded to the point of forming a vast interstellar polity known as the "Yelnik Hivemind" consisting of tens of colony planets. Appearance-wise, they possess a fairly typical insectoid build consisting of a exoskeleton made out of chitin, at least four segmented limbs, large mandibles, and red-coloured compound eyes.
Yelniks are into specialized Hives in which all constituents are capable of instantaneous telepathic and pheromonal communication, each consisting of an unified Hivemind featuring subservient drones and a active central consciousness, which effectively means that each hive is its own individual spread throughout all of its constituents capable of conversing with other hives as if they were their own individuals. A vast majority of their population is female and capable of producing thousands of eggs at a time, allowing them to reproduce incredibly quickly despite the low number of males to reproduce with. Yelniks are born as larvae which mature into an adult at roughly 4 years of age after concealing themselves in a cocoon. Yelniks are known to instinctually reproduce at a incredibly quick rate likely due to fears of extinction during their more primitive era, which often lead to competition until their peaceful unification under the central Kieln'yan Hive as their 'leader'. This rapid reproduction also allows them to quickly specialize to new climates and environments, which have lead to fears that a out-of-control expansionist Yelnik Hivemind could easily become a galactic-scale threat, though their current cooperative and friendly relations with the Galactic Community have largely negated these fears.
Yelnik society is incredibly communal, as may be expected from their constant mental connection with one another, with their hivemind being powerful enough to even be capable of inadvertently assimilating Non-Yelniks which stick around groups of them for extended periods of time if the Yelniks aren't wearing a specialized blocker to prevent this from happening, though even without these intentional assimilation is a rarity. Yelniks typically lack language in their internal communications due to how deep their connections are, instead simply directly transferring their intents and ideas among their hives. Yelnik Hives in the modern era typically extend across their entire home planets, though long-term separation inside of spacecrafts or moving to isolated regions leads to these isolated groups being severed from their previous hiveminds into smaller localised ones due to the lack of a direct connection. Due to their memories all being shared, Yelniks are known for often confusing the experiences of others with their own, which may at times lead to difficulties in communication due to their difficulty in differentiating between reality and their memories.
