Species 8472 Species 8472 was the Borg designation for a non - humanoid species native to a dimension called fluidic space , accessible through quantum singularities . Their highly developed biology and organic technology rendered them tactically superior even to the Borg , who considered them the " apex of biological evolution " . ( ) History . War with the Borg . In their search for species worthy of assimilation , the Borg encountered Species 8472 after finding a way to enter fluidic space in 2373 . However , Species 8472 proved immune to assimilation and the invasion of their realm provoked a war ; according to Seven of Nine , Species 8472 was the first species to offer " true resistance to the Borg " in their long history . With their superior biological technology , Species 8472 pushed back the Borg and launched a counter - invasion of the galaxy , annihilating large numbers of Borg drone s , ship s and even planet s . During this time , Federation starship " Voyager " also chanced upon Species 8472 . During the disastrous initial encounter , a member of Species 8472 communicated to Kes their intention to destroy all life in the galaxy . Captain Kathryn Janeway thus decided to ally with the Borg to stop Species 8472 , as well as ensure her ship safe passage through Borg space . Armed with bio - molecular warhead containing modified nanoprobe s developed by The Doctor , " Voyager " destroyed a number of Species 8472 bio - ship s in fluidic and normal space . Fearful of the new weapon , Species 8472 withdrew to their native realm . ( ) One member of Species 8472 was left behind in normal space and was relentlessly tracked by a pair of Hirogen hunters for several month s . This individual later boarded " Voyager " in an attempt to open a rift to fluidic space . Captain Janeway intended to aid its effort , but Seven of Nine refused . Shortly afterwards , as the Species 8472 grappled with a Hirogen hunter , Seven took the opportunity to beam them both to a nearby Hirogen warship . ( ) The Federation " threat " . Their conflict with " Voyager " led Species 8472 to dismiss the Borg as " irrelevant " and focus on Human ity as their primary threat , as they had proven themselves much more dangerous with the use of the bio - molecular warhead . In response , they built several terrasphere s in the Delta Quadrant containing simulations of Starfleet Headquarters , and genetically modified themselves to resemble Alpha Quadrant species . Their goal was to infiltrate Earth and gather intelligence on Starfleet ' s military capabilities and plans . Some Species 8472 were uncomfortable experiencing the lives of lifeform s so different to themselves , while others found elements of it enjoyable . In 2374 , " Voyager " discovered Terrasphere 8 by chance after detecting an ersatz Federation signal . Species 8472 subsequently captured Commander Chakotay , believing a Federation attack was imminent . The crew of " Voyager " managed to convince them that they had no contact with Earth and no hostile intentions , and were able to broker a cease - fire in which they offered the modified nanoprobes in exchange for data on Species 8472 ' s technology . Afterwards , Species 8472 returned to fluidic space . ( ) Aftermath . The Borg continued to patrol a border with fluidic space in the Beta Quadrant . Axum suggested that he would try to make contact with Species 8472 after he was liberated from " Unimatrix Zero " in 2377 . ( ) Biology . Species 8472 stands approximately three meter s tall and were tripedal . Their eye s have cruciform pupil s and they lacked obvious mouth s , nostril s , and ear s . They are immensely strong , able to dismember humanoid s and rip through bulkhead s with ease . They do not require oxygen or need any atmosphere for survival , and could walk without the aid of gravity , being able to cling to surfaces . ( ) Species 8472 had as many as five sexes . ( ) Each cell of Species 8472 contained over a hundred times the DNA of a Human cell ; the DNA had a triple helix structure and was the most densely coded of any lifeform known to the Federation . Species 8472 possessed an extraordinarily powerful immune system , capable of immediately destroying any foreign agent whether chemical , biological , or technological . This rendered them immune to Borg assimilation . If Species 8472 cells were introduced into another lifeform , they rapidly proliferated and began to consume it from the inside out . ( ) Their blood consisted of DNA and polyfluidic compound s . ( ) In desperate situations , they could commit suicide by releasing a cellular toxin into their bloodstreams . ( ) Species 8472 was highly resistant to almost all forms of technology . Their bodies generated a bioelectric field that blocked sensor s and impeded transporter lock . They could penetrate force field s and withstand quantities of weapons fire that would be lethal to most other lifeforms . Even when injured to the point of appearing dead , they could regenerate . ( ) In their native form , Species 8472 has only been known to communicate via telepathy . They could initiate mental contact with other telepathic species , such as Ocampa and Vulcan s , though to the recipient such experiences were physically taxing and difficult to understand . ( ) Species 8472 did not sleep . ( ) Culture . Being the sole inhabitants of fluidic space , Species 8472 was intensely xenophobic . They regarded all other lifeforms as impure and weak , and a threat to their genetic integrity . In response to the Borg " contaminating " their realm , Species 8472 intended to purge all life from the Milky Way Galaxy . ( ) However , some members of Species 8472 gained a new appreciation for the experiences of humanoid species after assuming their forms . For example , " Valerie Archer " expressed fondness for various works of Federation art , literature , and music . ( ) Technology . Species 8472 used highly advanced organic technology . Their bio - ships were composed of the same biological material as Species 8472 , and thus shared both their resistance to technology and their vulnerability to modified nanoprobes . Eight bio - ships working in tandem with an energy focusing ship wielded enough firepower to destroy a planet . ( ) Species 8472 also possessed sophisticated genetic engineering techniques that allowed them to mimic other lifeforms ; this deception could be revealed only through a microcellular scan . ( ) Appendices . Background information . Origins . In the first draft script of " Scorpion " , this type of alien was initially referred to as " Species 84729 " , when the first draft was first submitted , on . The species was renamed to its eventual designation by the time a particular revision of the initial draft of the teleplay was issued , on 24 February 1997 . The creation of Species 8472 was inspired by the success of previous visual effects in the series , particularly the design of the macrovirus in . Visual Effects Supervisor Ronald B . Moore commented , " " [ Executive Producer Jeri Taylor ] saw that we could do that and maybe , if we had something with a little more meat on it , literally , that we could try to move forward . " " ( " Red Alert : Amazing Visual Effects " , VOY Season 3 DVD special features ) According to Taylor herself , Species 8472 was originally conceived by Brannon Braga , who co - wrote . ( " Braving the Unknown : Season Three " , VOY Season 3 DVD special features ) Visual Effects Producer Dan Curry was also influential in the genesis of Species 8472 ' s design . CGI Effects Director Ron Thornton said , " " From what I understand [ . . . ] Dan Curry , God bless him , managed to convince the producers it would be a really good idea to do a wicked , computer - generated character , something that wasn ' t a guy in a suit or a guy with chewing gum on his nose . " " ( ) Curry himself remarked , " " When we were originally going to have that species , I suggested to the producers that instead of doing it [ as ] a guy in a suit , let ' s take advantage of some of the new CG technology , and do something that can ' t be a guy in a suit . " " ( " Cinefantastique " , Vol . 30 , No . 9 / 10 , p . 74 ) Director David Livingston noted , " " There was no choice but to create a CGI model . We couldn ' t do something realistic [ in live action ] . " " ( " Braving the Unknown : Season Three " , VOY Season 3 DVD special features ) The process of designing Species 8472 began with the script of " Scorpion " . Dan Curry recollected , " " We had a script for a very vicious alien creature that had to be so powerful and so fearsome that it was able to chop up and destroy the Borg . " " ( " The Birth of Species 8472 " , VOY Season 4 DVD special features ) Concept artist Steve Burg elaborated , " " It said it was big , and ferocious , and terrifying , and moved very quickly ; it was 14 feet tall at one point . That was about it . " " ( ) In the script of " Scorpion " ( both the first draft and final draft ) , the species was described as being at least ten feet tall and wearing an alien breathing apparatus . CGI animator John Teska recalled how he and the rest of CGI effects house Foundation Imaging heard about the conversations over the script : " " As there were , you know , script discussions happening at Paramount , we started to get the early word that there may be a new nemesis , a new character that would make even " the Borg " afraid . And it was very exciting just to know that there ' s going to be a CG character , that it was going to be a major player for that season . " " ( " The Birth of Species 8472 " , VOY Season 4 DVD special features ) Designing the alien . Dan Curry came up with the concept of having the aliens each be three - legged . By this stage , he had spent lots of time pondering the potentiality of a tripod alien , motivated by several inspirations . He noted , " " I guess it goes back to the old fifties ' sci - fi book " " , about these tripod plants that come to Earth and cause trouble . " " Another influence on the tripod design was a similarly three - legged , alien character that had appeared in a science - fiction fantasy play that Curry had written , designed and directed , as one of his thesis projects in grad school . " " That was a comedic creature , " " he noted , " " but when this came along , I thought , ' Well , hey , wouldn ' t it be cool to do a tripod creature ? " " ( " The Birth of Species 8472 " , VOY Season 4 DVD special features ) Yet another relevant influence was knowing that Foundation Imaging , who were commissioned to design the creature , would likely be able to handle such a lifeform . " " I knew also that on ' Hypernauts ' Foundation had done a tripod creature that was a kind of pet antelope called a gloose , " " explained Curry . " " Ron Thornton had shown me a tape of the character . " " ( ) After deciding that Species 8472 would be tripedal , Dan Curry did some sketches that he later characterized as " very , very crude . " ( " The Birth of Species 8472 " , VOY Season 4 DVD special features ) The prospect of demonstrating that the aliens were not being played by actors had an impact on the tripedal nature of Species 8472 as well as their overall design . ( " Cinefantastique " , Vol . 30 , No . 9 / 10 , p . 74 ) However , Dan Curry initially waited to relay the concept of the alien ' s three - legged form to Foundation Imaging , because Ronald B . Moore wanted to avoid imposing a particular design on the team . Moore recounted , " " We approached Ron Thornton at Foundation and said , ' Look , here ' s what we ' re trying to do . Why don ' t you have your guys draw something up , and we ' ll look it over ' [ . . . ] I would never presume to jump on that three - legged thing unless it was a script point . I ' ll just say , ' Show me some alien creatures . " " ( ) Endeavoring to focus the design , Foundation Imaging brought Steve Burg into the process , he having worked as a concept artist on multiple movies and actually having been responsible for the gloose design . Burg worked with Ron Thornton , who passed all of Dan Curry ' s and Ron Moore ' s remarks on to him . ( ) During Burg ' s tenure on the project , the communication between him and Curry was profuse , with them exchanging many sketches and ideas . ( " The Birth of Species 8472 " , VOY Season 4 DVD special features ; " Cinefantastique " , Vol . 30 , No . 9 / 10 , p . 74 ) As Moore had planned , Burg commenced his work on the project by consulting the few details about the alien that were available in the script , including the ultimately changed notion of it having a height of fourteen feet . With very little guidelines to proceed from , however , Burg ' s first drawing of the alien failed to impress the producers , who deemed it as too conventional , overly similar to the creatures designed for ' Alien ' and ' Predator ' . Burg later admitted , " " I have to say I agree [ . . . ] It does have sort of a mantis - like feeling and I think that kept on through [ the design process ] , but I think there was a miscalculation in that we began by making it too derivative , not of " Star Trek " things , but of other creature designs . There are definitely similarities between the head and the alien from ' Predator . ' I think it was the head they were most concerned about . They wanted something like the alien , but they didn ' t want a rip - off . " " ( ) Following this initial rejection , Ron Thornton advised Steve Burg to produce several quick sketches featuring a variety of looks that the producers could choose from . " " The next batch were just basic silhouettes , " " Burg explained . " " Some have three legs ; some have two legs ; some of them have a split tripodal base , with below the knee bifurcated . I don ' t think I had any real strong idea . " " The three - legged approach to some of these renderings meant that the design was nearing what Dan Curry was looking for . ( ) Although some of the images showed the creature with very viscerally sharp teeth , Ron Moore steered the design away from this direction , as the creature also had to look intelligent . ( ) " " One thing that Ron mentioned , which he may have gotten from Paramount , was that the thing was to have practically no mouth , " " stated Burg . " " One way of making it look smart is to not give it big teeth , like a Tyrannosaurus or something . If something looks very nasty and it doesn ' t have obvious claws or teeth , you figure it works on a whole other level . " " The producers selected one of the drawings , which suggested the creature ' s height as well as looking suitably alien , and asked Burg to concentrate on developing it . ( ) Steve Burg ' s assignment of fleshing out the chosen sketch involved a fair amount of work , as it was a view of the creature from behind and therefore didn ' t show its face . As he started by focusing on its alien anatomy and tackling how it might realistically move , the design continued its transformation into a more definite form . Even though Burg supported the notion of the creature having a tripod design as sounding " great , " it took him a while to overcome the challenge of the alien having not only three legs but also a front and back . " " The biggest problem was dealing with that third leg , " " Burg commented . " " In the end it became like a Human leg , but it started out as more of a symmetrical tripod ; all the legs pointed out from the middle and the body was more centrally located [ . . . ] I think it moved back toward something you could relate to ; it became sort of a centaur . " " ( ) Even while the creature ' s appearance was evolving with each successive drawing , Steve Burg was forming a considerably clear idea of how it was to look , later saying , " " I think that once this guy got underway he began to take on his own identity [ . . . ] At a certain point , something clicked and everyone started to see what this creature was . " " ( ) Work progressed on refining the face . One concept that Steve Burg submitted for the head was judged as being not alien - looking enough , with the producers concerned that it might be mistaken for a mask . They consequently requested that Burg sketch out some alternatives . ( ) " " Since the head / face is really where the creature is expressed , it was not at all surprising that they wanted to evaluate several possible directions before committing to a more finalized concept , " " said Burg . " " I remember I just sat down and churned out a whole bunch of weird alien heads . " " ( ) According to Dan Curry , he was responsible for deciding that the alien ' s neck shouldn ' t be a thick solid structure . " " I had [ . . . ] the idea of having the neck muscles be separate tubes that you could see through , so it couldn ' t possibly be a guy in a suit , " " Curry said . ( " Cinefantastique " , Vol . 30 , No . 9 / 10 , p . 74 ) However , according to Steve Burg , this facet of the extraterrestrial came about due to him refining the shape of its head . " " Somewhere in the middle of doing that I started gravitating toward the sort of tripod neck structure , " " Burg related . " " That seemed like a good way of making it something that obviously a person could not be wearing , even if you were in a closeup . I tend to think in terms of mechanical devices when I design , and the neck turned into a sort of flight simulator thing . That seemed to click with everybody . " " ( ) Regardless of who devised the arrangement of the neck , Ron Moore clarified , " " I think that what we were trying to do was get something that didn ' t look like a guy in a suit . If we could design something where you could see its spinal column , and the muscles separate so you would have little openings , that would help us give it other than the look of a guy in a suit . So we tried to get that . " " ( " Cinefantastique " , Vol . 29 , No . 6 / 7 , p . 95 ) Likewise , Ron Thornton remarked , " " We wanted to make sure it had lots of open spaces in it . For example , the neck is actually three very thin muscles , so there couldn ' t " possibly " be a guy in a suit . We did the same with arms as well , giving them extra joints and things . " " ( ) From the various drawings of the alien ' s head , the producers chose two or three images . " " [ They ] were similar to each other ; sort of variations on a theme , " " concluded Steve Burg . " " They decided that was the direction they wanted to go . " " Making the alien internally consistent allowed Burg to connect the head to the torso – a task that , thanks to the creature ' s relatively humanoid form , was fairly easy to achieve . " " It was just a matter of maintaining the style through the body , " " Burg remembered , " " putting muscles under the skin that were kind of like what you saw in the head and extending that through the torso . " " ( ) Digital modeling . Once Steve Burg was finished externally crafting Species 8472 , his drawings for the alien were handed over to John Teska , who was made responsible for building the model , turning Burg ' s designs into computer - generated reality . These examples of concept artwork included drawings that demonstrated the creature ' s full height as well as the approved head designs . ( ) Teska was delighted to join the project . " " When I started to be brought into the process , " " he remembered , " " and I saw some of the sketches that were being done by Steve Burg , you know , I was totally excited because it was a non - humanoid . It didn ' t look like the usual guys with just facial changes . This one had this very strange kind of neck and very strange body structure , with three legs and everything . So , you know , as an animator , as a character designer or creature person , I was totally jazzed about bringing this guy to life . In this case , Steve Burg had had several meetings with Paramount , so they had several different designs [ . . . ] There were many drawings and there were features on each one they liked . So , Paramount and Dan Curry came to me and talked about these different designs , and said , ' Could you put them all together and basically create a creature out of that ? ' So , I didn ' t have any singular drawing of , ' This is the final creature . " " ( " The Birth of Species 8472 " , VOY Season 4 DVD special features ) With John Teska ' s involvement , the alien design continued to develop . " " The very first thing I did , " " Teska recalled , " " was , once I had these drawings , was just did a very simple , blocky kind of shape , just to kind of get the proportions and figure out how big the head , how big the body and everything would be , and then gave that back to Paramount . So , it became a back - and - forth thing , going from very blocky , crude . . . then working up to the finer details . And then , ultimately , the paint maps and the textures were done several weeks later . So , it sort of evolved over the course of his creation . " " ( " The Birth of Species 8472 " , VOY Season 4 DVD special features ) John Teska based the finer details of the design on the few facts that were available about the aliens . Even though their vague backstory did not provide much insight into the creatures ' origins , the fact they were to be established as communicating psychically indicated that they wouldn ' t have to be depicted as talking much . " " So , one of the key things was getting kind of an expressive , weird forehead and just a feeling that they were different , " " Teska mused . " " But then , also knowing how they attacked people – they ' re always described as really vicious and just tearing – and that they cause infection just by tearing at you or whatever , so . . . Really , I mean , that was what drove the animation , was just trying to find a way to make them feel just really fast and menacing , you know , whereas the Borg always had numbers on their side and always had that sort of zombie , ' we ' re going to get you , no matter what ' thing . But with Species 8472 , it was just more of the surprise that they ' ll just . . . burst your doorway and start slashing . " " ( " The Birth of Species 8472 " , VOY Season 4 DVD special features ) Similarly , Ron Thornton stated , " " A lot of it was creating a personality for the creature in the first place [ . . . ] What we wanted to do here was something [ . . . ] like a leopard on attack . It would burst through the wall and completely decimate the Borg . " " ( ) Ron Moore concurred that the desire to separate the look of each of the aliens from " a guy in a suit " also influenced how the visual effects team designed the aliens ' movement . ( " Cinefantastique " , Vol . 29 , No . 6 / 7 , p . 95 ) The question of how to execute some of the alien design aspects initially proved somewhat troublesome . John Teska explained , " " There were a few things on this character [ that were questionable ; the open - neck structure ] [ . . . ] became a little bit of a question , how to rig that , and then the same thing with the legs . " " Dan Curry noted , " " My faith in John Teska as an animator was so great that I just trusted he would be able to come up with a very convincing way to move it about . " " Teska continued , " " Of course , I thought a lot about , ' How would this guy walk ? " " Ultimately , however , he needn ' t have worried so much about designing the way that the alien would move . He remarked , " " Ironically , we never actually saw him walk more than one or two steps over the course of his life . He ' s always leaping into rooms and tearing people apart , but he never actually just walked down a hallway , in any of the shots . Really , I just had to think more about getting these attack motions . " " ( " The Birth of Species 8472 " , VOY Season 4 DVD special features ) Teska took a week to build the CG model of Species 8472 . ( ) A difficulty similar to portraying the aliens walking through a corridor was how to fit such a tall alien into the corridors , in the first place . Ron Thornton commented , " " That it would be something nasty which was supposed to be nine feet tall made it very difficult to do . It was a little tight , squeezing a nine - foot tall character into the corridors , but I think it worked out . " " ( ) Highly pleased with the general flexibility of Species 8472 ' s final design , Ron Thornton enjoyed the process of animating the alien . " " Suddenly , we could do a totally non - anthropomorphic creature , that was nasty , vicious , and has a personality , " " he related . " " The animator now becomes an actor and has to give a performance to this creature , and that ' s something I love to do . " " ( ) Reception . Steve Burg was ultimately very satisfied with the design of Species 8472 , including the input that John Teska had , and termed the final version of the aliens as " absolutely amazing . " ( ) Shortly following the initial broadcast of the species ' introductory appearance in " Scorpion " , Jeri Taylor said of the aliens , " " I thought [ they ] [ . . . ] were really cool . " " ( ) Likewise , the inclusion of Species 8472 in made that fourth season premiere a particular highlight for Dan Curry , who remarked of the installment , " " It was good to see Species 8472 . " " ( " Cinefantastique " , Vol . 30 , No . 9 / 10 , p . 74 ) The possibility that the aliens would make return appearances , after the " Scorpion " two - parter , was on the condition that they proved to be popular among viewers . ( " Cinefantastique " , Vol . 29 , No . 6 / 7 , p . 96 ) Shortly after the fourth season began its initial broadcast , Brannon Braga said of Species 8472 , " " People seem to love them , and we ' re definitely going to see those aliens again this season . " " ( ) Despite the general popularity of Species 8472 , the feedback from some fans included repeated accusations that the aliens were slightly too reminiscent of the Shadows from " Babylon 5 " . ( ) Indeed , the unofficial reference book " " ( p . 188 ) even goes as far as to state that Foundation Imaging – which created the CGI for the first three seasons of the aforementioned series , prior to working on " Star Trek : Voyager " – were faced with a hurried deadline , as regards the creation of Species 8472 ' s design , and that , according to Foundation employee Adam Lebowitz , the company completed the workload by modifying the Shadows at the wire - frame stage before giving them new skin textures . Ron Thornton – who also worked on " Babylon 5 " – denied the resemblance , however ; he directly stated that the allegation of the reuse " wasn ' t true . " ( ) Species 8472 was featured on the cover of " Lightwavin " # 4 . In a interview , Nick Sagan admitted to liking Species 8472 , remarking that he thought they ( in common with the Vidiian s ) were one of numerous " cool aliens " that succeeded in differentiating " Star Trek : Voyager " from previous " Star Trek " series . He also opined ( about Species 8472 , specifically ) , " " I think they ' re great villains . " " At the New Jersey " Star Trek " convention , Kate Mulgrew remarked to the audience that Species 8472 was her personal favorite of " Star Trek : Voyager " s villains . Apocrypha . Species 8472 is one of the main races featured in the game " " . In that game , the player must infiltrate a Borg cube infested with Species 8472 to locate a material called ' isodesium ' . They are also the main enemy of the Borg and a playable race in " " , where their ships are further depicted as biological in nature , being morphed from active embryos into various types , while stations , also biological , were morphed from passive embryos . The short story " Places of Exile " , in the " " omnibus " Infinity ' s Prism " , tells the tale of an alternate reality where " Voyager " is attacked by Species 8472 and crippled . The crew has no choice but to stay in the Delta Quadrant , and find a way to survive . Captain Janeway and the crew form a loose alliance of Delta Quadrant species called the " Delta Coalition " . The crew also meets 8472 again but they need help from the Coalition . In this story , Species 8472 receive a name – the " Groundskeepers " ( in keeping with the incarnation of Boothby seen in , who retained much of the personality of the original Boothby and plays a major role in the story ) . In the game " Star Trek Online " , Species 8472 told the Klingon s to call them the " Undine " , revealed in the tie - in novel " The Needs of the Many " to roughly translate from the Undine language as " Groundskeepers " . In the novel and the game itself , the Undine are major antagonists , having infiltrated the Federation , Klingon Defense Force , and many other factions at all levels . It is the discovery of these infiltrations by the Klingon Empire , and the Federation ' s refusal to believe their warnings , that contribute to the outbreak of war between the Empire and Federation at the game ' s outset . It is later revealed that the Iconians had attacked the Undine in Fluidic space , making them believe that the Alpha and Beta quadrant powers were mounting an invasion and provoking the Undine ' s actions , including infiltrating the various galactic powers , as well as attacking the Voth as they fought the allied forces of Starfleet , the KDF , and Romulan Republic in the Solanae Dyson Sphere . The conflict reaches its climax after the Undine mount an assault on Earth Spacedock , and the attempt to deploy " Planet - Killer " weapons against Ferenginar , Gornar , Andoria , Qo ' noS , and Cardassia Prime . After being repelled by the allied fleets , the Undine retreat back to the Delta Quadrant . Admiral Tuvok and the player manage to negotiate a truce between the Undine and the allied forces at the culmination of the story arc . Other in - game missions reveal that the Borg had developed a way to assimilate Undine into the collective . Player characters , however , manage to destroy the prototypes and prevent the dissemination of that knowledge through the Collective .