Yam ' rii The Yam ' rii , also known as the Huk , were a sentient species of insects who hailed from the planet Huk . They had mantis - like bodies , with large , multifaceted eyes , thin torsos , knobby carapaces , and pointed feet . Some members of the species had large , clipper - like forelimbs that could be used as weapons , while others featured two fingers instead . They stood two meters or more in height and walked about on two legs . Members of the species were known as stealthy predators who were easily angered . They loved meat and eggs and had no compunctions about eating the eggs of other sentient species . After gaining access to hyperspace technology , the Yam ' rii began an aggressive expansionist phase during which they sought out valuable materials for trade on nearby worlds and founded colonies to exploit them . They eventually reached the nearby planet Kalee , where they enslaved the native Kaleesh . The reptilian captives fought back , and the two species were soon embroiled in a war . After years of fighting , the Kaleesh gained the upper hand under the leadership of a warrior named Qymaen jai Sheelal — who later rechristened himself Grievous . The Yam ' rii were driven from their colonies and almost wiped out as the Kaleesh destroyed whole settlements and killed even civilian Yam ' rii . The insectoids orchestrated several corrupt deals with members of the Galactic Republic to put a stop to the hostilities , and the Kaleesh were saddled with devastating punitive measures while the Yam ' rii were portrayed as victims and thus faced no sanctions . Decades later , the Yam ' rii were part of the Galactic Federation of Free Alliances . During the Swarm War , however , Yam ' rii were among the insectoids who became Joiner s and fought alongside the Killik s . Biology and appearance . Yam ' rii were sentient , bipedal insects . They were distantly related to both the sentient Verpine and vespid insects . The Yam ' rii had both male and female sexes . Members of the species were considered strange - looking by many non - Yam ' rii . Their giant , mantis - like bodies stood two meters or more in height and were divided into three major sections : head , thorax , and abdomen . They were strong , burly creatures , although they remained stealthy despite their size . Yam ' rii were carnivorous , subsisting on meat and eggs — and , according to rumor , their own kind . Yam ' rii blood was green in color . Large , multifaceted eyes dominated the beings ' wedge - shaped heads . These orbs could be either gray or red . At least some members of the species had pupil - like spots on their eyes . Nostrils lay below the eyes , although in most Yam ' rii these were imperceptible . A mass of bumplike protrusions at the front of the head acted as a mouth and taste organ , known to shudder at the prospect of a meal . In some specimens , the maw could be opened wide to reveal white teeth . Dual knobby crests grew from the beings ' heads with other bumps in between . A spiky ridge ran along the back of the head . A long , narrow neck supported the head on broad , rounded shoulders . In many Yam ' rii , both the neck and thorax were diamond - shaped in cross - section , with the more acute edges toward the front and back . Other members of the species had two rows of raised bumps on the front and back of the torso instead . The midsection was dominated by two arms held before the body mantis - like , the first of the double padded joints bent upward and the second downward . In most Yam ' rii , these arms were shaped like giant clippers : the upper limb had a barbed , serrated cutting edge on its underside , and the lower part of the limb narrowed to a point ; together , both halves acted like shears . Other Yam ' rii , however , had two fingers and a thumb instead , trading deadly , natural weapons for the ability to perform fine manipulation . Yam ' rii forelimbs could grow so large as to drag the ground when the being walked . The thorax tapered greatly at the waist , where the round , bulbous abdomen began . This posterior section came to a point in the back and featured striations along its length . The species ' legs had a single knee joint and ended in jagged , pointed feet ; these were bifurcated into two digits in those Yam ' rii with fine manipulator forelimbs . Yam ' rii were encased in hard carapaces that were knobby , striated , and colored gray , brown , or green . A lighter shade sometimes appeared on the fore of the thorax and abdomen . Members of the species wore minimal clothing , such as cloth skirts , belts , or bandoleers with pockets for carrying possessions . Society and culture . The Yam ' rii hailed from the planet Huk , a world near the Kalee system just outside Bitthævrian space . They were a technological culture with full access to hyperspace - capable spacecraft and modern droids . In fact , the manufacturer Industrial Automaton gave its LOM - series protocol droid series insectoid features in the hopes of appealing to Yam ' rii and other insectoid consumers . Members of the species were known for their quick tempers and lust for the property of others . They showed little concern for non - Yam ' rii ; members of the species were known to eat the eggs of sentient species such as Quor ' sav , for example , so mothers and caretakers of such creches had to keep careful watch when in a Yam ' rii ' s company . After years of war , the species came to be regarded as downright savage by their wartime enemies . During these conflicts , the species was ruled by warlords . Nevertheless , some Yam ' rii did integrate into galactic society and form relationships with members of other species . History . Evolution and expansion . The Yam ' rii descended from non - sentient insects . At some point in their evolutionary path , they split from the line that would eventually become their distant relatives , the Verpine . The Yam ' rii regarded the planet Huk , located in Wild Space , as their homeworld . Sometime between 1000 BBY and generations before the Clone Wars , the Yam ' rii established contact with the greater galaxy and gained access to hyperspace technology . They formed ties with the Galactic Republic and established themselves as important trading partners of the Trade Federation . The insectoid species decided it would be in their best interest to gain access to greater stores of natural resources , such as rarefied minerals and ore , to trade on the galactic market . Settlers thus set off from Huk to colonize nearby planets , including the rainforest world Abbaji and its neighbor Tovarskl , and to exploit the raw materials they afforded . Expansionist zeal blinded the species to any concern for pre - existing lifeforms or sentient species on the worlds the Yam ' rii claimed . The Yam ' rii eventually reached the nearby Kalee system . On the planet Kalee , they encountered a relatively primitive reptilian species known as the Kaleesh . Circa 60 BBY , the Yam ' rii planted a colony on the world and began gathering the few resources they could find . These were deemed inadequate , however , and the insectoids turned to exporting a commodity they deemed much more lucrative : the Kaleesh themselves . The insectoids corralled the reptilian species by the hundreds , eventually enslaving and selling millions on the galactic market . The Huk War . Several years before the Clone Wars , the Yam ' rii ' s new subjects rose up and began the conflict that came to be known as the Huk War . The Yam ' rii found themselves crossing barbed cutter limbs with the slaves ' Lig sword s , shoni spear s , and slugthrowers . For two generations , the Yam ' rii resisted the uprising and tried to contain it . The rebellious Kaleesh proved to be formidable adversaries , however . The Yam ' rii came to be regarded by their enemies with more and more balefulness , and the word " Huk " took on a pejorative air , meaning not a race or a planet , but " soul less bug . " Years into the war , the tide began to turn . The Yam ' rii found themselves losing several key battles , such as their assault on Shrupak , considered the holiest temple in the Kaleesh religion . Several new Kaleesh resistance leaders sprang up , the companion warriors Qymaen jai Sheelal and Ronderu lij Kummar among them . The Yam ' rii suffered defeat after defeat at the hands of Sheelal and his forces , and they soon found themselves on the defensive on Kalee . The Yam ' rii scored a key victory when they killed Kummar on the beaches of Kalee ' s Jenuwaa Sea and , it seemed , drove Sheelal into hiding . The triumph was short - lived , however ; Sheelal resurfaced , now calling himself Grievous and leading a corps of eight elite Kaleesh generals , many of whom had led their own rebel forces across the planet . United behind Grievous in a pan - Kaleesh army known as the kolkpravis , the enemy found a new spirit , and the Yam ' rii lost thousands to Kaleesh attacks . The Yam ' rii made the decision to cut their losses and abandon their Kalee colony to their former slaves . Grievous , however , was unsatisfied with this concession . Yam ' rii colonists on nearby worlds soon found themselves besot by Kaleesh invaders who had adopted Yam ' rii technology and organized behind Grievous and his eight elites . The Yam ' rii were forced fully on the defensive as they lost battle after battle and colony after colony — the settlers wiped out to the last Yam ' rii regardless of whether they were military or civilian . The Yam ' rii were pursued even into their home system : the planet Huk itself was overrun by Kaleesh warriors . The enemy seemed unstoppable , rampaging as far afield as Tovarskl . With their numbers so severely depleted , the Yam ' rii realized that they faced nothing less than the extinction of their species . The Yam ' rii pulled strings with their allies in the Trade Federation to compel the Republic to stop the Kaleesh ' s retribution . After several backroom deals the Republic decided to intervene in the conflict , and the Republic Judicial Department dispatched fifty Jedi under the command of Jedi Masters T ' chooka D ' oon and Jmmaar to mediate a settlement . The Yam ' rii claimed that the Kaleesh were the aggressors in the conflict , and corruption ensured that the Galactic Senate pressured the Jedi to believe them . The Jedi did as they were told : they chastised the Kaleesh for their belligerence , ordered them to pay war indemnities , demanded the return of worlds they had conquered , and imposed economic sanctions . Several Kaleesh leaders faced war trials . Despite the Kaleesh ' s protestations that they were the victims , the war finally came to an end with a Yam ' rii victory . Now with the full support of the Republic , the Yam ' rii reclaimed their erstwhile colonies . They destroyed those structures the Kaleesh had built during their occupation , including burial grounds considered sacred to the reptilians . The Kaleesh petitioned the Republic and the Trade Federation to put a stop to the desecration , but the galactic government stood behind the Yam ' rii . The Galactic Republic ' s response to the Yam ' rii crisis established precedent for the use of paramilitaries by the galactic government . Supreme Chancellor Finis Valorum cited the precedent in arguing for a similar response to problems on the planet Yinchorr . Later conflicts . Unbeknownst to the insectoids , Grievous and his kolkpravis made one final push to punish them for desecrating burial grounds on the colony world Oben , but his ship was crashed by the InterGalactic Banking Clan — IGBC — a commercial organization looking to bring the Kaleesh into their control as an enforcer . Bentilais san Sk ' ar , one of Grievous ' lieutenants , survived the crash - landing and eventually led another attack on Oben . The Yam ' rii fled , ceding control to the Kaleesh . For a time , the Yam ' rii were left to their own devices . However , after the formation of the Confederacy of Independent Systems and the outbreak of the Clone Wars in 22 BBY , the Yam ' rii colonists on Tovarskl received some unexpected guests : their one - time foe Grievous and an army of battle droids . The Kaleesh , having been turned into a cyborg by the IGBC and , via his affiliation to that organization , now a general for the Confederacy , ordered the droids to attack . The Yam ' rii on the world were slaughtered . Huk remained outside the influence of various galactic governments until at least 17 ABY . Eventually , the Yam ' rii joined the Galactic Federation of Free Alliances . By this time , they were still commonly referred to as the Huk . When the Swarm War broke out in 36 ABY , disgruntled Yam ' rii on Huk received overtures from the Killik s encouraging them to overthrow their government and side with the Colony against the Galactic Alliance . Some Yam ' rii responded and became Joiner s , addicted to the Dark Nest ' s black membrosia . Alliance operatives Han Solo , Leia Organa Solo , and C - 3PO saw them among other targeted insectoid species in the nest known as Lizil . Knowing that such a coup , if it came along with others around the galaxy , would spread the Alliance forces thin , Jedi arrived to stymie any rebellion . In 137 ABY , after the fall of the Galactic Alliance to the forces of Sith Lord Darth Krayt , the Yam ' rii were once again isolated and outside the reach of extraplanetary governments . Yam ' rii in the galaxy . Yam ' rii were aggressive expansionists who founded numerous colonies on disparate worlds , conquering any who stood in their way . Although many members of the species distinguished themselves in war , a few earned a name for themselves in other pursuits . Kitik Keed ' kak was one such being . She was a powerfully built , sly , and stealthy member of her species . Although she was handy with all sorts of technology , her love for eggs consumed her to the point that in 0 BBY , she was virtually stalking the Quor ' sav mother Kal ' Falnl C ' ndros to eat the avian ' s brood . Keed ' kak had a penchant to upbraid and excoriate anyone who distracted her from her goal — with the exception of her friend , the young Human thief Swilla Corey . Keed ' kak was drinking at the Mos Eisley Cantina on the planet Tatooine in 0 BBY on the same day that Obi - Wan Kenobi and Luke Skywalker were looking for passage to Alderaan . At the moment Kenobi sliced up the Aqualish thug Ponda Baba , Keed ' kak was directing Corey to a Pacithhip spacer in the cantina named Ketwol . She later left the cantina as the stormtrooper Davin Felth entered the building . A Yam ' rii of the fingered variety , Rek , was a majordomo and bodyguard who worked for the Black Sun gangster Grappa the Hutt in the days of the New Republic . Rek was stationed at Grappa ' s base on the planet Genon . In 11 ABY , Rek was present when Grappa received the prisoner Forma from the pirate Sol Mon . The Yam ' rii later accompanied Grappa to the planet Smarck to meet the smuggler Macus Kayniph . When Grappa later murdered Kayniph at his palace on Genon , Rek was among those gassed by his master to cover up the killing and make it appear to be part of a larger accident . Behind the scenes . Stuart Freeborn designed the model that would become the Yam ' rii in during production of the cantina sequence of , released in 1977 . The actual prop used in the film was a puppet constructed by the special effects team in and filmed on set as part of principal photography . The character was referred to as the " Praying Mantis " during production . An uncredited Jack Purvis , the same actor who portrayed the chief Jawa in the film , hid under the alien ' s skirt and operated it via strings attached to its limbs . Despite being one of the most intricate and complex props created for the scene , the Praying Mantis is difficult to spot in the final film . The species was first identified as the Yam ' rii — and the individual seen in " A New Hope " as Kitik Keed ' kak — in Decipher ' s " Star Wars " Customizable Card Game in 1995 . The card featuring the character established several key features of the species , such as their great strength and love for eggs . The card ' s statistics make Keed ' kak one of the more physically powerful characters in the game , although she is immediately lost if the card representing the Quor ' sav mother Kal ' falnl C ' ndros is present at the same location . The same character appears in the background of Pablo Hidalgo ' s . Nearly thirty years after the " Praying Mantis " appeared in " A New Hope " , " Labyrinth of Evil " and " The Eyes of Revolution " detailed an insectoid species known as the Huk . The sources revealed that the Huk had fought a long war with another species , the Kaleesh , and their leader , General Grievous . Abel G . Peña decided to merge the Huk and the Yam ' rii in his article " " . At the time he wrote the article , little was known about either . He had always considered the Yam ' rii to be one of the more interesting - looking and compelling of " Star Wars " ' various insectoid races . Joe Corroney provided the illustrations for the article , including a piece in which Grievous — in his guise as Qymaen jai Sheelal — and his partner , Ronderu lij Kummar , defend the Shrupak temple from the insectoids . Corroney reports in his blog that he enjoyed creating the piece because the Yam ' rii are in his opinion " otherworldly and unique looking . " He cites the illustration as one of his favorite " Star Wars " works because it reminds him of a B - monster movie . The novel " Darth Plagueis " , published in 2012 by Del Rey and written by James Luceno , mentions a " Yam ' rii crisis " sometime before the Clone Wars . Little context is provided about the conflict , so its relationship to the Huk War is unclear . While Peña ' s article was in editing in 2005 , the novel " , " by Troy Denning , was published . It includes a scene in which the droid C - 3PO describes the Huk as " vespid " — wasp - like — rather than mantid , like the Yam ' rii have been depicted . Peña speculates that this must refer to some aspect of the species other than their appearance , but he admits that this is currently a discrepancy . The entry for the Yam ' rii in " The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia " says that " it was believed that the Huk species was an offshoot of the Yam ' rii , " implying that the two were not in fact the same . This contradicts other entries in that same work , however , so it is assumed to be an error . Mantis - like aliens appear in a few sources but have not been specifically identified as Yam ' rii . For example , one such character walks by in the Coruscant crowd in " Clone Wars Chapter 21 " , and a mantid bounty hunter with serrated arms is a member of the Guild Council , the leading body of the Bounty Hunters ' Guild , in " The Mandalorian Armor " .