Mon Calamari The Mon Calamari were a humanoid , aquatic species native to the planet of Mon Cala . They shared their home planet with the Quarren . Biology and appearance . The Mon Calamari were a bipedal , amphibious species with high - domed heads , webbed hands and large , goggle - like eyes . In addition to being webbed , the Mon Calamari hand presented three suction - cup like holes on its palm , and featured five claw - tipped fingers : one opposable thumb , two long middle fingers , and two very short outer fingers . Although they were shaped like flippers , their feet could nevertheless fit into boots designed for human - like feet . The females were distinguished from the males by their more prominent chest areas . The individuals that hailed from the colder polar extremes of their planet were noticeably less color ful than those who came from the tropical zones . The Mon Calamari were vigorous swimmers and were capable of living underwater for long periods . History . The Mon Calamari originated on the planet Mon Cala , which they shared with the Quarren species . During the Clone Wars , the Mon Calamari remained loyal to the Galactic Republic while the Quarren sided with the Confederacy of Independent Systems . Taking advantage of the political crisis , the Karkarodon Separatist adviser Riff Tamson stirred up trouble between the two species and funneled Separatist military support to the Quarren chieftain Nossor Ri . Tensions between the two species reached a climax when the ruling Mon Calamari King Yos Kolina died under suspicious circumstances . The Quarren quickly contested his son Prince Lee - Char ' s claim to the throne and demanded to have a greater stake in ruling Mon Cala . In response to escalating tensions between the Mon Calamari and Quarren , the Republic dispatched a peace mission consisting of Senator Padmé Amidala and her Jedi protector Anakin Skywalker . Following the failure of mediation , both sides prepared for war . Prince Lee Char and Captain Gial Ackbar prepared the Mon Calamari for war . The Republic also dispatched a company of Clone SCUBA trooper s under Jedi General Kit Fisto and the Padawan Ahsoka Tano . Backed by Jedi and Republic reinforcements , the Mon Calamari managed to fight off a Quarren and Separatist assault on Mon Cala city . However , Prince Lee Char and his Jedi and Republic allies were forced to retreat when the Quarren counter - attacked with Hydroid Medusa ses , gigantic jellyfish with electrified tentacles . Under the orders of Count Dooku , the Separatist leader Tamson rounded up the Mon Calamari population in Mon Cala City and shipped them to internment camps . Meanwhile , Prince Lee Char , the surviving Mon Calamari forces and their Republic allies retreated to a few caves near the city . Following a failed attempt to smuggle Prince Lee - Char and Senator Meena Tills offworld , the Prince and his Republic and Jedi allies resolved to continue resisting the Separatist occupiers , who had begun enslaving the Mon Calamari population . Despite the arrival of Gungan reinforcements from Naboo , the Quarren and their Separatist allies succeeded in capturing most of the Mon Calamari and Republic / Jedi resistance with the exception of Prince Lee Char and Ahsoka . Prince Lee - Char decided to rally Mon Calamari prisoners and to win the Quarren over in order to drive out the Separatist invaders . While attempting to rally prisoners at a Mon Calamari prison camp , he was captured by Separatist forces but secured an audience with Riff Tamson . By this stage , Tamson had strained relations with his Quarren allies by planning to crown himself as the new ruler of Mon Cala . Tamson sentenced Prince Lee - Char to death but his plans were sabotaged by the Quarren chieftain Nossor Ri , who experienced a change in heart and ordered his followers to support Ackbar and the Mon Calamari . Together , the Mon Calamari , their former Quarren foes , the Republic , Jedi , and the Gungans succeeded in driving the Separatist forces out of Mon Cala . Following the battle , Lee - Char was crowned as the new king and restored peace between the Mon Calamari and Quarren . At the end of the Clone Wars , with the Jedi exterminated and Palpantine ' s rise to power as Emperor of the newly - formed Galactic Empire , he subjugated and enslaved the Mon Calamari and occupied Mon Cala . In response , the Mon Calamari threw their weight behind the Alliance to Restore the Republic and played an important role in supplying warships to the Alliance Fleet . Mon Calamari in the galaxy . Some notable Mon Calamari included the Rebel Alliance Admiral s Gial Ackbar and Raddus , Mon Calamari royals Yos Kolina and Lee - Char , and the engineer Quarrie , who built the first B - wing starfighters for the the rebellion . The Mon Calamari also produced force sensitives including Nahdar Vebb . During the last days of the Clone Wars , several Mon Calamari musicians performed the " Squid Lake " at the Galaxies Opera House in Coruscant .