Rhaandarite The Rhaandarites were a humanoid species . By the mid - 2270s , Rhaandarites were serving in Starfleet . Two Rhaandarites were present at Starfleet Headquarters air tram station in San Francisco on stardate 7410 . 2 . They were seen speaking to an Arcturian on the lower platform in the background when James T . Kirk and Sonak parted ways at the top of the stairs . A Rhaandarite ensign served aboard the during its refit . About the same time , a Rhaandarite served aboard the orbital office complex . ( ) Appendices . Background information . Identity . In " The Motion Picture " , members of this species were played by Billy Van Zandt and Steven Lance . Two early sources indicate the species was intended to be named " Vegan " . Firstly , the shooting script for " The Motion Picture " ( dated ) mentioned " high - domed Vegans " as an example of the aliens present in the Starfleet Headquarters scenes . Also , Steven Lance ' s character was described as " an alien being from the planet Vega " in a publicity photo . Meanwhile , one of the call sheets for " The Motion Picture " ( dated ) only described Billy Van Zandt ' s character as " alien ensign " , while simply describe him as " alien boy " . Other sources identify the species as being called " Rhaandarites " . Conception . This species was designed by Fred Phillips and Robert Fletcher for " The Motion Picture " and was one of numerous new species in the film that , with the approval of Gene Roddenberry , were named by Fletcher as well as provided a backstory by him . The following is a brief description , in Fletcher ' s own words : " " RHAANDARITES – From star system Rhaandaran . Simple , gregarious people . Women as big and strong as the men . Long - lived . Are like children , don ' t mature until 150 years old . Can grow to eight or nine feet with full height when about 200 years old . Crew member on " Enterprise " bridge , played by Billy Van Zandt , is young , about eighty - five . Extremely faithful , good at carrying out commands , not at giving them . Little visual sexual difference . Women designated by a spot on forehead of aluminum and black resin . Costume : silver and black lamé . Necklace : used for communication . All - purpose jewelry with machinery built in , of resin , dark gray plastic . Toy parts used for machinery that can be seen inside jewelry . " " ( " " , p . 132 ) Word - for - word portions presented in Fletcher ' s initial description above were later excised in an article appearing in the edition of , entitled " Who is that Alien ? " . In an interview with Robert Fletcher – published in the edition of " Fantastic Films " , as part one of a two - part interview with him , called " The " Star Trek " Costumes " – a paragraph about this species recalled much of his original description , with a bit of new information : " " From the star system Rhaandaran comes another race similar to Earthlings in their general appearance . They are a simple , gregarious people who carry the unisex look to its ultimate . Everyone dresses alike regardless of sex or age , both of which is difficult to ascertain without a scorecard . Rhaadarites [ sic ] are considered children until the age of 150 and don ' t even reach their full height – 8 or 9 feet – until they are at least 200 years old . Both female and male Rhaadarites [ sic ] are of equal physical strength and size and the only way to determine a lady Rhaadarite [ sic ] from her brother is by her jewelry . In the center of the female ' s forehead is a small black and silver disc which she wears at all times . The Rhaadarites [ sic ] are generally considered the country bumpkins of outer space and prefer not to leave their home world which accounts for the fact that only one 85 - year - old Rhaadarite [ sic ] youngster is found in the " Enterprise " crew . " " In an interview appearing in the edition of " Fantastic Films " , part two of " The " Star Trek " Costumes " , Fletcher revealed more information about these aliens , who were now called " Rhaandarites " , and the design of their costumes : " " These are the Rhaandarites . The lady is on the right ; remember that the jewelry denotes the sex . This material is a black and silver lame , a very sensuous , clinging , sex material and these two guys are very big men . I thought it might be fun to dress them in this particular material . The necklace serves two purposes , first it is a lovely piece of jewelry , and second , it can be used for communication – an all - purpose jewelry with machinery built in . The necklace is made of a poured resin and a dark grey plastic . If you got very close to this piece you could look inside and see the tiny toy parts that were placed inside to simulate a working apparatus . " " Design . The makeup for Billy Van Zandt ' s character fell under the responsibility of Ve Neill . In her book " " ( p . 141 ) , Susan Sackett recalled ; " " Ve ' s biggest project each day involved making up Billy Van Zandt , the Rhaandarite alien on the bridge . This " prosthetic " makeup ( makeup which involves appliances which must be attached to the actor ' s face or head ) included an oversized brain structure , covered with Billy ' s own hair , followed by a lacy gray hairpiece wig to make him look eighty - five years young . The whole process took anywhere from forty - five minutes to a full hour . His character also called for him to wear contact lenses , which had black centers surrounded by yellow and orange . These made it virtually impossible for him to see , and most of Billy ' s scenes were done by touch alone . The enlarged brain appearance of this alien creature earned it the name of ' Bumphead , ' and for a long time before the invention of a true generic name , Billy Bumphead became quite well known around the lot . Of course , there were exceptions , as when visitors to the studio , unaware of the excellent makeup job , wondered about the poor fellow with the malformed cranium who probably didn ' t have long to live ! " " Homeworld . According to " " ( " United Federation of Planets I " ) and " " ( " Federation Historical Highlights , 2161 - 2385 " ) , there was a planet named Rhaandar in the star system Rhaandar ( ) , which might possibly be the system of origin for this species , in the Beta Quadrant . This system ' s primary was a . In 2378 , Rhaandar was listed as a Federation member . Apocrypha . In non - canon , the Rhaandarite species and the unnamed crewman from " The Motion Picture " were given a much fuller treatment in Christopher L . Bennett ' s novel " Ex Machina " . Further , the planet Rhaandar was mentioned offhand by Federation politicians in the " " novel " Lost Souls " . A Rhaandarite envoy identified as " Veygaan Xuur " plays a significant role in the " The Latter Fire " .