Catullan

			Intelligent Lifeform Index

Catullan
Four Letter Code	CATL
Federation Status	Member
Planet of Origin	Catulla
Encountered	TOS: The Way To Eden
T/E Rating	T0/E0
Current Tech Level	O
List of Named Catullans
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Humanoids, Catullans are noted starship engineers and many successful design yards are based out of the Catullan system. The well-known Yoyodyne Propulsion Systems was co-founded by Terrans and Catullans and is headquartered on Catulla. Their other sciences and society are slightly less advanced, but well up to Federation standards.

Name

• Proper Name: Catullan
• Pronunciation: ka TULL an

Home System

• Proper Name: Cendo Ipraem

Home World

• Proper Name: Cendo Prae
• Pronunciation:
• Diameter: 13,585km (8,441 miles)
• Gravity: 1.3 standard gravity with a density of 6.3
• Axial Tilt: 6.4%, slight seasonal variance
• Orbital Period: 339 days
• Rotational Period: 27 hours
• Classification: M
  • Surface Water: 82.1%
  • Atmosphere: 1.2 is a standard pressure with 75% nitrogen, 24% oxygen, 1% trace chemicals
  • Climate: Bulk of land masses occur within semi-equatorial and true equatorial zones
  • Population: Just over 2.28 billion
    

Cendo Prae is so far from Earth that a viewer looking at a map of the Federation cannot see Cendo Prae without zooming out until the rest of the Federation becomes an indistinguishable blur.

The planet's relative isolation has protected it to a significant extent from both Borg and Dominion incursions in recent centuries. The Borg seemed to dismiss it altogether, and public revelations about Dominion activity were limited to some minor incidents of espionage and sabotage at Yoyodyne, all of which involved agents of the Founders, rather than the Founders themselves. There are rumours that the Federation may have chosen to exploit this perceived insignificance by storing caches of critical knowledge and assets in the vicinity of Cendo Prae, as seeds for recovery in the event of another Federation-scale threat, but nothing has been confirmed by any reputable public source.

Even after centuries of careful coastline reclamation and near-continuous seawall construction, the amount of land above sea level on Cendo Prae is significantly below M-class norms. Nearly all land that isn't entirely vertical (and some that is) has been adapted for Catullan use. Above the water, virtually no wilderness or other apex predators native to the planet still exist. (With the advent of replicator technology, even large domesticated animals are rare.) Seen from orbit, Cendo Prae seems entirely tamed: terraced, bermed, groomed, fenced and walled everywhere but on sheer cliffsides and the steepest, narrowest mountain valleys.

Although woodlands remain, they are carefully managed and harvested. The species which shelter within have survived because they are considered either useful or harmless. Now that Catullans can afford to look beyond the limits of their world for living space, and replicator technology combined with relatively abundant power make resources plentiful, a few factions within Catullan society have called for a concerted effort to preserve and revive the few remnants of Cendo Prae's original biodiversity-- even to the extent of advocating time travel to acquire viable specimens. But a public policy defining the steps to be taken in regards to this issue has yet to emerge.

Cendo Prae's aquatic biomes have fared much better. Although some species have suffered from excess harvesting, the extreme depths of Catulla's oceans (which in many cases have yet to be explored, although they have been roughly scanned from orbit) have protected hundreds of others. As a result, for most Catullans, the idea of wild and dangerous fauna is linked with large predator fish and amphibious or marine mammals, rather than terrestrial species. Cendo Prae has a surprisingly low population of reptiles and birds; many of the ecological niches normally occupied by those phyla have been taken over by mammals instead.

Notable regions include:

Audets Archipelago
Mutfoelsparg
Ostleuvsjil
Kussitser
Duibensaat
Lidlo and Brooftes, rivals in the planet's jekker league

History

Follows standard sapient species development on many M-class worlds:

Tribes became small city-states.
City states combined into larger economic and political units (kingdoms, empires, republics) by aggression or treaty.
Larger units fractured back into smaller ones as conditions changed: earthquake/famine/plague/storm decimated critical population centres, inherited leadership failed, technological discoveries granted temporary economic or military advantage to rivals, etc.

The peninsulas and islands of Cendo Prae ensured that smaller city-states lasted longer and occurred more frequently in Catullan history than in the histories of peoples from drier planets. Amalgamation under a single world government was achieved much later than for the average Federation member world.

Not all, but most of planet's arable/inhabitable land is within two days' foot travel from sea, and generally slopes perceptibly upward from coast into mountains. There are very few plateaus or plains above sea level. This makes foot travel slow and arduous compared to travel on water, and as a consequence naval power rather than infantry was traditionally the dominant means by which control of territory was asserted.

Some scholars assert that the necessity to make the most of every single accessible resource in order to survive and progress has contributed to Catullan engineering prowess. They point to the need for

- terraced agriculture and irrigation,
- freshwater conservation,
- earthquake/storm-resistant architecture,
- gains in arable land by early terraforming (berms and seawalls),
- mining which caused the minimum possible disruption of other surface uses,
- ships which made the best possible use of rare timber and metals,
- technology for navigation and cartography,
- portability, durability (water-proofing?), replaceability and recyclability as features in item development.

Other scholars dispute this, pointing out that on many worlds species which develop in warm, welcoming tropical climates have the least pressure to evolve, as food resources are more plentiful and basic shelter is less urgent. Academics agree, at least, that in this case expertise in shipbuilding has translated into expertise in space vessel design and construction.

Negotiations between the Federation and the Catullans for membership were underway as early as 2269, stardate 5832. Actual membership was granted that year.

Government

Catullans elect representatives to one of seven regional councils. Each regional council then selects three of its members to send onward to a senate for matters of planet-wide significance. Technically, all three members from any one region are expected to vote as a block, but in practice much secret negotiation and jockeying for influence back home (at the expense of one's regional colleagues) has occurred. Currently, elections occur every seven years, one region per year.

Now that the Catullans are members of the Federation, a final three members from the global senate act as a delegation to the Federation's governing assembly. Replacements are elected to their seats at the planetary level. To some extent, contact with other spacefaring races (which in prominent cases vastly outnumber the Catullans) and membership in a galactic federation have taken some of the energy out of the global political process for Catullans. Some view the planetary senate as just another level of regional government-- not that important in the big picture.

Description

As a race, Catullans tend to warm skin tones, from pale gold through a rich peach. Blushing, tanning, and sunburn can alter skin tone temporarily, although these reactions may be hard to detect in some cases. Hair colour ranges from a near-snowy-white to pastels, with undertones in one or more of a range of hues (although to non-natives the differences may seem indistinguishable.) Some comparison between Catullans and the natives of Gamma Trianguli VI has been drawn by biologists, but no link has been established, and convergent evolution is considered a likely explanation.

Adult height can exceed M-class averages, but is more likely to fall below it; some attribute this to the slightly higher-than-M-class-normal gravity on Cendo Prae.

Physiology

Some Catullans (perhaps a quarter) can tolerate and even delight in sour flavours more than M-class averages. Catullans have a higher tolerance for salt. These variations reflect Catullan evolutionary biochemistry, and the available nutrient sources and biohazards on Cendo Prae.

Society, Culture and Customs

Catullans are still so rare in Federation space, as compared to wider-ranging species like humans, that many are taken as other species in some sort of makeup or costume, for entertainment purposes. This is a source of some frustration for them; individual Catullans deal with it in different ways.

Given the warm climate of much of Cendo Prae's land masses, historical dress tended to be loose and light. Informally, a combination of sarongs or kilts for the lower body, and light blouses, chest wraps, or short vests for the upper body, were deemed sufficient. Although Federation norms make trousers a more common choice for the public and professional lives of both sexes, at home many Catullans still enjoy these styles. Formal wear, as in many M-class societies, meant more complex layers: headgear, undertunics, longer vests, complete jackets, sashes and belts heavy with ornamentation.

Life on Catulla has often meant life aboard a boat or ship. With the shortage of land, houseboats (in the case of the poorest, lean-tos on reed rafts) provided shelter for many. Post-warp, given replicator technology and abundant energy resources, houseboats can now be a lifestyle choice, rather than a necessity.

Economy and Technology

Yoyodyne Propulsion Systems maintains both a corporate center on the planet itself and an orbital shipyard above Cendo Prae. A significant portion of the homeworld's population, although not a majority, is employed there, either living in the associated space station or commuting from the surface daily. Students from Catulla frequently tour the shipyard as part of their social studies or career development.

Sources

Dueld taJoot

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		SPECIES PROFILE UPDATED This profile was revised by the Species Development Committee.		REV 239010.25
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