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Geminorum IV is primarily known in the Alpha Quadrant as the homeworld of the notorious tribbles[1]. My first visit was to observe and collect data on the hammerhead dolphin, a medium-sized cetacean species that populates the rivers of the northern hemisphere. My second was as team leader of a research party to confirm sightings of the mysterious spiny manatee reportedly living in the marshy coastal areas of the planet’s southeastern continent. Though my xenobiology background is in cetaceans, my second master’s thesis in marine xenobiology consisted of my findings on the sirenia of Vagua Q7M7[2].
[1] See volume 1, issue 29 for Dr. McCoy’s experience with the species.
[2] An abridged version can be read in volume 1, issue 8 of this journal.
My third, fourth, fifth, and sixth visits all concerned hammerhead dolphins, who are now recognized by the Federation as non-human persons[3]. I have fond memories of my time shuttlecraft-camping on the riverbanks and diving among schools of these emotionally complex, culturally rich beings.
[3] Though I have published extensively about these beings in this journal, I recently worked with my editor to update my previous articles with current research and am proud to say that they are now available as a book, Songs of the Hammerhead .
During my time along the rivers, I had the opportunity to observe an overlooked group of animals: moopsy and noopsy. Noopsy are ubiquitous on Geminorum IV, ranking as the 5th most populous vertebrate on the planet. However, the relationship between them and their sister species, moopsy, deserve a closer look.
Noopsy are burrowing herbivores who live in underground communal groups known as flops [4]. A flop can have as few as a dozen members, or as many as two hundred.
[4] Flop social structure is comparable to that of Earth’s naked mole-rat. For further information on noopsy social life, see the next issue of this journal for my article on the topic.
Their main source of food is the ripe fruit of the beryl hoviorant. Hoviorants are a prolific evergreen shrub with subspecies all over the planet.
Noopsy reproduce at approximately the rate of Terran rabbits[5], with their spread limited by the microclimates and widely varying terrain of Geminorum IV.
[5] Two noopsy males (bucks) and a single noopsy female (doe) produce an average of 50 offspring per solar year.
Moopsy, in contrast, are bone-drinkers. Unlike Earth’s hyenas or bearded vultures, moopsy do not crush bones and eat the shards. Rather, their venom—composed primarily of hydrofluoric acid—dissolves the bones of their prey into a liquid for moopsy to consume. They then rely on symbiotic species of bacteria that aid in the digestion of ossein and ground substance, and release nutrients that moopsy can absorb.
Both moopsy and noopsy are immune to the effects of hydrofluoric acid, being polyethylene-based lifeforms. This also contributes to their rubbery bodies and distinctive, bouncy gait.
The name “moopsy” originates from the vocalizations the creatures make when breathing: “moop” on the inhale, “sy” on the exhale. Noopsy, likewise, create similar vocalizations with their breathing, though they produce a “noop” sound on inhalation.
Other than the vocalizations, the only way to differentiate living moopsy and noopsy specimens is by a visual examination of their mouths. As you can see from figures B and C on the following pages, moopsy have prominent fangs while noopsy have more herbivore-typical incisors and the Vespasiano’s grooves found in other Geminorum IV rodents. Due to the dangers of handling moopsy, the preferred means of examination is to observe from a distance and wait for the animal to yawn.
Unlike the common noopsy, moopsy are rare in their native habitat. One noopsy flop in ten will have a resident moopsy.
Moopsy and noopsy have a mutalistic relationship. Because moopsy and noopsy are so difficult to differentiate—even by the local sentients[6]—predators who may otherwise consider a noopsy flop easy prey will redirect their usual hunting patterns to avoid noopsy entirely. Meanwhile, moopsy can get close to the large grazing animals of Geminorum IV by behaving like benign noopsy.
[6] Hammerhead dolphins, as mentioned above.
My post-graduate assistant, Dr. Sugimura, is working on a paper concerning the evolution of tribbles, and how predation from moopsy, and other environmental forces, created a niche for the boneless, incredibly fecund tribbles of today. See the next issue of this journal for the full article.
A: A study of a moopsy skull. Note the prominent fangs.
B: A moopsy with an open mouth. Compare the noopsy in the next figure.
C: A noopsy with an open mouth. Note the incisors in the place of fangs. Cheek teeth are out of view. Compare the moopsy in the previous figure. For information on the Vespasiano’s grooves visible in the noopsy, see volume 1, issue 17 of this journal for an article by Dr. Vespasiano on the herbivorous rodents of Iota Geminorum IV.
D: A group of noopsy young consuming two beryl hoviorants, their preferred food.
E: An anatomical diagram of the internal organs of a Moopsy. For information on T’paik’s Organ, see volume 1, issue 32 of this journal for the article by T’paik and her team on bone-drinking organisms of the Beta Quadrant.
