00:00.00 Alex Hello everyone and welcome back to episode 57 of archaeo animals for talking about the zo archeology of star wars and I promise I swear this segment we will at least not really talk about tattooing creatures. But I mean come on honestly so much is tall. Worst. Takes plays on tattooing. It's really hard to not talk about them so we are finally off of tattooing now and you might recognize this 1 simona the wampa. 00:25.22 Cpt Granarius Um, yes. 00:36.40 Cpt Granarius It's Bigfoot. 00:37.74 Alex I mean yeah I guess well I mean that that that that is a a a folklore creature. Yes, the adopt. Yeah why the adominable Snowman you know one one of those so walk. But. 00:39.17 Cpt Granarius Snow Bigfoot 00:47.71 Cpt Granarius Well, the yeti really? yeah. 00:56.40 Alex Are potentially the main predator species on the ice planet of Hof I mean realistically we don't really see a lot of creatures on to hof and they are no, they're not really so they're most notably seen empire strikes back. They. 01:04.20 Cpt Granarius It doesn't look very nice there. 01:13.30 Alex Attack Luke at the very beginning of the film and then kind of the first like enemy in the film. So sweet. Yeah, so as Simona has heard he said they're basically like the dominal snowmen or yeti they're. 01:20.60 Cpt Granarius Ah, take your word for it. 01:31.51 Alex Big white furry creatures with those rounded Ram like horns that apparently just are on every creature in star wars I mean yeah, they they do. They do make things look interesting I guess so they. 01:40.50 Cpt Granarius Why not. 01:49.50 Alex Inhabit The frost caves of hof but will occasionally venture out looking for Prey before dragging it back into its den to be consumed so in in that sense I feel like we can make ah a bit of a realw world connection to bears at least in you know that kind of scavenging. Mentality. Ah, it's a bit of a stretch I know. 02:13.40 Cpt Granarius Yeah, could be like sort of a polar bear but polar bears I you there they willav Ji hunt there. They they're just angry and and and rightfully so they have many reasons to be angry. But yes, they are angry. 02:20.13 Alex Yeah I mean. Yeah, so like yeah polar bears I think are like the first kind of point of call in as far as kind of trying to compare it to real world species. Obviously they're both in very similarly coal environments. But also they seem to be exclusive carnivores like polar bears. Although other bear species like brown beers can occasionally scavenge. So I think in that case, maybe we can shift the conversation a bit and this I'm talking about the remains. We can potentially talk about the taffonomic signatures and how. The wampa probably have a very unique or at least identifiable taphenopic signature kind of like bears. So bears when they scavenge and they chew on bone and we find that archeologically you find. That's the main kind of characteristics are like really fragmented bone particularly long bone and has evidence of furrowing and scooping so kind of the long like entrenched like indentations pitting that like kind of bumpy. 03:39.34 Alex Bits and pieces here and there and like really smooth licked surface suits at the kind of fractured edges of bone at least that's my guess. Ah. 03:49.28 Cpt Granarius Yeah, the think like they would have a very distinct sort of um signature as well on the bones. Ah the one purs because I'm I'm looking at a close up of one with its mouth open and oh oh oh boy danger dentist. Um, what's going on there. Ah, because they seemed all the teeth seemed to be pointed so they have a succession of canines in a variety of sizes almost fish like again, the sort of all a varying size of there doesn't seem to be any rhyme of rhythm except for maybe on the lower Jaw. There's almost like 2 sets. So like a 4 total of lower canines that are much bigger than all the other teeth but all the incisors look equally sort of pointy but they're more slender in the maxililla than they are in the jaw. 04:32.29 Alex Yeah, So I wonder if for Wampas we maybe see more pitting in that case, Definitely like probably a lot of fragment like sharp fragmented bone. Although obviously in the film when you do see them and they're munching on bone. It's just that kind of cartoon like. Femur Big Femur bone gnawing on a turkey leg type thing. 04:54.32 Cpt Granarius Yeah, because also like I can't really see what the molars are like but of course like you know, a lot of the bone crushing would be done with the molars. But then if they just have like endless row rows of canines I mean they'll be fine for sort of tearing flesh but in terms of crushing bone Maybe not actually. 05:11.93 Alex Yeah I mean obviously you know it's oh true. Yeah, and we have actually in like a few episodes ago I believe we have talked about Croco Dillian Taphonomy which I believe is also kind of. 05:14.27 Cpt Granarius Actually no I like I like Crocodiles do that just fine. So. 05:29.23 Cpt Granarius Um, we have. 05:30.86 Alex You know, very fragmented bone splintered bone. So I guess that would be more of the Taphenomics signature than perhaps what we actually see in the film is so. 05:42.62 Cpt Granarius Yeah, because I think like probably be very distinct because it's a yeah, it's just like all these sort of teeth when they note much of a ryme or rhythm because there's some like you know you'd expect us. Ah some sort of conformity in the size. 05:55.88 Alex The. 05:57.66 Cpt Granarius Off to tea. Well, you're incisly your Kines Pre molars. Ah, but it just seems to be sort of very all over the place. 06:03.62 Alex Yeah, but hey it's science fiction baby. There are no rules really anyway, kind of related to the the wampas I feel like we should talk about their main prey and really the only other creature you see on Hof. Which is the Tod Ton and that's me getting my my law my actual long island accent really comes out when I say that I apologize I try so hard. 06:29.29 Cpt Granarius Okay, and it's another yak thing there were not quite yet sort of yak think. 06:34.73 Alex I mean I mean yeah so I lied there. There was at least 1 other yak creature on this list. 06:40.19 Cpt Granarius What up I Thought you you know it looks like this the yak snow version of that other dinosaur one with a platypus bill. 06:49.65 Alex And yes, the could do so like the Kao the tantons are bipedal mounts although in in contrast to the couldo they do have arms. They said their little t rex kind of arms. Which are fun. 07:10.39 Cpt Granarius Yeah, because I guess yeah, there's sort of like a could do but they like more like a could do and ah the the what was that yak again the first one the Nerth Yes, a could do and a nerve at a baby in the snow. 07:19.70 Alex The Nerf the. 07:27.28 Cpt Granarius And it was this. 07:28.92 Alex Yeah I Guess So so for those who don't know for some reason they they're furry creatures with curved Horns Again, those horns making a comeback and big claws which some kind of in lore text. Suggest That's why they're really well suited for travers. Its hoff the the claws allow them to get a nice grip on the really icy and snowy landscapes on the planet and the thing I wanted to point out that is really unique about the tan twins is that they have four nostrils. 08:04.35 Cpt Granarius Oh I notice that. 08:06.30 Alex Yeah, no, it's something that I think when I was a kid I really didn't notice and then as I got older I was like it same 4 nostrils because it's such a a very strange because usually you know usually you'd say like oh they have extra arms. They have extra eyes they have extra legs. 08:16.58 Cpt Granarius Oh. 08:24.00 Alex Um, never really seen a science fiction creature that was like we'll have extra nostrils. 08:30.23 Cpt Granarius Because they have yeah because almost like the top nostrils almost look like we' be the start of an elephantine sort of um Tusk and not tusk. Oh what? What do elephants have. 08:44.87 Alex I Mean could you be more specific trunk. Yeah. 08:46.98 Cpt Granarius I'm fading at English the nose the trunk. That's the one it kind of looked like an elephant trunk and then so like that the maxillailla kind of looks like a camels. 09:00.75 Alex I Do like the tantons I think they're one of the more innovative kind of creature designs and that it it's so it simultaneously looks very familiar but not familiar at all. 09:15.80 Cpt Granarius Exynical. Yeah, the face is quite Mammalian but then again the teeth Again. You've got little more they make more sense in the tone torn but it sort of these sort of basically K Nine s all across the board like or just pointy teeth throughout. And but then they' also got that those are ossified sort of dermal plates that you see in some of the Rotillllian creatures. So like aside from the horns got those other bits sticking out that the ossified thermal plate when I wouldn't call them play for. 09:42.60 Alex Um, So so yeah there I don't really have in lore explas for that I do have an in Universe Lore kind of explanation for the nostrils. Ah, so apparently the larger set of nostrils would be used only really for intensive activities that required a lot of Oxygen intake and then the smaller set was used for when and tontons were less active as it also kept out stow and things like that. So weirdly enough. 10:18.78 Alex They're not that entirely dissimilar from real life creatures that also have four nostrils which are mostly fish and fish actually so the fish have multiple pairs nostrils on either side of their face. 1 nostril allows water in and then the other one. Let's water out of their nasal cavity. So kind of similar in that sense. 10:43.20 Cpt Granarius Um. 10:43.97 Alex It. It's one of those things that like makes sense on a very base science fiction level for sure it and as you mentioned simona they do have a bit of a reptilian look to them and in some text that I found. They are referred to as repto mammalian so underneath all those layers of fur is actually a layer of scaly skin and then following that is blubber which is why in empire strikes back when Han. Has to keep Luke Skywalker somewhere warm and safe overnight. He slices open a tonton and puts Luke inside and he is not nice and then he obviously says one of his famous lines I thought they smelled bad on the outside and. 11:28.79 Cpt Granarius It's not very nice. 11:37.14 Alex That's obviously because Blubber has an extremely strong odor but also provides insulation so that's why it was useful as a a living ah sleeping blanket a sickly. So I guess to archaeologically we could maybe say hey. There could be evidence for tanton butchery for blubber. Maybe we don't really know if Hoffs had like actual you know huvedoid or it's relatively sentient. Ah inhabitants. So I don't know if there was ever a culture for tanton blubber. But I guess you could maybe make a case for that potentially being something to look for. We see it in early prehistoric archeological sites with regards to the use of blubber from marine mammabbles such as seals butchery barks on bone that represent dismemberment and skinning of course but also. Associated artifacts with residual evidence of blubber that could be identified using lipid analysis and isop analysis. So maybe I don't know. 12:44.26 Cpt Granarius And also I guess you could get it even though though, there's no necessarily any the so Humanoid populations on the planet. You might get the odd sort no say like a ship shipwreck site and people have to fend off for themselves while help arrived and then they would have to well hunt the local fauna. 13:01.40 Alex M. 13:04.16 Cpt Granarius So there might be some evidence of exploitation but necessarily by a culture per se but just people that happen to be on that planet for a reason or another. 13:09.83 Alex Yeah, and obviously we know from the film that the rebels have kind of created a base there so it could be that they have to actually savenge tontons for blubber for you know, fuel or something Again. Just. To archaeologists making up stuff as we go along anyway real quick I Want to go to our next one. The Kowackian Monkey Lizard which is most known for their appearance in the form of salacious crumb job of the Huts weird little pet guy from return of the jedi. 13:43.60 Cpt Granarius Oh. 13:46.71 Alex Exactly That's why I want to talk about them. They are various colors brown Red Blue. They're basically treated as the space version of a parrot and I want to talk about the fact that they should not be called Monkey Lizards I don't get it I get the Monkey part. Bipedal creatures with tails. They have similar motions they are found on trees and I can kind of get the Reptilian part is that because you know they have tufts of fur but they also have this kind of scaly looking hide. But if we're trying to sort out. What reptile they're closest to I wouldn't necessarily say a lizard I would probably argue for something like a turtle because of their weird beaks. 14:30.67 Cpt Granarius And if anything looking at them again like I've never seen this before in my life. What came to my mind first was an eye I or over a monkey that makes sense and like the tougher fur. The. 14:41.16 Alex Yeah, yeah, yeah. 14:50.37 Cpt Granarius Look like this just had it ah except for the the beak Obviously ah which reminds me sort of say Reptilian but also in a way you know what? that be course reminds me which again is not reptilian at all the mouth of an octopus. 14:55.78 Alex Yeah, so I always fought that beak. Sorry. 15:04.75 Alex Look Oh Yeah I see that So for me I always thought turtle so like turtles. The beak is called the Ramhopca Ramfo Theca. Which is a bit of Keratin sheaf over their Mandible Mazilla and the shape always kind of remind me of like a little turtle beak and obviously birds also have this which make up there because we see them. But I Also I get what you mean by the octopus as Well. I Don't see lizard right? Like if at the very least I don't see lizard. 15:41.98 Cpt Granarius No because also like the rest like beak aside the rest of the mouth. The animal and maxillailla kind that reminds me more of a frog which like is wolf like it's got like a frog John Mcsillailla with the head of a of a li. 15:49.50 Alex Yes. 15:58.63 Cpt Granarius Like a little owl sat on top of it at least from the photo that I'm looking at you just see like it's almost like 2 distinct things and you have the 2 little yellow eyes that ah no, um, tangent aside I would have thought yes, something akin to eye that yell like a turtle or like a keratin. 16:17.15 Cpt Granarius She's like much like in an octopus speak. Ah, but essentially an eye I. 16:21.18 Alex So yeah, clearly Disney you should hire zo archeologists to do do your creature development. These should be called a coakian I I turtle frog. 16:34.38 Cpt Granarius Ah, just found another fun thats terrifying. Oh no, don't like this. 16:36.56 Alex Is it The is it is it The picture of the puppet. 16:43.10 Cpt Granarius Ah, yeah, think might be is it in the mandalorian. 16:45.51 Alex I think there might be 1 I will say I am the owner of 2 of them I have 2 puppets of them in my house right now. Thank you Disney. 16:57.19 Cpt Granarius Um, ah oaf. 16:57.96 Alex Okay, so we will go away from that we will. We will cleanse ourselves of that image because they are a bit freaky and talk about our final very strange creature from Star Wars and that is the tuka cat. 17:17.83 Cpt Granarius To count. Oh oh, that's all right. 17:19.12 Alex Yes, they're just cats they're just cats I just wanted to talk about cats at the very end of the episode. It's a nice cleanser after the quacky and monkey turtle lizard I I thing they're just they're just cats they just look like cats they come in various breeds. Most famously the loft cats from the planet lothol which is seethed in the tv series rebels and also as an animatronic in the Disney theme parks and they're very cute and I love them so much they are literally just cats except they also have like bird-like talons and like really big frog faces. And they're just they're just so cute. 18:04.70 Cpt Granarius Swooshy tail and talons. 18:05.70 Alex You Just want to squish their faces I Love them. They got just big, big big frog-like faces I Love that and I don't I couldn't tell you really. But the evolutionary advantage a talent would provide a cat but I guess I don't understand why the frog phase other than Maximum cuteness which I guess could. 18:23.70 Cpt Granarius Hold the prey down. 18:34.82 Cpt Granarius Well because that we get to bribe sort of human cultures in the vicinities into giving them food so they don't have to hunt and then the talents I mean provided that much like cats and well cats are not arboreal but you know have but the ability to climb on trees. 18:41.39 Alex True. Yes. 18:51.27 Cpt Granarius If they hunting strategies to pounce on their prey from the tree then the talons much like a bird of Prey would help them sort of hold them down. 18:57.52 Alex Yeah, and they seem to be in the way that they are portrayed in kind of Star Wars They seem to be in the process of being domesticated as pets. They're mainly seen as like pest hunters and they do seem mostly tamed. But yeah I Mean. To be fair Star Wars technically does play take place in a long time ago would a got the far far away so you know they may not be up to the same level of domestication that we are in the real world. But yeah, that is a whirlwind journey Through. ZoArcheology of Star Wars Simona How do you feel. 19:37.21 Cpt Granarius Um, I'll tell you next episode I mean but I need to process some of this. 19:41.24 Alex Yeah, yeah, so I guess while you process that if folks listening want to make sure that they subscribe to our podcast wherever you get your podcasts and tell your friends to subscribe as well. Like us and leave reviews. That's always really helpful and nice. You can find us on Twitter at archaeoanimals. Let us know if you want another star wars episode because lord knows there are. 20:09.80 Cpt Granarius So it was. 20:12.69 Alex So many creatures and Simona's ah Saturday still seems to be intact. We could probably break down down a little bit further by doing another episode. But yeah, otherwise it's been Alex It'sparick Hirot Disney 20:23.36 Cpt Granarius And Simmon for anger. 20:29.61 Alex We will make Star Wars good.