Bantha

Banthas are large herbivores which have been transported around the galaxy, thanks to their hardiness and reliability as beasts of burden.

Perhaps the most striking feature of the bantha, besides the huge spiral horns, is the great size of the head and the apparent lack of a neck. This is an odd configuration, and seems like it would hinder the creature if it needed to graze low to the ground or reach up into trees for leaves. This is indeed the case, but banthas compensate with a long, muscular tongue comparable to an elephant's trunk in terms of length, strength, and dexterity. The tongue can also draw up water into the creature's mouth.

Banthas are enormously adaptable, and have proven capable of surviving in habitats as varied as scorching deserts, rolling savannas, chilly forests, and frozen tundra. Most banthas deposited in these environments have since evolved into distinct subspecies, each slightly specialized to survive in its present habitat. This inherent resiliance combined with a gentle nature, ability to carry heavy burdens, and high endurance have made the bantha very popular with settlers on many rugged worlds where high technology is either unavailable, or too expensive to be practical.

Banthas are naturally herd animals, and travel in small to medium-sized groups for safety, and, given their highly social nature, probably also for companionship. They are normally skittish and will flee when spooked, but when forced adult banthas will form circles around their calves to protect the young from predators. Few predators are large enough to actually take an adult bantha, but beasts on the scale of rancors or krayt dragons are quite capable of doing so.

The banthas used by the Tusken Raiders of Tatooine are noted for developing a remarkably deep bond with their riders. A bantha and its Tusken rider exist less in a relationship of master and servant, and more in a mutual bond of reliance and respect. This bond is so outstandingly deep, in fact, that if one member of the pair dies, the other will wander out into the desert to die shortly thereafter. Whether Tusken or bantha, the loss of its partner renders it inconsolable. For this reason banthas are sacred creatures in Tusken culture.

Record 264 - creature - Last update 16 Nov 2007, 08:01:39

Entry written by: Torvus

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