The tribble was an animal native to Iota Geminorum IV.
- Their scientific names were Polygeminus grex (Star Fleet Medical Reference Manual) and Tribleustes ventricosus (Short Treks: The Trouble with Edward).
Known for their prodigious reproductive rate, these monopodal, furred creatures emitted cooing sounds while touched, which had a tranquilizing effect on the Human nervous system. Born pregnant, reproductively hermaphroditic, and with a metabolism whose gearing to reproduction ranged from almost fifty percent to ninety percent, with sufficient food, a single tribble could quickly increase its number exponentially through such presumably hermaphroditic reproduction, bearing a mean-average litter of ten young every twelve hours. (TOS: "The Trouble with Tribbles")
- The tribble found food by odor, having a keen sense of smell(Star Fleet Medical Reference Manual), as Klingons also did; each species, presumably, found the body odors of the other powerful and unpleasant; TOS: "The Trouble with Tribbles" showed this as being how Arne Darvin was recognized as a surgically altered Klingon.
Tribbles were able to eat at least 121 times their own body mass in food within a period of 24 Earth hours; together with their prolific reproductive rate, this fact about them made them a dangerous parasite where such cereal crops as the various triticale-based grains were a commodity, similar to rabbits in old Australia and k'nurts when these blighted Vulcan. (Star Fleet Medical Reference Manual)
22nd century[]
The earliest recorded contact between Humans and tribbles was in the 2150s. (ENT: "The Breach")
23rd century[]
In the late 23rd century, Klingons had genetically-engineered a tribble predator called a glommer. (TAS: "More Troubles, More Tribbles")
24th century[]
Tribbles once threatened a shipment of octo-triticale intended for Gault, but it overloaded their metabolism and caused them to eat themselves to death. (USS Sovereign (NCC-75000) (SFI): "Nibble, Nibble, Tail And Tribble")
Sharvetra Pooth'kiph made her science project about how to control tribble reproduction without limiting their food supply. (Starship Independence)
Cardassians and Romulans were known to eat tribble stew. The Cardassians were said to make the best tribble meals in the galaxy. Also, since there is little meat in a tribble, either species can eat as many as six tribbles in a single meal. Also, Hydrans struck a deal with the Romulans to have the Romulans supply cooked tribbles to them. (RIS Bouteina)
In 2386, Doctor Lox genetically altered a tribble with the Klingon augment virus using a Genitronic replicator, causing the tribble to become sentient. The tribble multiplied and attempted to take over the USS Phoenix-X but were ultimately forced off to escape via the hijacked IKS Korinar. (Star Trek: Phoenix-X: "Triple Tribble Sunday")
Lyrans also bred tribbles for meat. Mrazek's favorite tribble meal was tribbles au gratin. (Star Trek: The Stoneship Files: "At the Soapbox Races")
Tribble[]
External links[]
- Tribble article at Memory Alpha, the canon Star Trek wiki.
- Tribble article at Memory Beta, the non-canon Star Trek wiki.
- The Lexington Adventures: Rise of the Tribbles (2019) on YouTube