The kaadu was a two-legged reptavian that had great strength and endurance. They were swift and agile creatures that possessed sharp hearing and a keen sense of smell. They had long legs and sleek hides that helped them move swiftly on land and in water. The kaadu were primarily land dwellers, but they were also capable of breathing underwater for extended periods of time. They could be found in single-gender flocks of no more than 100 individual kaadu. A kaadu mother laid 6 to 8 eggs.
Gungan officers rode kaadu into battle.
For generations, the Gungans domesticated kaadu to use as steeds for traveling through the swamps and forests. The kaadu were respected by the Gungans for their strength, endurance, and loyalty. It became common for Gungans to decorate their kaadu with giant feathers. The Gungan Grand Army came to rely on them as mounts for their patrols.
During the Battle of Naboo in 32 BBY, kaadu and fambaas were deployed onto the Great Grass Plains to support the Gungan Grand Army to fight off the Trade Federation battle droids.
Some residents of the planet Batuu raised kaadu for consumption. In 34 ABY, smoked kaadu ribs were served at Docking Bay 7 Food and Cargo at Black Spire Outpost on Batuu.
Originally, the kaadu were to be native Tatooine beasts of burden. However, due to the evolving story of Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace, which called for the Gungans to be beast-riding soldiers, the kaadu was transported to Naboo, and the eopie was created in its place from modified concept art of the kaadu. Upon their transfer to Naboo, the kaadu were given aquatic characteristics, particularly a duck-billed snout and smoother skin.
Kaadu snorts were created by slowing down a mixture of pig noises with the sound of whales spouting water through their blowhole.
Star Wars: The Visual Encyclopedia classifies kaadu as reptavians, while Ultimate Star Wars and the Databank say they are avians. As the species has more reptavian than avian traits, this article uses the former classification.
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