The Yam'rii, also known as the Huk, were green or brown insectoid sentient species from the planet Huk in Wild Space, taller than 1.79 meters, that resembled praying mantises. They had huge forward-facing eyes, a triangular-shaped head perched on a long neck, and noticeable upper limbs bent and held together at an angle.
Yam'rii were a greedy, technological, and destructive insectoid species. One member of the species wore minimal clothing, such as a cloth skirt.
The Yam'rii brutally overran numerous worlds in their sector, plundering their resources and enslaving their populations. When their interest was the planet Kalee, the results were horrifying; they conquered the Kaleesh.
The brutal struggle between the Yam'rii and the Kaleesh became an ongoing war, and in time, the Kaleesh forces were led by Kaleesh warlord Qymaen jai Sheelal, later known as Grievous. The Yam'rii were pushed back from Kalee to their own homeworld, but when the Kaleesh invaded their world, they unexpectedly sought the Galactic Republic for assistance. The Republic and the Jedi Order intervened in the disastrous conflict and supported the Yam'rii against the Kaleesh. They condemned, embargoed, and issued fines, resulting in hundreds of thousands of Kaleesh starving to death. At that moment, Grievous promised vengeance.
Sylar Saris was an insectoid bounty hunter active around 18 BBY that resembled the Yam'rii species. He was known as "The Slayer of Ordo Eris" and had become highly wanted after performing several bounties on behalf of the Haxion Brood crime syndicate. The bounty on Saris was eventually claimed by fellow bounty hunter Fennec Shand, who was aided by former clone commandos Hunter and Wrecker. Saris supposedly belonged to a subspecies of Yam'rii. This subspecies was capable of spitting green acid out of their mouths.
In 0 BBY, one Yam'rii was present in Chalmun's cantina in Mos Eisley, Tatooine, on the day Luke Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi met Han Solo and Chewbacca.
Known only as "Praying Mantis" during the shooting of Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope, this alien puppet was operated by actor Jack Purvis, who also played other roles in the original trilogy, including the Jawa chief, the Ugnaught chief, and Teebo the Ewok. During one day of shooting, his son Andy Purvis operated the puppet.
The Yam'rii first appeared in the 1977 film Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope. The species was first canonically identified in the 2019 Star Wars By the Numbers video "Every Alien Species in the Original Trilogy". In the Star Wars Legends continuity, the Yam'rii were a insectoid sentient species with a praying mantis characteristics first identified in the Premiere Limited base set of the Star Wars Customizable Card Game, which was released in December 1995. The cards also identified the individual seen in A New Hope as Kitik Keed'kak.
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