The planet of Belkadan, situated in the Outer Rim, was the original home of the redcrested cougars. These felines were large, carnivorous creatures, lacking sentience. They possessed formidable claws, sharp fangs, and a tail ending in a bone spike. Inhabiting Belkadan's dense jungles, they occasionally posed a threat to sentient beings. The atmosphere of Belkadan, after it was altered into toxic fumes by dweebits that were unleashed by the Yuuzhan Vong, became unbreathable for these cougars.
These felines, known as redcrested cougars, were typically four meter in length and weighed around 140 kilograms. A defining characteristic was their distinctive red crest. Their paws were equipped with sizable claws, and their fangs measured ten centimeters long. The tail terminated in a bone mass, enabling its use as a powerful club when swung.
As carnivorous animals without sentience, redcrested cougars made their homes in the jungles, displaying an ability to navigate the trees. These nocturnal (Night) predators were known to attack sentient beings on occasion. They also exhibited a behavior of investigating unfamiliar scents. Vocalizations, such as roars and growls, were part of their communication.
The redcrested cougars originated on the Outer Rim planet of Belkadan, and were present there as late as 22 ABY. Around this time, the Extragalactic Society established a listening post called ExGal-4 on Belkadan. Shortly after its construction, a redcrested cougar infiltrated the facility by leaping over the walls from a tree. It severely injured two members of ExGal-4 before being killed by the researcher Danni Quee.
In 25 ABY, Yomin Carr, a Yuuzhan Vong warrior disguised as a researcher at ExGal-4, released insect-like dweebits onto Belkadan as preparation for an extra-galactic invasion of the galaxy by the Yuuzhan Vong. These dweebits caused mutations in the plant life of Belkadan and transformed the atmosphere into a toxic gas. This change rendered the air unbreathable and fatal to both the ExGal-4 researchers and the redcrested cougars living in the jungles.
The redcrested cougars made their debut in 1999 with the publication of The New Jedi Order: Vector Prime, which was the first novel in The New Jedi Order series, written by R. A. Salvatore.