Worrts were a type of species from the planet Tatooine that lacked sentience; they were native to its desert regions. These creatures, characterized by their short stature and prominent mouths, hunted by remaining still in the sand. They then used their prehensile tongues, which were purple, to ensnare passing birds, insects, or rodents.
The appearance of Worrts, squat and spiky beings, had similarities to chubas. They stood at a height of 1.50 meters and had warty, brown skin. They were quadrupeds that had functional forelimbs. A worrt's head was composed of a pair of sensitive cranial palps, a pair of bulbous eyes that could be yellow, two nostrils, and a large mouth. Inside that mouth was a prehensile tongue that was purple, and strong teeth that contained a venom that was strong enough to kill a bantha. Their eyelids served to protect their eyes from sand, and their saliva could disrupt a blaster. Worrts produced numerous small, soft eggs, which were collected for consumption and as components in beverages offered at cantinas.
Predatory by nature, Worrts inhabited desert planets. Their diet consisted mainly of rodents and insects. When seeking sustenance, a Worrt would embed itself in the sand, effectively camouflaging itself as a rock formation, and patiently await the approach of prey. As soon as a potential meal ventured within striking distance, the Worrt would swiftly project its purple, prehensile tongue from its mouth, ensnaring the unsuspecting creature. The tongue would then retract rapidly, pulling the food down its throat, consuming it entirely, followed by a loud belch.
Residing in the arid desertic expanses of Tatooine, a planet scorched by suns in the Outer Rim Territories, were the chuba-like worrts. The Tusken Raiders, a species native to Tatooine that lived a nomadic lifestyle, considered them a delicacy. Perhaps the most well-known worrt the galaxy was the one that resided on the path leading to Jabba the Hutt's Palace in Tatooine's Dune Sea around the time of the Battle of Endor. Three years later, Han Solo and Lando Calrissian crossed paths with Korrg, a worrt in the care of Taka Jamoreesa, a pilot. Approximately thirty years after the Battle of Endor, Bobbajo, a Nu-Cosian merchant and storyteller, had a worrt named J'Rrosch as a pet. An additional worrt was kept in a tank at Oga's Cantina in Batuu's Black Spire, where it produced fresh eggs daily for use in beverages like Jabba Juice and Carbon Freeze.
The worrt made its debut in the 1983 film Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi, the concluding chapter of the Star Wars original trilogy. Like many of the creatures featured at Jabba's Palace in the movie, the worrt was brought to life through puppetry. During production, it was simply referred to as "road creature."
The Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge theme park's Oga's Cantina bar showcases an animatronic worrt situated above the bar, and it incorporates popping pearls to simulate the worrt's eggs.