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Kifish Biology; we never learned
Topic Started: Mar 9 2008, 08:44 PM (794 Views)
Kel Julian
Knnn
Citizen of the Association
You know, it occurred to me reading Vetch's xenophilia thread that CJC never once gave us a hint of anything kifish regarding reproduction, young or even gender. We don't know anything.

Or do we? Is there something I missed? The only constant is that every kif in the Chanur novels is referred to using a male pronoun. Kif reminded me a lot of the frats in college anyway.
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Vetch
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Mahen Anthropologist
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I have, of course, tried to discuss those matters with my kif, but this only results in endless, nervous "kkkkkkkt!"s.


Don't know if I actually read this or if I just 'know' -- I think they hatch. And that one cannot easily tell their gender; it probably doesn't make much difference.

I very much like this thread and am hoping for answers and/or suggestions from the esteemed Shejidanees!

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hrhspence
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That is true, we know next to nothing about them, whether there are males or females or egg layers or anything at all. The only thing we even remotely know is that they have wrinkled grey skin and that it embarrasses them to show it.

We know more about the structure of their mouths than anything else: double jawed and that the inner one purées the chunks of meat that they rip it off the live prey. And that their sweat glands in their skin act like our kidneys in removing the chemicals that lead to ammonia from their blood. Which is why their clothing smells like they've laid in their pee for a few days. Their average height is the tallest of the Compact races, except that there are a few Hani males that are taller as individuals. We also know that they are nearly blind and cannot see color. Silver seems brighter to them than gold and is, thusly, more highly valued.

Sociologically, the "pack" seems more important than the individual and following the leader is the most important thing any kif can do. Unless he/she/it proves unfollowable, then you simply eat him/her/it and follow the next leader. One's sfik value is probably determinable by smelling the ammonia content of the clothing!

However, we know little to nothing of their breeding habits.
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Aja Jin
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number one good, A ?
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hrhspence,Mar 9 2008
04:42 PM
...
However, we know little to nothing of their breeding habits.

one is thankful for small favors :atwink
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Aelith
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Excuse the assumption, I always thought they were the rat race in the cats universe. But a hatchable race would indicate they are based on lizards. humm..
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griffinmoon
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I think there was a mention of a kif diving out the nest the instant it was able to, to avoid being eaten by its siblings. One could say that the "nest" reference was a Hani thing (queen cats with litters making/finding dens/nests to bear in & keep the newborns in). Or maybe kif are rats/reptiles (rats prefer to make very neat & tidy nests). It might also be simply speculation on a Hani's part.
I got the impression that kif are human height on average, m'self. Based on the one that nabbed Tully to put a bite on him. I agree that they're color-blind: but their discernment of pattern & grey is very sharp. Might one propose that they might even use the IR/TI range for vision as well as our "visible light" range? With the length of nose they've got, one would also feel fairly secure in claiming an excellent sense of smell for our favorite unloved predators. I'm not so sure about being naked being embarrassing for them (like we are). I would think it's more of a "secrets uncovered" frame of mind for them: no place to conceal weapons/threats/secrets. Or perhaps: no status at all, therefore prey (which would make anybody extremely nerveous ) and they might be up to cannabilism. I can't see why a kif would be embarrassed about a grey wrinkly hide, it is after all what makes up a kif. (I'm also fairly sure the "wrinkles" pertains to the face/snout not the whole hide--but I could be wrong). That sounds more like a perception of non-kif.

Nand'Spence: One isn't so sure of the idea you give for the ammonia scent. One doesn't recollect any concrete reason given in the books. That kif smell of ammonia in the individual & the group is true. But it could also be their idea of "air freshener" to remind them of their home world. It could be something like a human locker room sort of thing: get a bunch of humans together & they give off a particular aroma just by being living humans. Perhaps ammonia is simply the scent of numerous kif. And a Hani's nose is rediculously sensitive to scent. And ammonia is rediculously potent even in ppm amounts to even human noses.
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hrhspence
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I have always thought they were more rat-like myself. As to the ammonia, the hani smell it on the kif in precisely the same time they would smell the locker room on a human, when we are stressed-out and under-washed. I have discussed the ammonia bit with CJ in correspondences and am under the impression she agreed with it. However, I don't have concrete assurances on that point and am willing to let it remain my own conjecture for now.

And as to the embarrassment of being naked, I felt it was more of a vulnerability and a lack of sfik than embarrassment the way we humans view it: too emotionally open.

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Triscuit7

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It may simply be because the hani are a cat/lion analog but I always viewed the kif as an hyena analog since that is the traditional lion 'enemy'. In some ways it does fit. Hyena are highly adaptive, will eat anything, smell pretty foul, are born fighting, and harass prey/enemies with the so-called laugh. Add that the sexes are almost indistinguishable and they seem very kifish to me.
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Tuuli
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In my mind, kif have always been reptilian. That might be just because of the cover art, though - I think they bare some kind of a resemblance to crocodiles in it. And besides, the double jaw thing sounds more likely in a reptile than a rat/other mammal... well, to me, anyway. ^~
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Vetch
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What Triscuit7 writes about hyena makes a lot of sense to me; but I also see Kif as reptilian. Reptilian hyenas.
I have a vision of a pile of eggs, somewhere on Akkt, and lots of tiny freshly hatched kif who are happily struggling, scratching, biting (do you think they hatch complete with teeth? I think they do) and feeding on each other... awww, cute!


I defintely can't imagine them being mammals. Breast-feeding a kif?!? Ouch.
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Kel Julian
Knnn
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I think of them as a new biological class. Again another demonstration of the utter genius of CJC's aliens: she isn't limited to terrestrial biological classes. Like with the chi. Are they bugs? Are the knnn bugs? Who knows?

Some of the best creativity in the Chanur series came when Pyanfar had to deal with Skukkuk on shipboard. They had to adjust to the fact that he was processing his relationships not through a brain like theirs, but a kifish brain, similar to those they dealt with in the cases of Akkukkakk and Sikkukkut. It actually affected my life. When we got a parrot and a dog, I realized that I couldn't expect them to think like human beings. Alex is a conure and Fabius is a Labrador Retriever. Alex is a flock avian and herbivore, whereas Fabius is a pack animal and carnivore. Their instinctive assumptions are based on those facts.
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pence

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Another analogy is the sharks that retain their fertilized eggs and have multiple births of live young - maybe with the Kif they are also in some sort of immature state - like marsupial births, but independent, just operating on predatory instinct at that stage. Those that survive may develop their ability to reason,possibly triggered by what they had to do to survive. ????????????
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griffinmoon
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pence nadi:

That's a thought...
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Vetch
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Concerning another aspect of kiffish physiology:

I have gotten a new book the other day (well, used and for free from our local library): The Island of the Colour-Blind by Oliver Sacks. I've only just begun reading, but of course had to think of our kif and this thread very soon. He writes about a man who was born completely colour-blind:
Quote:
 
He must [...], consciously or unconsciously, discover ways of deriving information from other aspects of the visual world, other visual cues which, in the absence of colour, may take on a heightened importance. Thus -- and this was apparent to us right away -- his intense sensitivity and attention to form and texture, to outlines and boundaries, to perspective, depth, and movements, even subtle ones.


Sounds familliar and makes sense, neh? The part about heightened sensitivity to subtle movements surely is useful in combat.
When I read more interesting stuff I will report straight away.
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pence

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I have a vague memory of reading that colour blind people see 'through' camoflage patterns more easily.
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