Skeegs are a species of predatory mollusks that live in the warm swamps and rain forests of the planet Vendara. While mollusks are found on many worlds, skeegs are unusual in the fact that, in their species, the calcareous shell (which is often considered to be the defining feature of a mollusk) has evolved into a series of spikes which protrude from the edges of the skeeg's "wings."
These wings have no connection with locomotion because the skeeg's ability to move is produced by the muscular foot that covers its ventral surface. Instead, the wings are used by the skeeg to capture its prey. Skeegs feed primarily on large insects, which they attract by using the yellow-orange glands located at the anterior end of their dorsal surface to produce a scent similar to that of many Vendaran flowers. The insects are drawn to the skeeg by this scent and land on or walk across the sensitive tissue of the skeeg's back. When the skeeg senses the presence of an insect, it reaches up with its wings, grasps the insect, and injects it with poison through tiny grooves in its spikes.
After the prey has ceased moving, the skeeg uses its wings to transfer the prey from its back to its mouth (which is located on the ventral surface of the skeeg, directly below the scent glands). During this transfer, the skeeg faces the risk that a scavenger will steal its prey.
Skeegs are almost completely nonsocial. Apart from mating (which is triggered when one skeeg randomly crosses the slime trail of another), individuals of the species have no contact with each other.
Skeegs are primarily known for their use in the manufacture of natural perfumes. While perfumes derived from skeeg scents are currently out of fashion, in past years skeegs have been heavily hunted by poachers who would harvest nothing but the scent glands, leaving the rest of the skeegto rot on the forest floor. Skeegs are a prime target for this type of activity since they are extremely slow-moving and leave a thick trail of slime to mark their passage.
The natives of Vendara (Near-Human descendants of an ancient colonization attempt) have legends concerning a time when their ancestors hunted huge sea-dwelling skeegs for meat and used the perfume of the skeeg as a poison. However, the modern skeeg poses little danger to travelers on Vendara, as it is slow and its poison is relatively mild (although some individuals are extremely sensitive to the anesthetic qualities of the perfume).
Rumors persist that criminal organizations and some planetary or continental governments have begun using specially-bred skeegs - some reports even claim that their poison is lethal - as a type of natural trap, either for hunting game, or for protection from intruders. | 
