Piranha beetle

Piranha beetles were colorfully-shelled carnivorous insects that lived on the jungle moon of Yavin 4. Though they were only three centimeters long, they gathered in large swarms which could kill much larger prey, like runyips, by eating the flesh directly off living beings.

Piranha beetle swarms built hives made from chewed vegetation and saliva in Yavin 4's treetops. Each hive had a queen that led the hive's reproductive and food-gathering activities.

Following the duel on Yavin 4 between Anakin Skywalker and Asajj Ventress, Palpatine sent Mas Amedda to the moon to acquire some of the beetles for him. Bevel Lemelisk, one of the chief designers of the Death Star, was executed multiple times and then cloned by Emperor Palpatine. One of these executions involved piranha beetles. Lemelisk was placed in a mesh cage and swarms of piranha beetles were released through holes in the floor. The insects killed and devoured Lemelisk.

The Alliance to Restore the Republic's base on Yavin 4 was sprayed with chemical insecticide to keep the voracious insects out. When Luke Skywalker established a Jedi Praxeum at the same location, he discovered that several of his students developed allergic reactions to the insecticides. He then used the Force to imprint the academy's perimeter with a sense of distaste and disorientation. This kept the beetle swarms away, but without the need for hazardous chemicals.

When Jacen Solo attended the Jedi Praxeum on Yavin 4, he kept two piranha beetles as pets. He kept them calm by using the Force.

Text and facts from the “Piranha beetle/Legends” article on Wookieepedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0. Modified for this site.