Description:
Tribbles are basically small balls of fur. Known for their prodigious reproductive rate, these round, furry creatures emit cooing sounds when touched, which has a tranquilizing effect on the Human nervous system.

Physiology & Ecology:
On their own, tribbles are quite incapable of directly harming sentient beings – they do not even possess "teeth" as such. They are also fairly slow, although able to scale and cling to vertical surfaces. Nonetheless, left unchecked, they can rapidly multiply and devastate entire ecosystems on a planetary scale. On their homeworld, tribble populations are kept in check by a large number of reptilian predators.

Life Cycle & Reproduction:
An entire half of a tribble's metabolism is solely devoted to reproduction. Born pregnant, a single tribble with sufficient food can quickly increase its number exponentially through asexual reproduction, bearing an average litter of ten and producing a new generation every twelve hours. Over a period of three days, that single tribble could account for 1,771,561 progeny. Dr. Leonard H. McCoy discivered that giving them a shot of neoethylene, causes the tribble colonies to develop a slower metabolic rate, becoming "safe tribbles."

Diet & Trophics:
Tribbles eat just about anything that other mammals consume, but normally eat vegetable matter.

History & Background:
Originating from Iota Geminorum IV, Tribbles were first encountered by Humans in the early 2150s when Denobulan doctor Phlox brought a small number aboard Enterprise NX-01 as an easily sustainable food source for his pets.

During the mid-23rd century, Lieutenant Edward Larkin, a science officer on the USS Cabot was working with sample specimens of the species, intending to use them as a food source. Larkin, who at the resulting board of inquiry was described as "an idiot", believed that tribbles would make an excellent food source if not for the fact that they bred very slowly. Against orders, he modified the tribbles with Human DNA (his own) in order to increase their reproductive rate. This caused the tribbles to multiply beyond containment, and before long, resulted in the destruction of the ship. The hybrid tribbles made it to nearby Pragine 63, forcing its entire civilization to be evacuated, and were later reported to have made their way into Klingon space.

Derived Products:
None at present. Some have proposed them as a food animal o as a source of fur.

Travellers' Aid Society Advisory:
On their own, tribbles are quite incapable of directly harming sentient beings. The hybrid strain however, if left unchecked will overburden their environment, and so must be kept in check by restricting their food intake or by treatment with neoethylene.

Worlds & Sectors:
Iota Geminorum IV (Tribble Prime)

Notes:
Tribbles are considered an ecological menace by the Klingons, to whom a tribble will react violently. The Klingons first attempted to breed a predator to eliminate the threat. Named a glommer, it was used only once in 2269, aboard the USS Enterprise, and proved unable to deal with the large number of tribbles aboard.