Tribble

Captain Kirk and "some" Tribbles located on the Enterprise in 2268

Tribbles (Polygeminus grex) are small, non-intelligent lifeforms originating from Iota Geminorum IV. Known for their prodigious reproductive rate, these round, furry creatures emit cooing sounds while touched, which have a tranquilizing effect on the Human nervous system. Born pregnant, with sufficient food a single tribble can quickly increase its number exponentially through presumably asexual reproduction, bearing an average litter of ten every twelve hours. On their homeworld, tribble populations are kept in check by a large number of reptilian predators. (DS9: "The Nagus"; TOS: "The Trouble with Tribbles")

The homeworld and scientific name of the tribbles appeared on the chart in Keiko O'Brien's classroom on Deep Space 9. Tribbles were first encountered by Humans in the early 2150s, when Denobulan doctor Phlox [[1]] brought a small number aboard Enterprise NX-01 as food for his pets. (ENT: "The Breach")

The tribble was later encountered by the Federation aboard Deep Space K-7 in 2268, when Cyrano Jones [[2]] brought a small number aboard to trade. However, a single tribble brought aboard the USS Enterprise quickly multiplied to 1,771,561. The tribbles were instrumental in foiling a Klingon plan to poison a shipment of quadrotriticale intended for Sherman's Planet, when tribbles that had fed on the grain were found dead. (TOS: "The Trouble with Tribbles")

At the same time, the crew of USS Defiant, transported through time by Arne Darvin[[3]], prevented him from using a tricobalt device [[4]] hidden inside a tribble to kill James T. Kirk [[5]]. (DS9: "Trials and Tribble-ations")

Tribbles were an ecological menace for the Klingons, to whom a tribble would react violently. The Klingons first attempted to breed a predator to eliminate the threat. The glommer was used only once, in 2269, aboard the USS Enterprise, and proved unable to deal with the large number of tribbles aboard. (TAS: "More Tribbles, More Troubles")