Memory Alpha
Register
Memory Alpha
(Undo revision 1147075 by 81.156.68.0 (talk) huh? who in the what now?)
Line 19: Line 19:
   
 
[[de:Ceti-Aal]]
 
[[de:Ceti-Aal]]
  +
[[it:Parassita di Ceti]]
 
[[Category:Animals]]
 
[[Category:Animals]]

Revision as of 19:47, 1 February 2011

Ceti eel

Adult Ceti eel

File:Chekovs ear-ceti eel.jpg

Ceti eel larva emerging from Chekov's ear

The Ceti eel is a burrowing desert animal native to the planet Ceti Alpha V, capable of surviving extremes in its environment. The Ceti eel was the only known native survivor of the orbital shift of Ceti Alpha V following the explosion of Ceti Alpha VI.

Ceti eels incubate their larvae within the plates of their jointed carapace. Upon emergence, the eel larvae can enter the ear of a larger animal, where it wraps itself around the cerebral cortex. This causes the host extreme pain and renders them extremely susceptible to outside suggestion. Over time, as the larva matures, the subject suffers from madness and eventual death.

Many of Khan Noonien Singh's followers were killed by Ceti eels in this fashion, including his wife.

Marla McGivers was referenced as Khan's wife in lines cut from the final film. [1]

In 2285, Khan used Ceti eels to gain the cooperation of Captain Clark Terrell and Commander Pavel Chekov of the USS Reliant. Chekov's eel inexplicably left his body after a time, while Terrell fought the effects of his eel, and ended up killing himself instead of Admiral James T. Kirk (as Khan had ordered him to do). (Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan) Chekov, seemingly stronger-willed than Terrell, collapses shortly after, forcing the eel out of his ear, where it's quickly vaporized by Kirk.

Background

TWOKCetiEelPatent

Detail of D275777

  • As part of its campaign to protect its exclusive right to market Star Trek-related items, Paramount sought and obtained a design patent from the US Patent and Trademark Office for the Ceti eel. Called an "ornamental design for a toy animal", it was issued in 1984.
  • The name "ceti eel" never appears during the movie. Khan describes the animal without naming it, and McCoy doesn't recognize it when it exits Chekov's ear, though Chekov had told Kirk and McCoy of it when they were on Regula I.