Tanrin

Sapient species for which each individual mind is formed from a group of flock-members communicating together.

Homeworld

Their homeworld is a planet with an abundance of heavy metals which the native life has incorporated into its biochemistry, resulting in creatures with metallic or metal-infused parts.

Biology

The Tanrin resemble birds with metallic feathers and hairs, having two main wings and a further set of lifting surfaces built into their feet. A long tail extends backwards, and their heads have black metallic beaks. Coloration varies from a dull silver to shades of brown, rust-red, and black.

Like most life on their homeworld, the Tanrin communicate through radio signals produced by unshielded nerves acting as antennae. These signals are extremely complex with bandwidth and compression rivaling the best techniques invented by human science. A sufficiently powerful transmitter using the same frequencies can jam Tanrin mind waves.

Intelligence

Perhaps as a consequence of the difficulty in combining intelligence and flight (a large brain necessitates a large body) along with their radio abilities, the Tanrin have group-concert intelligence instead of the unitary-individual intelligence of sapients like humans. (Contrasted with the Baharn, who live in an atmosphere thick enough to permit intelligent flyers, and the avens whose designers "cheated" with materials and techniques not available to nature.)

Each "flock" of six to twelve Tanrin birds comprises one unique individual intelligence.

Psychology and Behavior

Each individual bird has some rudimentary instinctual drives and is able to survive at least temporarily if cut off from the rest of its flock, or can be left on its own to handle simple tasks.

Being group intelligences the Tanrin can set themselves to doing multiple tasks at once with different flock-bodies, suspending the others to concentrate fully on one if the entire flock is needed. In this regard it is hard if not impossible to describe the mental experience of a Tanrin in human words.

Losing a flock-body is akin to a human suffering a traumatic brain injury. Full recovery may not be possible, and long rehabilitation is required. Individuals meet their deaths in this way, when age or accident kills off enough flock-bodies that intelligence ceases to be displayed.

Homeworld
Tellus