Kdatlyno

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Kdatlyno are an extraterrestrial species in Larry Niven's fictional Known Space universe. They first appeared in the short story Grendel.

Kdatlyno are chiefly known for their touch sculpture, their sonar "vision" and for being a race subjugated by the ferocious, warlike Kzinti.

In appearance they are a physically large and powerful bipedal species with muscular build, rough scaley skin, retractile claws and thick hides, growing up to eight feet tall. They have no eyes, having evolved on a world which instead drove the development of echolocation rather than vision.

Kdatlyno are one of the few sentient races that can physically intimidate an adult Kzin, and there is at least one mention of them being used as elite Imperial Guards for the Kzinti Patriarch, presumably due to both their great strength and their uninvolvement in Kzin imperial court politics.

The most famous Kdatlyno is Lloobee, a touch-sculptor who works primarily for a human audience and was the eponymous character in the short story Grendel.