Sapient life

Sapient life, also referred to as intelligent life, is a term that describes lifeforms which display sapience, or the characteristic of self-awareness. The standard of sapience is the most common benchmark for determining which species are intelligent enough to be considered equals in the context of xeno-diplomacy. Sapience is generally considered an inherent trait of all FTL-capable species.

Sapience has been observed in many species in the galaxy, and is not limited to any specific biology or evolutionary background. Most sapient species in the galaxy are avian in biology, though the reason for this is not known.

Biologies known to display sapience, in apparent order of commonality:
 * Avian
 * Mammalian
 * Fungoid
 * Molluscoid
 * Reptilian (occasionally considered either a sub- or an umbrella group of Avians)
 * Plantoid
 * Arthropoid
 * Humanoid (often considered a subgroup of Mammalians)