Furry bats of Arrakis trained for communication by the Fremen. The individual tamed bats carry coded messages implemented with the use of distrans technology.
Appearances in the Dune series[]
- Dune (1965)
- The Illustrated Dune (1978) - Depicted in one of the black-and-white illustrations by John Schoenherr, in this illustrated edition of the original novel.
- Dune Messiah (1969)
- Children of Dune (1976)
Appearances in adaptations[]
- Dune: Part Two (2024) - Though not commented upon, the Fremen sietches include nesting holes and nesting caverns for cielago, desert bats. Presumably for use as a bat equivalent to a carrier pigeon, via use of distrans, as in the novel. Some of the bats are killed during a Harkonnen attack on a sietch which ransacks the settlement.
Images of cielagos[]
.jpg "The Illustrated Dune - Cielago messenger (art by John Schoenherr).jpg (39 KB)")
Cielago messenger (The Illustrated Dune, art by John Schoenherr)
Atreides soldiers preparing cielago messenger with distrans-implanted message (Dune CCG)
Behind the scenes[]
The term is an abbreviated/colloquial form of the Spanish term for "bat", murcielago.