Have the Borg ever assimilated a non-sapient species? Perhaps the equivalent of a large land mammal or a rodent or something of that sort?
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2Since when are large land mammals or rodents not sentient?– phantom42Commented Aug 26, 2013 at 13:14
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Never seen borg fido! I imagine it would be useless because they have nothing to offer to the collective.– DashControlCommented Aug 26, 2013 at 13:15
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4I think the word you're looking for is "sapient." It's a common confusion; "sentient" means a thing is aware of its surroundings (has senses), while "sapient" means the thing is able to act with judgement.– BESWCommented Aug 26, 2013 at 13:37
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possible duplicate of Why are there no non-humanoid Borg?– MarioCommented Aug 26, 2013 at 20:46
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3 Answers
No, I can`t recall a time when they would ever assimilate anything like that, because the Borg discriminate in the sense that they will assimilate a species only if they can provide a technological or biological use to the Borg. A good example of this would be the Kazon from Star Trek: Voyager who, even though they were more advanced than any run of the mill species, were deemed unworthy of assimilation.
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The Memory-Alpha entry on Borg species supports this, albeit negatively, as all the species listed are clearly intelligent beings. Although it's possible to imagine a scenario where a non-intelligent species would be a biological asset, it doesn't seem to have yet been referenced in any show or film.– BESWCommented Aug 26, 2013 at 13:53
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1I totally agree! It is very possible that there are many species who although aren't sapient, have a useful biological trait, unfortunately as far as I can remember this hasn't occurred in any Star Trek format yet, but definitely a good idea! Commented Aug 26, 2013 at 14:00
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1Or a biological being from a high-grav, high-density planet that may be more resistant to energy impact and burns. You think they could 'gift' intelligence to a species that isn't. Not that drones are intelligent, in the sense of the word.– JerseyCommented Aug 26, 2013 at 14:31
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The level of intelligence of the species is irrelivent, considering the Collective could provide all the cognition required, while taking advantage of any benefits of the species assimilated.– Monty129Commented Aug 26, 2013 at 16:19
Sort of. Early in the introduction of Species 8472 (possibly even their first appearance), a drone was pretty clearly seen trying to assimilate one of their biological ships.
It don't think their ships are sentient/sapient, so that would be an example of assimilation in order to learn more about the real target, Species 8472 itself.
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I'm on my phone at the end of my lunch hour right now, I'll try and remember to track down more later...– IzkataCommented Aug 26, 2013 at 18:20
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This essentially happened (possibly off-screen; don't remember) during the introduction of 8472 in the two parts episode "Scorpion". The Borg accept Janeway's suggestion because they tried to assimilate 8472 and failed (i.e. they can't effectively fight nor assimilate them).– MarioCommented Aug 26, 2013 at 20:48
The Borg mostly need diversity to assimilate something. And somewhat of a mind to integrate with. Aside from that there might be "compatibility issues" with species that aren't grown from the seed species, the species that sew its likeness on countless plantes, to form Romulans, Vulcans, Humans and most living and breathing things the federation ever met.
The Borg might well control creatures, but there's not much to assimilate. No minds to add to the collective.
I can't imagine a super high-tech society having any purpose for beings of the flesh. Even their vessels aren't very imaginative. Although they seek diversity, they do so only to add it to the collective. The collective is diversity mixed to a smooth and identical smoothy.
I'd have to answer: not that we know of and they probably didn't (except maybe once to try).
