In “The Mote in God’s Eye,” the alien race is called the Moties.
The Moties are the inhabitants of Mote Prime, a planet in Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle’s 1974 CoDominium novel. Humans first encounter them after detecting an alien spacecraft propelled by a solar sail. The Moties appear technologically advanced and initially welcoming, but their society hides a catastrophic biological problem: most Moties must reproduce regularly or die.
“Moties” refers to the species as a whole, while the novel describes specialized subspecies such as Engineers, Mediators, Masters, Warriors, Doctors, Farmers, and Watchmakers. Mediators are particularly important because they handle communication and negotiation with humans. Their society has repeatedly passed through cycles of civilization, overpopulation, war, and collapse.
A common mix-up is confusing Moties with the name of their world or star. Mote Prime is the planet, while the Mote is associated with the star system known as Murcheson’s Eye. “Motie” is the canonical species name used throughout the novel.