The Reptiloids appear as a somewhat primitive species compared to other Federation races, secluding themselves in simple settlements hidden away in some of the more extreme regions on several of the Federation planets. There is evidence to suggest that at some point they were a more technologically advanced species, including the fact that Federation Xenobiologists have concluded Reptiloids are not actually indigenous to any of the planets that they currently inhabit.
Their ability to shapeshift is of particular academic and commercial interest, with at least one known instance of attempted research by a private enterprise on the planet of Kavian, involving enhancing and utilising members of the species for military purposes. This was officially deemed a failure, though there have been occasional reports of Reptiloids wearing cybernetic armour involved in territorial disputes.
By and large Federation Explorers tend to mistrust Reptiloids owing to their reclusive nature and metamorphic capabilities. Many stories abound, including one of particular note involving a miner celebrating a large Trilium find at a local brothel, only for the large-breasted Grey he was in bed with to transform mid-copulation into "a whopping great green lizard-thing" as he put it, knock him out cold, and steal the access pass to his storage unit. The veracity of stories such as this remains in question, as there have yet to be witnesses of such occurrences beyond those telling the tales.