Just a rough concept sketch for a bug alien race.

Their homeworld has similar atmosphere and pressure to earth's (slightly denser) with a gravity of about 0.7 to 0.8 of ours.

Natural formaldehyde compounds generated and used by the world's biology has allowed insect-like exoskeletons (natural polymers) to co-evolve on top of more recognizable internal bone and musculature systems. Their hemoglobin is similar to most terrestrial life forms and so their blood is similarly reddish, though a touch thicker than ours (rapidly 'gelatinizing' once exposed to open air).

Their skin is porous, with a secondary, though not as vital, respiratory system beneath their false exoskeleton, helping oxygenate their blood rapidly when stressed or in 'heightened alertness' mode. The comedown from such exertion, however is pretty bad, and prolonged stress can lead to loss of extremities or even death as blood begins to plasticize within their circulatory system - the trade-off is that training in conscious control of their own endocrine system comes very early, just after their tenth moult (approximately three standard years old).

Espic live at an accelerated life, hitting adolescence at roughly eight standard years, middle age at about thirty or so, and only the extremely fortunate live past fifty standard years.

There is a treatment of natural anagathic 'grafting' of a symbiotic life form native to their homeworld that can triple or quadruple their lifespan, but its application is shrouded in ritual, requires a careful, if painful, open back-carapace surgery, and must be done prior to their twentieth moult (eight standard years of age) - a time which most Espic are looking forward to joining the "hunt" or seeking out mates.

The recovery time is close to a year, with a sudden upsurge in new moulting, and survival rates are just over 50%. Only two island cultures practice the procedure, and of those, only one will ~sometimes~ perform the ritual on the children of outsiders, usually wealthy outsiders with a great deal of money or other gifting.

The 'Hunt' used to be much more literal than it is in the modern Espic world - these days it essentially means a community of similarly employed, or interested individuals, forming an informal family or fraternity. The eldest mated pair within a hunt will usually become the hunt's leaders by default, but power is often wholly delegated to a capable unmated hunt member - either too old to reproduce, or pledging a vow of stewardship in conjunction with celibacy, with the understanding that if he or she takes a mate, the eldest mated pair will release them from stewardship.

Hunts can and do form intricate interrelationships to form larger 'overhunts' to mimic the larger social functions and bureaucracies of a technic integrated society, though more boring or mundane tasks will be automated as much as possible.

Jokes are made constantly that body will follow the spirit of the members of a hunt, and there is some truth that form does seem to follow function - hunts with military or construction leanings tend to be bigger - those living in crowded conditions, working in close confines (space or undersea) tend to be smaller, though the mechanism for this adaptation is a complete mystery to the Espic themselves - and many young Espic are encouraged to visit and explore many different hunts before deciding whether to remain in their parent's hunt or not.