Aqualish generally had bald heads and fur around their cheeks. They appeared to have different skin colors from each other. Aqualish also tended to have either two or four eyes, and different kinds of hands. The criminal Ponda Baba had hairy hands with five digits, while some Aqualish who were a part of the Galactic Republic Senate sported hairless hands with three digits. The species spoke Aqualish. Aqualish had red-colored blood that did not cauterize.

The lives of Aqualish revolved around water, but they did not need it to thrive and could settle far from it. Some Aqualish, like the arms manufacturer Amda Wabo, came from the planet Ando. They could be found among the galactic community by the time of the Galactic Republic, where a number of them were members of the Republic Senate.

However, some Aqualish did not agree with the direction of the Republic, and at least two Aqualish politicians aligned themselves with the Sith Lord Count Dooku. Multiple other Aqualish went to work for Dooku’s anti-Republic faction, the Confederacy of Independent Systems. During an armed conflict between the Confederacy and the Republic, referred to as the Clone Wars, an Aqualish named Pune Zignat worked alongside the Neimoidian General Lok Durd. Both were captured by Republic forces on the planet Maridun. After the Clone Wars, the Republic was dissolved and transformed into the Galactic Empire. Two of the Aqualish who had aligned themselves with the Confederacy were murdered by the Sith Lord Darth Vader on the planet Mustafar.

During the Galactic Civil War, some Aqualish turned to piracy and bounty hunting, while others decided to join the Rebellion in order to restore the Republic and regain their seat in the Senate.