Predator Anatomy

[Kelz]

Hi everyone.
I'm looking to get some opinions so I can put together some predator anatomy sketches. The idea has been buzzing around my head since crawjaw posted a picture of his Atlas of Predator Anatomy in the Your workspace thread and I now finally have the time to sit down and put the time and research into it that I need to.
In my first year of university we had an assignment in Anatomy and Physiology where we were given a set of variables like environment, climate and diet and from that we had to design an animal that was perfectly adapted to those conditions. I had a lot of fun with it and ended up with something that looked like a lemur with wings like a sugar glider. So I thought that would be a good way of doing some pred anatomy,

I have a few things planned out in my head like skeletal structure and basic musculature. But I would like to go into as much detail as possible like respiratory, digestive, reproductive, cardiovascular and possibly even nervous systems, that where I need you guys help by answering some questions for me, feel free to give me as much detail as possible, or tell me I'm insane for trying this

OK first lot of questions (because I am sure I will come up with more as I go along)

What do you think the taxonomy of a predator is? (reptilian, amphibian, mammalian, etc or are they a class all of their own)
What do they breathe?
What do you think their blood contains to give it its green colour? (eg, hemocyanin = copper = blue blood, hemoglobin = iron = red blood) this one is probably going to take quite a bit or research on my part
What do they eat and drink?
What is their vision (without bio) like?
Do they have ears or sense vibration?
How do they breed? (live bearers, egg layers)
What sort of sexual dimorphism (physical differences between male and femle) do they display?
Whats their natural habitat like?
Dreads, flesh or not flesh?


Thats all I can think of for now, I'm sure I had more questions and I will probably rememer them when I shut the computer down but I think thats enough questions for now. I have person opinions on the answers but I want to get everyones ideas and opinions to get things as accurate as possible.

It will probably take me a while to get some actual sketches done because I will have to get all the info down and figure out how everything will work together.

 

[tommynator1024]

interesting.... what's your major? Anatomy and physiology sounds like medicine or biology (from you assignment, I'm guessing it must be biology?)

First off, we must not confuse movie with reality (ok - who ever does ). The Predator was designed for the effect, not for evolutionary correctness or pausibility, so we're likely to hit upon inconsistencies...


Going backwards from what I see (kind of your assignment reverse engineered), I can guess the following:

* first thing I notice is the eyes: sunk far back, which makes me guess they're from an environment with a bright or UV intensive sun (which is sort of contradictory if you count in the infrared vision; btw, you tell me, are there any species on earth w/ eyes that take up heat? Is that even a feasible concept? Certain snakes have infrared vision, but the receptors are placed in an extra organ set apart from the eyes, if I'm not mistaken)

* physiology: very tall, immensely strong, way more than a human of comparable size I guess; also contradictory. The strength could be explained by high gravity, however, that would more likely lead to a smaller build; could also be a consequence of extreme physical hardship and lack of civilizational degeneration (think Neanderthal men, they were way stronger than we are today), although the typical sideeffects of houses/technology etc speak against that as well (the wolf had a house, a chair, etc you get my drift; long hunting episodes couldn't quite make up for that); obviously breathe oxygen (or they'd be dead in an instant without bio; the rebreather in P2 doesn't count for that reason either, also seeing that the P1 put up quite the fight without any of this; maybe a different concentration of molecules

* general appearance: reptilian (at least to me); despite the fact that they're cold blooded killers, I think it's safe to assume they're warm-blooded (haha)
the way and confidence w/ which the P1 uses the trees as well as their impressive claws (which bend so nicely in the scene where the P1 uses his medkit... ;-)) has me believe they're from a woodland / swamp environment - also fits with Anna's notion that they only show up in the hot years/ Keyes's comment about them being drawn to heat and conflict etc; on the other hand, if they're from wetlands, how come their cloaking devices give out whenever they come in contact w/ water?

* reptilian taxonomy would however imply eggbreading, and would even more mean that all you guys out there sculpting voluminous breasts on your Fempreds are a bunch of ignorant pervs ...

* the claws themselves are weird too; much has been theorized about their technology, whether they stole it or developed it themselves. I think, you don't happen upon a stack of spaceships and plasmacasters or take it from a race that uses them with your bare hands, but in any case, the claws would be seriously in the way at both using and developing those technologies. And I'm not talking of a "well, then let's cut them off" kinda situation, I'm talking about effectively preventing them from getting smart enough to even get the idea of tools (well... some of them may be complete tools, anyway.... sry, couldn't help myself).

* definitely a carnivore... herbivores don't hunt (trees aren't moving), besides, the set of teeth they sport is not for chewing grass; the P2 used to feed on cattle in the slaughterhouse



So what you got here is a serious case of Hollywood fridge logic. Which is why I usually prefer not to try and explain the Predator. Nice theoretical experiment in xenobiology here, though!

 

[SterlingMedal]

I think their reptilian if I remember correctly.
They breathe an oxygen mix that has some methane in it.
No clue bout blood.
Eat meat from what i know and drink water.
Without their bio their vision would be like in P1.
Someone else on here knows bout the ear thing.
The bear live young.
I think they have sexual dimorphism.
Their home world is hot jungle.
And the dreads are supposed to be extremely wire-like hair that is pulled into the iconic dread form before the hunter's fist hunt.

Hope all that helps.

 

[Aquis Hydro]

I'll admit (nerdy as it sounds...) that I have spent the last four years compiling and working out every scrap of info on Predator biology (and Alien) I can get my grubby paws on. So far I've worked out an answer for every single one of the questions you've asked here. Here goes;

Taxonomy:- Mammal-like-Reptile.
Atmosphere:- Oxygen/Nitrogen (same as Earth) with higher concentration of Methane compounds.
Blood:- Phosphorus-based equivalent to Haemoglobin.
Diet:- Primarily Carnivore, with several sources mentioning the odd piece of Fruit. Drinks water and, on occasion, blood.
Vision:- (hardest to work out) Roughly like ours, but with IR receptive cones in the retina. Allows similar vision to Vipers, but far more advanced.
Ears:- Small openings on the side of the head, hidden by dreads.
Breeding:- Live-bearers (viviparous), 1 or 2 pups at a time.
Sexual Dimorphism:- Females are larger than Males (like T-Rex).
Habitat:- Planet-wide jungles and deserts, 2 (maybe 3) suns, highly volcanic. Intense solar radiation.
Dreads:- Many sources describe them as solid flesh, growing from the base as they age.

I have some more in depth info kicking around my room, if you'd like.
I would really like to help out with this project too. Would you mind if I did?

 

[Sara]

Dreadlocks are not flesh, they are quills. Stan Winston mentioned this in one of his books.

Everything else is just fan theory. So feel free to go wild, I guess. Just don't expect everyone to follow it.

 

[Kelz]

Wow great info, you guys have really put some thought into this I hope I'm up to the task now...

interesting.... what's your major? Anatomy and physiology sounds like medicine or biology (from you assignment, I'm guessing it must be biology?)

I'm doing a veterinary technology extended major

* reptilian taxonomy would however imply eggbreading, and would even more mean that all you guys out there sculpting voluminous breasts on your Fempreds are a bunch of ignorant pervs ...

Lol, thats always bothered me as well, but if you already have them it's a bit hard to hide them in a pred suit so you may as well excentuate

I'll admit (nerdy as it sounds...) that I have spent the last four years compiling and working out every scrap of info on Predator biology (and Alien) I can get my grubby paws on. So far I've worked out an answer for every single one of the questions you've asked here. Here goes;

Taxonomy:- Mammal-like-Reptile.
Atmosphere:- Oxygen/Nitrogen (same as Earth) with higher concentration of Methane compounds.
Blood:- Phosphorus-based equivalent to Haemoglobin.
Diet:- Primarily Carnivore, with several sources mentioning the odd piece of Fruit. Drinks water and, on occasion, blood.
Vision:- (hardest to work out) Roughly like ours, but with IR receptive cones in the retina. Allows similar vision to Vipers, but far more advanced.
Ears:- Small openings on the side of the head, hidden by dreads.
Breeding:- Live-bearers (viviparous), 1 or 2 pups at a time.
Sexual Dimorphism:- Females are larger than Males (like T-Rex).
Habitat:- Planet-wide jungles and deserts, 2 (maybe 3) suns, highly volcanic. Intense solar radiation.
Dreads:- Many sources describe them as solid flesh, growing from the base as they age.

I have some more in depth info kicking around my room, if you'd like.
I would really like to help out with this project too. Would you mind if I did?

Any info you have I'd love to have a look/read through it. And it you want to help thats great

I'm thinking that this may turn out to be a bigger project that I originally thought

 

[Blade3327]

Some of my thoughts:


I'd personally love to see a Predator eat. Whenever I think of the P2 eating, I picture him jumping on the hanging carcasses and going nuts. Dunno why, but I find it hard to believe they use utensils .

Habitat seems pretty obvious; jungle planet with Pred-built ruins and temples (like in AVP-R). But the planet would have different regions, each spawning a different species of Pred. Some would be darker-skinned, due to volcanic/heated conditions, while the jungle Preds would be lighter-skinned and leaner.

I'd say vision is primarily based on motion. As shown in P1, the Predator's vision without the bio is one color with different shades to show depth (in P1 for instance, dark red represented something farther away, lighter red was closer). The bio simply enhances this vision to the point where everything is color-coded to the wearer's liking, making everything crystal-clear and obvious.

The dreads I'd say are enlarged quills. They thicken with age and get longer as well, but the older the Predator, the less dark they become. That's why Elders used to have black dreads, but now have lighter ones with bluer tints.

I'd completely disagree with the female statement. I believe that much like humans, a female at her tallest, would be roughly the same size as a male.

Lastly, the ears. Preds DO have them, but they are not good unless a bio is worn to clarify. Without them, heavy distortion sets in, as the Predator's hearing has a huge amount of treble.

 

[Zilla1]

Well I started reading the Aliens vs Predator trades and this is what I think..

What do you think the taxonomy of a predator is? Reptilian, maybe like a Gecko or Iguana because they can regenerate according to comic, said one started healing its ribcage back together.

What do they breathe? Methane with traces of other elements

What do you think their blood contains to give it its green colour? nitric oxide, like a lightning bug. This is a dissolved gas that lets the firefly's nervous system switch on its flash of light. So maybe its permanet with predators because of what they breath

What do they eat and drink? They are omnivors, they do prepare their food, they have kitchens on their ships. They have cages with smaller animals and fruit lying around. They mix grind it all together into a soup which they all sit around and partake of.

What is their vision (without bio) like? Vision is like a blurred IR, thats what it appeard in Predator movie if Im not mistaken. Think bio helmet inhances it.

Do they have ears or sense vibration? Hearing would be like any reptile but more advance. Seems like predators are very vocal. With their croaking and clacking, maybe like a bat, their sound helps inhance their vision, works with blind humans why not them lol.

How do they breed? (live bearers, egg layers) Not sure havnt seen any females in the comics Ive read so far. Maybe the have a queen like ants have or aliens. Seems like the hunt is a male thing so maybe the females are docile.

What sort of sexual dimorphism (physical differences between male and femle) do they display? Not sure...they do cover up though lol.

Whats their natural habitat like? Not sure but its spent on a ship alot just flying around seeding planets and hunting. Have to prove yourself on the hunt each time, no beating it once and sitting around.

Dreads, flesh or not flesh? Quills, maybe grow like finger nails.

 

[xdmray]

for glowing green blood. and firefly similarity try this

The cells contain a chemical called luciferin and make an enzyme called luciferase. To make light, the luciferin combines with oxygen to form an inactive molecule called oxyluciferin. The luciferase speeds up the reaction, which occurs in two steps:

1. The luciferin combines with adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which is found in all cells, to form luciferyl adenylate and pyrophosphate (PPi) on the surface of the luciferase enzyme. The luciferyl adenylate remains bound to the enzyme:

luciferin + ATP -------------> luciferyl adenylate + PPi


2. The luciferyl adenylate combines with oxygen to form oxyluciferin and adenosine monophosphate (AMP). Light is given off and the oxyluciferin and AMP are released from the enzyme's surface:

luciferyl adenylate + O2 -------------> oxyluciferin +AMP + light

The wavelength of light given off is between 510 and 670 nanometers (pale yellow to reddish green color). The cells that make the light also have uric acid crystals in them that help to reflect the light away from the abdomen. Finally, the oxygen is supplied to the cells through a tube in the abdomen called the abdominal trachea. It is not known whether the on-off switching of the light is controlled by nerve cells or the oxygen supply.

The luciferin-luciferase chemical reaction has been used for years to measure the amount of ATP produced in cells and by various chemical reactions. Recently, the gene (section of DNA coding for the protein) for the luciferase enzyme has been isolated, placed in the genes of other organisms, and used to follow the synthesis and/or expression of other genes (i.e. used as a reporter gene).

 

[swift kinfe]

I think that preds breed similarly to humans.Considering the female chest part we have all seen (Dont be shy we have all seen those suit threads) I would say that preds would breed similar to humans though this is coming from a minor so I have absolutly no idea how the reproductive stuff works.

Body:Now reptillain would make sense considering the skin and the set up.

Dreads:I have always thought preds were born with these or mabye having just stubs on the back of there heads.

Coloration:I think this has something to do with the differnt regions of the home world.Cause originally I mean after pangea people were seperated in differnt portions of the world and because of that and assuming lifestyles, there skin tones would change so blue mabye in a cooler region, red possibly in hotter parts, and that classic yellow in mabye the middle of the planet or were its just okay there.

Technology:It's to hard to say but.There is no reason to say that predators didnt steal some tech.They are really good hunters so they probably used that stealth to get a hold of something.Id say they built more of the tribal looking equipment but things like the plasma caster I'm guessing came from a differnt specis then adapted for the purpose of hunting.Ships probably came from predators so the built those also with a little help of differnt specis tech.

 

[Half Knife]

I just have a second before I go to work, but the Preds are more mammal than reptile. According to the AVP novel Prey, this is obvious when Broken Tusk sees Machiko's boobies and knows immediately that they're milk glands like the Yautja females have. Also, there were ancient mammal-like reptiles that produced milk for their young right here on Earth. They were the prototype for all mammals that came later. Also, the Pred skin looks more mammalian than reptilian. Quills are also a mammalian trait like whiskers. So the Preds are mammal or mostly mammal.

 

[xdmray]

they are aliens. you can't classify them as either reptilian or mammalian. they would have their own taxonomy.

 

[MotoGuy75]

Hello,

I have to admit, nerdy as someone described it earlier, but this is some interesting reading. I agree with the blood having the same or some of the same concepts as that of lightning bugs. Also as for what they breath, personnally my thought is they use the bio to provide them with purified oxygen. Once again stated earleir, the P2 predator breathing on the respirator after he lost his bio, maybe the smog of L.A was too much, and also maybe it helped in his wounds? Lastly I would classify them as both reptilian and carnivores.

Thanks Daren

 

[Skullsplitter]

for glowing green blood. and firefly similarity try this

The cells contain a chemical called luciferin and make an enzyme called luciferase. To make light, the luciferin combines with oxygen to form an inactive molecule called oxyluciferin. The luciferase speeds up the reaction, which occurs in two steps:

1. The luciferin combines with adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which is found in all cells, to form luciferyl adenylate and pyrophosphate (PPi) on the surface of the luciferase enzyme. The luciferyl adenylate remains bound to the enzyme:

luciferin + ATP -------------> luciferyl adenylate + PPi


2. The luciferyl adenylate combines with oxygen to form oxyluciferin and adenosine monophosphate (AMP). Light is given off and the oxyluciferin and AMP are released from the enzyme's surface:

luciferyl adenylate + O2 -------------> oxyluciferin +AMP + light

The wavelength of light given off is between 510 and 670 nanometers (pale yellow to reddish green color). The cells that make the light also have uric acid crystals in them that help to reflect the light away from the abdomen. Finally, the oxygen is supplied to the cells through a tube in the abdomen called the abdominal trachea. It is not known whether the on-off switching of the light is controlled by nerve cells or the oxygen supply.

The luciferin-luciferase chemical reaction has been used for years to measure the amount of ATP produced in cells and by various chemical reactions. Recently, the gene (section of DNA coding for the protein) for the luciferase enzyme has been isolated, placed in the genes of other organisms, and used to follow the synthesis and/or expression of other genes (i.e. used as a reporter gene).

This is the best I've seen in YEARS on a discussion... The memories of AvPnews.com...

 

[Skullsplitter]

I just have a second before I go to work, but the Preds are more mammal than reptile. According to the AVP novel Prey, this is obvious when Broken Tusk sees Machiko's boobies and knows immediately that they're milk glands like the Yautja females have. Also, there were ancient mammal-like reptiles that produced milk for their young right here on Earth. They were the prototype for all mammals that came later. Also, the Pred skin looks more mammalian than reptilian. Quills are also a mammalian trait like whiskers. So the Preds are mammal or mostly mammal.

The novels aren't really the best source to discuss this... If anything, novels and comics contradict each other continuously...

 

[El Duderino]

I found this link for you, breaks everything down.

http://aliens.wikia.com/wiki/Yautja

 

[Kelz]

I found this link for you, breaks everything down.

http://aliens.wikia.com/wiki/Yautja

The section about the circulatory system is really interesting.



My inner nerd is loving all these ideas