Headless Predators: List Of Yautja Who Were Decapitated

Although the Predators love to take trophies of their prey, they often end up losing their heads during a hunt. The following article summarizes a selection of these Yautja, each of whom met decapitation in the hands of their enemy. Predators are almost equally often decapitated by fellow Predators than humans, representing a Yautja blood feud. Sometimes, even a Xenomorph manages to take off the head of a Predator.

Crucified Predator

The Yautja known as the Crucified Predator belonged to the Jungle Hunter Clan and had been captured by the Super Predators on the Game Preserve Planet. He was found bound and displayed on a totem-like structure by his captors, weakened and stripped of much of his gear. During his attempted escape, he confronted the Super Predator Berserker, who removed his bio-helmet and then decapitated him with his single wrist-blade. This killing was a grim indication of Predator infighting and a "Civil War" within the Yautja society over hunting rules and the honor code.

Berserker Predator

The Berserker Predator, leader of the Super Predators on the Game Preserve Planet, was a ruthless hunter who captured and hunted both humans and rival Yautja, including the Crucified Predator. Standing taller and stronger than most of his kind, he relied on brute strength and intimidation rather than stealth. During his final hunt, he faced the human survivor Royce in the Super Predators’ camp. Despite his superior technology, Berserker was outsmarted when Royce used mud and traps to gain the advantage. In the end, Royce decapitated the Berserker with a Yautja hatchet, ending the creature’s reign over the Game Preserve Planet.

Fugitive Predator

The Fugitive Predator was a hybrid of Yautja and human DNA who sought to deliver advanced technology known as the Predator Killer suit to humanity. He was captured by the secretive Project Stargazer, escaped, massacred a big group of humans for no good reason, and later fought the Upgrade Predator. In their final confrontation, the Upgrade Predator tore his skull and spine from his body, leaving him decapitated. His death was supposed to show the superiority of the "Upgrade Predator", but left most fans wanting Fugitive to survive to the end of the movie.

Feral Predator

The Feral Predator hunted on the Great Plains in 1719, seeking worthy prey among both animals and humans. Unlike many of his kind, he used primitive weapons and minimal armor, relying on speed, agility, and sheer ferocity (earning the nickname "Feral"). He encountered Naru of the Comanche tribe, who observed his methods and used her cunning to turn his technology against him. After a fierce confrontation in the forest, Naru lured him into his own targeting trap, aligning his mask’s laser sights toward his head. When the Predator fired his bolt gun, the bolts tracked back and shot him in the head, marking Naru’s triumph over the alien hunter. While Feral's body was swallowed by the swamp, Naru decapitated the body and took the head to her camp.

Stone Heart Predator

The Predator known as Stone  Heart was a Bad-Blood Yautja of the Dark Blade Clan, who had been captured and augmented by Borgia Industries. He appeared in the game called Predator: Concrete Jungle. He and his brothers Long Spear and Swift Knife had been subjected to cybernetic brain-washing and used as enforcers. In 2030, his story reached its climax when his rival Scarface  Predator escaped the same labs and released the captives. Lucretia Borgia released Stone Heart and his brothers to confront Scarface. Scarface ultimately defeated Stone Heart, tore his skull from his shoulders, and left him decapitated, granting him an “honourable death”. Stone Heart’s severed head was placed on Scarface’s trophy wall.

Big Game Predator

Another headless case involved the Yautja hunter in the story of Enoch Nakai, a Navajo-descent U.S. Army tracker in New Mexico. During the events of "Predator: Big Game", a crazed Predator crash-landed in the desert and slaughtered wild animals, soldiers, and locals. When the Predator’s ship self‐destructed, the camp where Nakai was stationed was destroyed. Motivated by a vision from his dead brother, Nakai tracked the hunter to the volcanic formation nicknamed El Malpais. After a brutal duel, Nakai wounded the Predator and shot it in the head, then removed and kept the Predator’s head as a trophy.

Cajun Predator

In the one-shot comic Predator: Strange Roux a Yautja hunted in Louisiana in 1931. The Predator fed on raw muskrats that he skinned immediately. A local Cajun named LeBlanc trapped the Predator in a sand-trap and killed him. LeBlanc later cooked a soup from the Predator’s head and stored the rest of the body for later consumption. In later comics, it was revealed that eating a Predator's flesh (or drinking its blood) might give longer life to a human.

Gotham City Enforcer Predator

In the crossover comic series Batman  vs. Predator II: Bloodmatch, a second Predator arrived in Gotham City (after an earlier one was defeated). He arrived to test his skill on Batman, but he was bad blood and two Enforcer Predators from his own kind were sent to hunt him. The Gotham Predator killed the two, beheading one of them, before facing Batman (assisted by Huntress), who finally defeated the Yautja. Although Predators often dispatch these Enforcer Predators to hunt bad bloods, they end up getting killed, and even decapitated.

Geryon Predator

One of the most brutal beheadings happens in the Alien vs. Predator: Fire And Blood comic series, released by Dark Horse Comics. When Predators attack a small human armada of three ships (named the Geryon fleet), an all-out brawl occurred between Yautja, Xenomorphs, humans, and Black Goo-infected android named Elden. Elden grabbed the mouth and mandibles of one of the Predator hunters (who was busy with Xenomorphs), and ripped the top of his head off, leaving the lower jaw in place. Although not a full decapitation, it shows the ferocious nature of the Black Goo Pathogen's effects.

Splitter Predator

The Yautja known as Splitter Predator was a Young Blood who invaded a luxury space liner along with his brother Pig Iron and father Hook (in the comic Alien vs. Predator: Thicker Than Blood). Their mission was to hunt humans, but they massacred civilian passengers instead of selecting worthy prey. After Hook was gravely wounded in an elevator incident, Splitter amputated his father’s arm and leg with a Yautja whip. Soon, a Xenomorph escaped the Predator ship and killed Pig Iron. Splitter confronted the Alien and attempted to fight with his plasma whip, but the Xenomorph proved faster and decapitated Splitter, thus ending his dishonourable hunt and severing his head from the body as ultimate defeat.

Final Super Predator

In the series Predator: The  Last Hunt (Marvel Comics), the Super Predator set a trap for human Predator hunter Theta. The Yautja used human stasis pods as bait near a crashed Predator ship, the humans having been held frozen for game-preserve hunts. Teaming with other survivors, Theta confronted the Super Predator and its attack dogs. Though most of the human group was killed, Theta succeeded in a brutal duel and decapitated the Super Predator. The severed head served as the human victory trophy. Theta decapitated several other Predators (with 31 confirmed Yautja kills) before this event, but for now, they are not listed here.

Skinner Predator

The Yautja known as the Skinner  Predator appeared in the Marvel crossover comic series Predator  vs. Spider‑Man. This Predator was another Bad Blood monster who terrorised New York City, picking victims at random, skinning their bodies, and hanging the skins in his trophy lair. He even wrapped the skins over his bio-helmet. Skinner did not even shy away from hunting and killing kids. He fought Spider‑Man while being hunted by both Kraven  the  Hunter and a group of Enforcer Predators from another galaxy. In the end, Skinner was decapitated by Kraven, who took his head as a trophy.

Conclusion

While Predators prided themselves on taking the heads of worthy prey as trophies, many ultimately suffered the same fate, losing their own to humans, Xenomorphs, and even rival clans. The Predators too often die on their hunts, losing their limbs, eyes, and even heads in the process. As demonstrated by Scarface Predator, displaying a Predator head as a trophy is not forbidden and even considered an honor.

Tag Categories: Predator Behaviour, Individual Predators, Predator Lists, Yautja Appearance