Yautja Tongue: Do Predators Have Tongues?

One anatomical feature that has drawn occasional curiosity is the Predator's tongue. While not prominently shown in every film, evidence from certain appearances confirms that the Yautja do have tongues, though they vary in visibility and presentation. This article explores the tongue's appearances and possible function in Predator lore.

The Forked Tongue Of The City Hunter

The most well-known example of a Yautja tongue appears in Predator 2, featuring the City Hunter. Just before administering painkillers with his medicomp, the Predator opens his mouth wide, revealing a thin, forked tongue extending from just behind his lower teeth. The tongue is similar to that of a viper and appears to protrude from deep within the throat. Its design suggests a sensory role, possibly aiding in tasting the air or helping with food intake. This scene remains the clearest depiction of a Yautja tongue in the franchise, although it is easy to miss.

Missing Tongues On Later Predators

In more recent entries like Predators (2010), The Predator (2018), and Prey (2022), the Yautja mouth is shown in detail, yet the forked tongue is notably absent. These omissions may be due to artistic choices or possibly indicate differences among Predator subspecies. However, the City Hunter wasn't really a hybrid nor a special subspecies. Each of these later designs focuses on unique head and mandible configurations, and the internal throat anatomy often appears empty or obscured, leading to speculation that not all Yautja have visible tongues. It may also be that the filmmakers have not noticed the City Hunter's tongue in Predator 2 and went on believing the Yautja have no tongues.

Venom-Predator Tongue

In the Venom/Predator Marvel comic crossover special cover, a unique hybrid between Venom and a Predator is shown with an exaggerated tongue. This tongue is long, muscular, and heavily stylized after the Venom symbiote’s features, stretching unnaturally far from the mouth. While not part of the main Predator canon, this version serves as an exaggerated take on what a Predator tongue could look like when mixed with alien DNA. The Venom symbiote does amplify the anatomical features of it's host, although it also takes traits from previous hosts. It also reinforces the idea that the tongue, even if hidden in most depictions, is a natural part of the Yautja anatomy.

Predalien Tongue

The Predalien from the Aliens vs. Predator series adds another variation to the discussion. As a hybrid between a Xenomorph and a Yautja, the Predalien possesses dreadlocks, mandibles, and an inner retractable tongue similar to the secondary jaw of standard Xenomorphs. This tongue acts as a weapon and is used to implant embryos into human hosts, as seen in Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem. Like the Venom symbiote, Xenomorphs take traits from the host, hinting that the tongue could be part of the "mainstream" Yautja biology. However, the tongue is not forked, like it possibly could be for a host like the City Hunter.

Conclusion

While not always visible, the Yautja do possess a forked tongue, with its clearest appearance in Predator 2, while missing on the first Jungle Hunter. Later films have either overlooked this detail or presented subspecies with anatomical differences. Variations in comics and hybrid forms further emphasize the tongue's flexible role across different interpretations.

Tag Categories: Yautja Behaviour