Although the second stage of the Alien's development is unnamed, it is usually referred to as the "FaceHugger". Facehuggers have a central body, eight long, jointed "legs" (similar to those of spiders), and a long, prehensile tail; their overall length is approximately 130 centimeters.

Facehugger lying down

Facehuggers are able to replace the cells of the upper layer of their skin with polymerized silicones, to increase their resistance to external agents, and have blood composed of a molecular acid (the same as that of adult Aliens), which is corrosive only when exposed to air following injury or "sprayed" on its own, for example when in "Alien" it uses it to corrode the helmet of its victim's space suit, and in "Alien 3" to open Ripley's hypersleep capsule.

Ripley wrestles with a FacehuggerThe Facehugger remains in a state of stasis in the egg, until the latter senses the presence of a possible host. At this point the egg hatches, and the Facehugger, after a few seconds necessary to wake up, climbs or jumps out, using its muscular tail as a spring, attacking the victim. Facehuggers, although relatively small, are quite fast, and remarkably resistant. They rely heavily on surprise to attack the victim, and if the victim is not near the egg at the time of hatching, they then spend a lot of time hiding and waiting for the right moment to attack.

Facehugger attached to a man's headDetail of the ovipositor tubeAt this point the Facehugger jumps on the victim's face, tightening its eight legs around the head and at the same time, wrapping its tail around the victim's neck. A special organ forces the victim to open his mouth, and an ovipositor tube implants a "spore" (which will become the Embryo) in his throat. A special substance injected into the victim forces him into an unconscious coma. The Facehugger remains attached to the victim's face for about 12/24 hours, providing oxygen through the two sacs on the sides of his body, which literally pump it from the surrounding environment directly into the lungs. This period is necessary for the spore to firmly implant itself in the victim's body: after this time, the Facehugger detaches itself and dies. The victim regains consciousness without remembering anything from the period following the attack.

The Facehugger has no natural offensive or defensive weapons (apart from corrosive blood), and is therefore completely defenseless until it manages to attach itself to a victim. At this point, however, it is impossible to kill it without also killing its victim; With surgical removal, the molecular acid is released, and if you try to remove it without hurting it, that is, by forcibly detaching it, it defends itself by tightening its tail more around its victim's neck, strangling it.

ALIEN AND EGG FACEHUGGER xenomorph

0.2mm layer, 2 walls, 15% infill

0.2mm layer, 2 walls, 15% infill