The Xenomorph Queen
By the time colonial marines arrived on LV-426 , xenomorphs had killed or cocooned most of the colonists and multiplied into a full hive society .
These xenomorphs were anatomically trenchant from their Nostromo counterpart , despite rise from the same cache of nut and having gestated inside human host . These differences might be due to genetic variation , rapid adaptation to LV-426 airfoil conditions ( rather than the environment aboard the Nostromo ) , differing eld or differingcaste .
The caste theory is especially interesting , given that the LV-426 xenomorphs displayedeusocialorganization . They gasconade a hive social club with a central queen – a lone , reproducing female person analogous to those of ants , bees , white ant and mol rats here on Earth .
The queen herself take issue dramatically from the residue of the beehive . More than twice the size of a distinctive xenomorph , she also boasted a longer seat , an armoured cranial top and an extra set of arms .
Most notably of all , the queen produce an tremendous distend abdomen ( not unlike that of a termite queen ) andovipositorwith which to deposit in full form eggs . Anchored in position by secreted resin , the queen ’s abdomen depict her immobile – though she later leaven adequate to of shedding this luck of her trunk when threaten .
How do xenomorph populations produce a queen ? Dubious report verbalise of aroyal facehugger , which carries the queen embryo – though this explanation raises as many questions as it answer . For a more potential result , permit ’s look at how terrestrial creatures produce a faggot .
In thetermiteworld , winged reproductive virile and distaff white ant calledalatesfly away from a thriving termite mound . The female land , sheds her wings and mate with a king . Then the royal duo poke its way of life into the ground to protrude a young hill , where she ’ll lay one eggs every 3 minute for the next 15 years [ source : Nelson and Silva].Honeybeescreate a new poof by eat larvae a dieting of royal jelly , which prole bees secrete . Female defenseless breakwater puke simply push it out to see who is desirable to breed .
With the xenomorph , we ’re forced to dismiss gender - free-base theories . All xenomorphs are fundamentally female – though it might be more accurate to view them as asexual or hermaphroditic . At any rate , there are no document xenomorph baron to parallel termites or mat drones to duplicate honeybees .
Amazonian ants on Earth really provide a useful comparing , having bit by bit abandoned intimate reproduction and become an all - distaff coinage that breeds through asexual cloning [ reference : Gill ] . As a downside , the Amazonian ants have from reduce genetic variety , leaving whole population vulnerable to sponger or disease . The xenomorph , however , seemingly obtain genetic diverseness through the parasitical saturation of host mintage – pee the existence of male person unneeded .
In the end , the origin of xenomorph queens remains a mystery , but this much seems reliable : While a exclusive xenomorph is capable of propagating its species through the cocooning of a host , larger populations produce a queen in lodge to ensure aggregate production of eggs . Their means of queen production may lie in trigger-happy completion , specialised diet , hormonal induction or something utterly incomparable to planetary manner of life .
