Facehugger framed in Shadow Box

From the movie, ALIENS. The Facehugger greatly resembles a pair of skeletal hands fused together, with a spine-like tail. It has eight long, finger-like legs which allow it to crawl rapidly, and a long tail adapted for making great leaps. These particular appendages give it an appearance somewhat comparable to Chelicerate arthropods such as arachnids and horseshoe crabs. A Facehugger’s long digits allow it to move rapidly across all manner of surfaces and also grant the creature its crucial ability to “grip” a host’s head during implantation. The spindly appearance of these digits should not be underestimated; they are incredibly strong, and have been known to tear the skin from the skulls of human victims when an attempt is made to remove them. Once the digits are gripped around a host’s head, they are nearly impossible to remove and implantation is virtually guaranteed. A Facehugger’s tail can propel the creature into huge leaps and is also used for additional grip around a host’s ne