Death Jackal
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Death Jackals are a predatory superspecies that first appeared in the 2017 Legendary Comics series Skull Island: The Birth of Kong. One specimen makes a cameo in the 2019 graphic novel Godzilla: Aftershock.
Name
The Death Jackals are given the cryptozoological classification Spinae Mortem by Monarch, derived from the Latin words for "spine" and '"death," respectively. In the creatures' bio provided on a Chinese marketing site for Kong: Skull Island, their classification was instead given as Spinae Folium, the second half being the Latin word for "leaf." Furthermore, the Kong: Skull Island Cinematic Adventure erroneously gives their classification as Spinae mortern, a misspelling of "Mortem."
Design
Despite seemingly being mammals, Death Jackals bear a heavy resemblance to flesh-eating dromaeosaurs like Velociraptor, standing horizontally on two legs with their forelimbs held in the air and a long tail suspended in the air behind them. The Death Jackal has no defined neck and a large elongated head. The creature's skin is wrinkly and gray in color and adorned with rounded bumps and yellow stripes. The Death Jackal possesses a mane of spiky hair-like fibers around its head and another patch of these fibers on its exposed spine atop its back. According to the creature's bio, these spikes are as sharp as razor wire. Their blood is white.[2]
Behavior
The Death Jackals are ravenous predatory creatures that are known to prey on each other or even themselves when a kill is hard to come by. According to Monarch's profile on the Death Jackals, it is believed that the Death Jackals' appetite can only be satisfied by eating their own kind. The profile also characterizes the Death Jackals as extremely violent and hostile animals, stating that "it is hard to imagine that anything other than hatred flows through their veins."[1] Death Jackals seem to hunt in packs, allowing them to overwhelm large groups of prey.
According to the Kong: Skull Island Cinematic Adventure, pregnant female Death Jackals exhibit lower aggression. Upon birthing their young in isolated caves, they abandon them; frequently, the offspring turn on each other and only one survives long enough to venture out of the cave.[2]
Origins
According to the bio for the Death Jackals in Skull Island: The Birth of Kong, the creatures are part of the sub-division "Canus,"[1] possibly a misspelling of the real-world genus Canis. This is repeated in the Kong: Skull Island Cinematic Adventure, which also classifies them as "necroserpere" and states, "Their anatomy appears reptilian[.] On the other hand, their behavior is much more mammalian[.]"[2] The creatures are warm blooded and give birth to live young,[2] bringing them closer to mammals.
Video games
- Godzilla x Kong: Titan Chasers (2024) - Android, iOS, and PC
Tabletop games
Comics
- Skull Island: The Birth of Kong #1, 3-4 (2017)
- Godzilla: Aftershock (2019) [taxidermy]
- Kingdom Kong (2021)
- Godzilla x Kong: The Hunted [taxidermy]
Skull Island: The Birth of Kong
"The People Who Came from the Sky"
In 1995, while searching for their downed Osprey on Skull Island, a team of Monarch operatives was attacked by a pack of Death Jackals. The creatures brutally killed and dismembered one of the team members, Helen Karsten, and chased the rest to a cave, where they mauled Evgenij Medov, another member of the team. Suddenly, King Kong appeared outside the cave, then reached into the cave and crushed several Death Jackals in his hand. Some of the Death Jackals ran outside the cave, only for Kong to crush them with his foot.
"Valley of the Fallen Gods"
After Kong fought and killed a Sirenjaw, several Psychovultures and Death Jackals descended to feed on the carcass.
"Over the Rainbow"
While Walter R. Riccio was holding Aaron Brooks, Medov, Ato, and two other Iwi at gunpoint, a pack of Death Jackals appeared. They provided a distraction enabling Aaron and the others to escape while Riccio was left behind to deal with the Death Jackals. Riccio was able to fight off the Death Jackals with his gun and escaped as well.
Godzilla: Aftershock
In 2014, a taxidermied Death Jackal was on display in Monarch Outpost 14 in the southern Philippines.
Kingdom Kong
A Death Jackal stalked Audrey, Gibson, Diggs, Zuniga and Nomura. It then attempted to pounce on Audrey but was shot in the head by Gibson.
Abilities
Teeth and claws
Death Jackals possess sharp teeth and claws, which allow them to maim and kill their prey. According to Monarch's profile for the creatures, their bite force is as powerful as that of a Great White Shark.[1]
Manes
The manes of spiky hair on the Death Jackals' heads and backs are incredibly sharp and deadly.
Weaknesses
An entire pack of Death Jackals was no match for the much larger Kong, who was able to effortlessly kill them all by crushing them with either his hand or foot. According to Monarch's profile on the Death Jackals, their cannibalistic tendencies make them a bigger threat to themselves than humanity.
Gallery
Skull Island: The Birth of Kong
Monarch's profile of the Death Jackals from Skull Island: The Birth of Kong #1
A pack of Death Jackals in Skull Island: The Birth of Kong #1
A pack of Death Jackals attacking Walter R. Riccio in Skull Island: The Birth of Kong #4
Godzilla: Aftershock
Kong: Skull Island Cinematic Adventure
Roar
The Death Jackals' roar is written as "ROUK" in Skull Island: The Birth of Kong.
Trivia
- The Death Jackals resemble the Deathrunners from the 2005 novel Kong: King of Skull Island.
Video
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References
This is a list of references for Death Jackal. These citations are used to identify the reliable sources on which this article is based. These references appear inside articles in the form of superscript numbers, which look like this: [1]
Bibliography
- Trent, Sigfried; Bramnik, Michael; Flanagan, Ivis (2023). Kong: Skull Island Cinematic Adventure. Evil Genius Games. ISBN 979-8-9865552-8-7.
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