Characteristics
The Wraith are defined by their need to feed on humans; they have a feeding organ on the palm which is applied to the chest of the victim near the heart, drawing out their "life-force". The effect of this in humans is akin to aging, and the act of feeding is sometimes said to "take away years". Eventually, only a desiccated husk remains. In addition to humans, the Wraith can also feed on each other. The Wraith are driven by their hunger, which they describe as akin to being burned alive. Adult Wraith are capable of eating and drinking, but it provides no nourishment. The act of feeding is so traumatic to the victim that it would normally cause immediate death; the Wraith inject an enzyme into their victims throughout the process to strengthen them and ensure that the heart continues to beat for as long as possible. If taken by a human in high doses, the Wraith enzyme enhances strength, speed, and resilience, though it also heightens aggression and impairs judgement. The enzyme is also addictive and a person taking it may die from withdrawal if suddenly deprived. A Wraith can return the life taken from a human; this "gift of life" is performed only for their most devout worshipers and their brothers.
Wraith are biologically immortal and do not possess the life-inhibiting proteins that cause aging. Provided they have something to feed on, their life span is effectively indefinite. They are stronger than humans, with some individuals being strong enough to hurl an adult human a considerable distance with minimal effort. They are also extremely agile, able to leap up several meters from a standing start. Wraith bodies are highly resilient, able to survive oceanic pressures that would crush a human, and possess remarkable regenerative abilities. Their regeneration is directly related to how recently they have fed; a fully fed Wraith can heal multiple bullet wounds in seconds. In dire circumstances, a Wraith can allow a queen iratus bug to feed on them, potentially healing all their injuries; the practice has long since been abandoned because of the high risk of death it poses. Although the Wraith are capable of speech, their primary means of communication with each other is telepathic. Due to an ancient Wraith experiment to splice Wraith genes into humans, a few humans such as Teyla Emmagan are also capable of accessing the Wraith telepathic network. The Wraith can share each other's perceptions, and a group working together can send a telepathic signal over light-years of distance. The Wraith are also capable of projecting fleeting hallucinations into the minds of their prey in order to confuse and distract.
Three types of Wraith can be distinguished in the series. The most numerous are the warriors, basic foot soldiers who have well-defined musculature and masks that entirely cover their faces. A scene in "Spoils of War" suggests that these masks also allow them to breathe more easily. The warriors also possess the ability to activate a self-destruct mechanism. According to Michael in "Misbegotten", the warriors are "unimaginative" and have "rigid thought patterns". No warrior has ever been shown to speak in the series due to their cloned reproduction of Ancient technology and wraith DNA. The second type are natural Wraith. A Male Wraith is slimmer and more intelligent, and appears in more sophisticated roles. The females are the least frequently seen; apart from Elia, an adolescent Wraith in "Instinct", and the Keeper in "Rising", all the female Wraith on the show have been adult Queens. The Wraith Queens command hive ships and are the only Wraith capable of reproduction. The episode "Instinct" shows that young female Wraith eat and grow in the same way as humans, until in adolescence their digestive systems become non-functional and they develop the need to feed on humans. In "Spoils of War", a Wraith Queen is shown providing genetic material to produce Warriors, which quickly grow to maturity inside pods. The same episode establishes that while large numbers of Wraith Warriors can be grown through cloning, the cloning process requires a ZPM to meet its immense power requirements. Female Wraith have the strongest telepathic ability of all Wraith; they can force most humans into submission through the power of suggestion, and draw information from them against their will. In "Submersion", a Wraith Queen takes complete control of Teyla's body, although Teyla is able to accomplish the reverse in "Spoils of War" when her telepathy is being bolstered by that of her unborn child.
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