#Mega Mammals

[savage-kult-of-gorthaur]

GREAT TUSKED BEASTS OF THE SIBERIAN TUNDRA -- THE WOOLY MAMMOTH.

A museum worker checks the hair on this woolly mammoth replica. 📸: Jonathan Blair, Nat Geo Image Collection.

A pristine mammoth tusk is discovered with the skull still attached. 📸: Evgenia Arbugaeva, Nat Geo Image Collection.

Resolution from largest to smallest: 2610x1916, 1843x2713, 1828x2736, & 1172x794. Mammoth-sized pics!

Source: www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/woolly-mammoths-extinction-cloning-genetics.

#Wooly Mammoth #National Geographic #Pleistocene #Prehistoric #Mammoth #Mammoth Tusks #Prehistoric Megafauna #Megafauna #Prehistoric Creatures #Prehistoric Animals #Siberian Tundra #Mega Mammals #Prehistoric Beasts #Elephantidae #Mammuthus primigenius #Pleistocene Epoch #Pleistocene Mammals #Mammutidae #Tusks #Mammuthus #Nat Geo #Mammalian

[darksilvania]

GOLGOLIATH (Ground/Ghost) & CRANIEMBERG (Ice/Ghost)

GOLGOLIATH (Golgotha/Goliath) The tar pit Pokemon. Its body is made of tar, brought to life by the restless souls of all the pokemon that perished trapped in it. It uses their bones as armor to protect its soft, sticky body. The shape of its body resembles a Paraceratherium and the skulls from its armor are those of a Brontotherium/Megacerops, a Woolly Mammoth (Upside down) and a Woolly Rhino

CRANIEMBERG (Cranium/Iceberg/Cronenberg) The glacier Pokemon Its body is made of Glaciar ice and compacted snow, reanimated by the souls of the many pokemon forever trapped in it. It uses their bones as weapons to hunt for its prey. Its main body is shaped like a Megatherium and the skulls from its armor are those of an Uintatherium, a Smilodon and an Arsinotherium (upside down)

CRANIEMBERG's striped body is based on "Striped Icebergs" a phenomena in which icebergs melt and froze again over time, forming layers of different colors due to the impurities in the water and the difference in densities

#pokemon #fakemon #fake pokemon #pokemon fossils #tar pits #glacier #iceberg #bones #prehistoric animals #fossils #mega fauna #prehistoric mammals #megafauna #ground type #ice type #ghost type #ice #ground #ghost #ice pokemon #ground pokemon #ghost pokemon #ice fakemon #ground fakemon #ghost fakemon

[jaydoesresearch]

Meet Nick! This dolphin was first seen during a routine field expedition. He was in a small pod with four other dolphins, guiding them through the choppy waters of Lake Borgne. Our Researchers will use his dorsal fin- which is completely unique from any other dolphin- to study him, his social dynamics, and habitat use throughout his life! Nick is one of hundreds of dolphins monitored by IMMS via photo-ID. To learn more about our research, check out our website: https://imms.org/research/ With the news of The University of Alabama’s head football coach, Nick Saban, retiring, our Researchers have decided to name this dolphin in honor of his legacy. Enjoy retirement, Coach Saban!

#dolphin #bottlenose dolphin #jaydoesresearch #tursiops truncatus #institute for marine mammal studies #it's me i'm researchers. i was mega depressed over the news but hey it was inevitable #happy retirement coach saban!!! #also i'm italicizing text that i'm reposting from the official imms facebook page #facebook repost

[artblooger19moon]

Magmatherium subspecies

This awesome kaiju belongs to @pyrotyrantstudios

They gave me permission to draw their kaiju, Magmatherium subspecies

#Magmatherium subspecies #moose #mega moose #giant mammal #pyrotyrantstudios #original kaiju #original kaiju design #kaiju #daikaiju #@pyrotyrantstudios #drawing #fan art

[kasper-k]

↑ Thinking about the unsustainability of the fishing industry

#makes me legit sad sometimes for real #and the fact that no one really cares because fish arent seen as desirable (aka they arent a mammal that ppl can project feelings onto) #so sad... fish are so cool and interesting and yet people just dont care #the effects of trawling and over fishing not to mention creating docks for mega cruise ships.. its all too much #not even mentioning the fact that toxic paints on ships regularly poison many fish #and the rising level of murcury being seen in tuna #and the coral bleaching.... fucking hurts #not to mention all the nets and fishing line and hooks that litter so much of the ocean #OUGH im just so sad... care about the ocean please.. even a little bit

[dottie-n-stripes]

i love the seal motifs you use with dottie, makes alot of sense since spotted seals share her freckles! (leopard seals also share her ferocity...). in your interpretation of the splatoon world, do you imagine seals are still living? or do you think they went away like all the other mammals?

sorry if this ask is kinda strange, i am very obsessed with both seals and splatoon, so a chance to talk about both is very tantalizing!

OMG I WAS SO HAPPY AND EXCITED TO SEE THIS MESSAGE IM GLAD U LIKE IT 💙 i made seals dottie's fav animal for those reasons!! they suit her and they are such fun guys :'D

ok so maybe it's Controversial of me but i like having marine mammals still exist in my splatoon realm. for me personally i just think it's laughable to think animals that can survive in water for extended periods of time, air-breather or not, would go extinct when sea levels rose (so whales and pinnipeds still exist To Me). my justification is inkfish are all kind of stupid so maybe they don't realize those guys are mammals too so they maintain that they all went extinct 😆

anyway! dottie loves these guys she wishes she could ride around on a giant leopard seal like shiver does with master mega

theres this one that she feeds at the docks sometimes. she calls it 'mother phoca' (ik leopard seals don't fall into the phoca genus but it's seal related and she thinks it is funny because it sounds like a bad word. as she would. pfft)

#draws #dottie #inb4 someone mentions the narwhal marina mentioned that one fest... its hotly debated but its ok idc im doing my own thing

[velvetwyrmz]

Behold the Selkidomus (mega pinnipedia), a large mammal that lurks the depths of the boiling sea. They are sought after for their thick, warm, water-proof pelt which shimmers like silver in the moonlight. The long hairs on their backs mimic the appearance of kelp of seaweed, an evolutionary tactic developed to protect them from predators that hunt at higher depths. Similarly to modern tarantulas, they can shed some of the hairs on their undersides that will cause irritation and possibly bleeding. Their diet consists of mainly cephalopods but they will ingest crustaceans if necessary.

Decided to take a more realistic approach to TOH creatures. This isn’t meant to be ‘better’ than the cartoon in any way, it’s just to have fun with biology and a series I hold close to my heart. So don’t come at me pls I love cartoons as much as you do😭

I am not claiming these creatures to be of my own creation, these are just my own headcanons.

#the owl house #toh #toh au #toh fanart #the owl house fanart #Selkidomus #the boiling isles beastiary #my art

[uncharismatic-fauna]

May Mammal Madness

Although this is about 2 months late, I'm announcing the official Tumblr version of March Mammal Madness-- a bracket to determine the Superior Animal!

For those of you who aren't mega-biology nerds, March Mammal Madness is a tournament based on the basketball competition of the same name, which pits different animals against each other. The battles are simulated, using real-world data, and the results are posted throughout March. You can read more about the tournament here.

This tournament will be following the 2024 bracket with some slight variations. First, all the plants in the original bracket will be replaced by animals of my choosing, due to my objection that plants are not animals and therefore are not qualified to compete. Second, rather than simulating the battles, which I have neither the time nor the resources to do, I will allow Tumblr to vote on the winner.

Otherwise, the rules are the same. Each animal in its respective section is ranked by how likely it is to win, with 1 being the most likely and 16 being the least likely. Assume that the combatants represent the most prime-aged, healthy and strong specimen of that species. The "battle" does not necessarily have to be to the death-- the winner can also "win" by displacing the other, or the loser may simply wander out of the arena in search of food/shelter/a mate. In rounds 1-3, the higher-ranked animal has the home-field advantage; for example, if a great white shark is facing a red squirrel, the shark is the higher-ranked animal and the battle will therefore take place in the Pacific Ocean. In rounds 4-6, the location will be 1 of four biomes-- Savannah, Tropical Forest, Arctic, or Deep Ocean-- randomly determined by me.

I will post approx. 2 polls each day, along with a short post detailing the basic information for each competitor. Each post will last 24 hours, at which time the winner will move on to the next game in the tournament until only one remains.

The first round of info posts will be put up on April 31st, and the first round of polls will be up on May 1st, so stay tuned!

#may mammal madness #tumblr polls #tumblr tournaments #jack speaks

[weirdmarioenemies]

Name: Tenshi

Debut: WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$!

I know what you're thinking. It's been four grueling days since the last post about some kind of fictional cube. Don't worry! Cube delivery right here! Even the most humble of gray blocks is a beautiful and valuable thing. Far too valuable for some schmuck like ME to touch with my oily, mortal, mammal skin. Only the divine can be trusted with delivering this block!

This gray block is the ground for our feathered friend Pyoro! He needs to eat those Beans, and if he can't stand on a solid surface while doing so... well, I can't stand to imagine such a calamity! The beans are ruthless. Just a single gently drifting bean can obliterate a poor block, making a gap Pyoro cannot cross, restricting his movement! What Bad Beans!

But even among Bad Beans, there are some Blessed Beans! When this funny bird eats the right bean, something happens. The heavens are notified. God must intervene. Even if He may have been watching over the entire universe, He knows something dire has happened in one small area. He can't let the beans prevail. He must send His angels!

That's what Tenshi means! It means Angel. This is one of those funny situations where an entity's name is just a regular word in Japanese, but it has never technically been referred to in English, so we gotta just accept the Japanese name as official until further notice. They come bearing gray cubes from above for Pyoro to scuttle atop! Anything to let him eat some more beans! It's a very important matter!

In WarioWare Gold's remake of Pyoro, as well as Super Pyoro, the Blocks have received a makeover! Please let me know if you were a Gray Block Enthusiast who is miffed about them now being made of real dirt and grass and looking kinda Minecrafty! I feel neutral to good about the change, though. It's a handsome block. Maybe it can be argued that it lessens the strange ambiguity of Pyoro's whole situation for the blocks to be more "realistic". But if that is a concern to you, then maybe you should think about other things. Sorry. Look, Tenshi now has a halo in game! Yay.

Super Pyoro introduces a few new mechanics to the classic gameplay, including a new Hidden Bonus Area in space! Here, beans abound on conveyor belts, being put there by food service Tenshi wearing little uniforms! Retail workers are the real angels!

To get to this stage, you must allow a beanstalk to grow by letting a bean fall through a hole in the ground... will you sacrifice one of our beloved Blocks to let this happen? Is it worth it? Does the presence of unique Cloud Blocks in the bonus area make up for it? It is up to you! And up to Anubis when he inevitably weighs your heart someday! I hope you made the right decision!

Tenshi is a very Ko Takeuchi character design, by which I mean it is one of those very simple Little White Guys he is always drawing. All the time! Rhythm Heaven is full of them, not nearly limited to just the Chorus Kids, and WarioWare gets its fair share of them, too! What can I say! The man just loves to draw Little White Guys!

#tenshi #angel #pyoro #super pyoro #warioware #warioware inc mega microgames #warioware gold #mario #mario allies #wario #wario allies #mod chikako

[sharkbitesteve]

An early megatooth shark ambushes a young archaeocete whale over seagrass meadows. Late Eocene/ early Oligocene

The idea for this came from reading about the evolution of mega tooth sharks and how they developed serrated teeth. This seemed to coincide with the appearance of large marine mammals like Basilosaurus and the archaeoceti, suggesting they had begun to prey on these early whales.

I endeavoured to give the shark a more 'sawn-off' appearance, without the long, conical snout of a great white.

A3 mixed media on colour paper

#steve white art #art #traditional art #paleoart #traditional drawing #shark #marine art #megalodon #whales

[otussketching]

Fossil Novembirb: Day 4 - Megafowl

Gastornis, affectionally known as the Megafowl, was one of the largest, and certainly one of the most famous, birds of the Early Cenozoic. It stood two metres tall, and had a diet of mostly fruit, seeds and nuts. And that impressibe beak certainly help it crack nuts. These giants lived all over the Northern Hemisphere, as their bones have been found in North America, Europe and Asia. Even close to the North Pole! And contrary to popular belief, Gastornis did not die out as mammals grew to larger sizes. They lived with all sorts of large carnivorous and herbivorous mammals from the Paleocene to the Eocene, and got along with them just fine. And while it did not eat early horses, they might have been wise to stay clear of these mega fowl.

All this put together, it's no wonder Gastornis (also known for its former name Diatryma), a giant flightless herbivorous relative of ducks, got its own day.

#Fossil Novembirb #Novembirb #Dinovember #birblr #palaeoblr #Birds #Dinosaurs #Cenozoic Birds #Gastornis #Megafowl

[savage-kult-of-gorthaur]

MAMMALS AS BIG AS HOUSES -- THESE DAYS WILL NEVER COME AGAIN.

PIC(S) INFO: Spotlight on a series of prehistoric creature illustrations demonstrating the evolution of mammals through the ages. More fact than fiction, these wild characters followed transitional Jurassic period animals that sported mammalian skull traits and reptilian teeth. A more familiar design, humans, mark the present. Artwork by Kennis and Kennis.

Didn't know which one I liked best, so, here's both of 'em. I just wish the resolution on either one was better than what they are: 1075x512 and 1024x475.

Source: www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/rise-mammals.

#Mammals #Megafauna #Prehistory #Prehistoric Beasts #Prehistoric Animals #Prehistoric Creatures #Ground Sloth #Mega Mammals #Kennis and Kennis #History of Mammals #Ancient Animals #National Geographic #Pleistocene Era #Rise of Mammals #Prehistoric Elephants #Mammalian #Pleistocene #Prehistoric #Prehistoric Mega Mammals #Animals #Pleistocene Epoch #Pleistocene Mammals

[kdinjenzen]

so we all know wolves are mammals and the implications of that BUT: when do mega milkers become ultra udders and when does awooo become amooo?

When they become Moommaries.

Or if I ever get told to wear a cow outfit during a subathon as a goal.

[cypherdecypher]

Animal of the Day!

Japanese Macaque (Macaca fuscata)

(Photo from iStock)

Conservation Status- Least Concern

Habitat- Japan excluding Hokkaido

Size (Weight/Length)- 11 kg; 82 cm 

Diet- Leaves; Seeds; Fruits; Small mammals

Cool Facts- The Japanese macaque might be the most northern living primate, but their winters are spent living like kings. Living in female-run societies, Japanese macaques pass down their status to their offspring. Spending their days grooming, chatting, and babysitting, these primates spend the majority of their lives on the ground outside of feeding. During harsh winters, Japanese macaques form mega groups around hot springs. The macaques rarely leave the warm water and only do so to grab a quick snack. Younger macaques have been seen rolling snowballs and playing in snow.

Rating- 11/10 (Snow monkeys.)

#Animal of the day #Animals #Monkey #Primate #Macaque #Monday #January 23 #Japanese macaque #Snow monkey #biology #science #conservation #the more you know

[becausegoodheroesdeservekidneys]

I saw in the news recently there was a walrus in Norway known as Freya that had been sunning on/sinking boats - is this the same walrus as the Welsh walrus you reported on?

She was not - Wally was a male (and WHAT a male), whereas Freya was female. They both have recognisable scars, so you can spot the difference.

I have very mixed feelings on what's happened with Freya, actually. I do think the decision to euthanise was taken too quickly, given that they hadn't tried a whole bunch of things they could have done - there was nothing done to keep the crowds away from her, no fines were ever issued to people who literally walked up to her with their kids to take photos. Controlling the human population really should have been the first port of call. But, with that said, a lot of people are saying she should have been relocated - that's not actually a solution, wild marine mammals die all the time when we try relocating them. Plus, you actually can't sedate them. Shoot a walrus with a dart gun, and in the seconds it takes for the sedative to kick in, 1,300 pounds of oceanic cow zipped into a sleeping bag has dropped off the boat it was resting on and swum out to deeper waters to get away, at which point they fall asleep and drown. Relocations have to be done on a conscious walrus, at which point stress kicks in and SOMEONE is going to end up with broken bones and a lung full of brine.

Stena the walrus didn't survive relocation, in fact. That's a recent example. What we have, in fact, is three walruses in the same graduating class, as it were - Stena, Freya and Wally. One relocated, one euthanised, one guarded and given a pontoon and a life coach. Only one of those had a happy ending and a walrus returned to the Arctic. I would like to see more northern European authorities examine those three and see what lessons can be learned, because we're going to start seeing more of this thanks to climate change.

Or, alternatively, northern European authorities can read my personal blog and the thoughts of me, a very important walrus journalist, because here's the big difference:

Wally landed in Wales, and we protected him.

FROM OURSELVES, as well as others. When Wally reached the first Pembrokeshire beach and was spotted by his first environmentalist, his location was kept secret so no one would bother him. When he moved into Tenby for a month and a half, two local women, a mother-and-daughter duo called Linda and Amy Compton who volunteer with Welsh Marine Life Rescue, set up a whole guard line and spent all day every day policing the crowds. Amy even recruited new volunteers to help. We fined people who got too close, by boat or by swimming included. We threatened people with violating the Wildlife and Countryside Act. We made damn sure that walrus was left the fuck alone.

He nearly got lynched on the Isles of Scilly, after he left Wales - so, they built him his own floating pontoon so he'd leave the rich boats alone. They got in a life coach, who helped the locals respect Wally's feelings. They went to a nearby zoo and got several gallons of polar bear piss and sprayed it about to deter his boating exploits.

And it meant that, eventually, he went home by himself, and no one was injured. Meanwhile, Freya spent her last days mega stressed because people were walking right up to her and even throwing things at her. She chased a woman into the sea. Shit got real.

Poor thing. In any case, Wally had his happy ending at least.

#animal abuse #animalia #why yes wally is a meme now

[bethanythebogwitch]

Let’s turn up the heat because I’m going over the real-life inspirations for all the fire-type starter Pokémon. Here are the links for when I covered the inspirations for all grass starters, all fish, and all non-fish aquatic Pokémon.

Gen I gives us quite possibly the most iconic starter line: the Charmander line. Interviews with the design team have revealed that Charizard was the first of the line to be designed and the other two were designed by working backwards from it. Both Charmander’s English and Japanese name (Hitokage) reference the mythical salamander of European folklore. Salamanders have been associated with fire in multiple cultural folklores throughout Europe, often to the point where their depictions have nothing to do with the actual amphibians. Interestingly, the oldest accounts that associate salamanders with fire comes from Pliny the Elder, who repeated an account their bodies were so cold they could extinguish fires. Somewhere along the line of legends being passed down, salamanders got flipped from repelling fire to living in it, possibly as a result of getting conflated with other mythical reptilians like dragons or basilisks. In the renaissance, the alchemist Paracelsus described salamanders as fire elementals, along with a group of other elemental beings (gnomes for earth, sylphs of air, and undines of water).

(image: an artistic depiction of a fiery salamander. Art by Michael Maier)

In addition to salamanders, Charmander and Charmeleon are given the upright poses and dragging tails of outdated reconstructions of theropod dinosaurs. Charizard is a classic depiction of a western dragon: a winged reptile that breathes fire. Western dragons are based heavily on lizards, with some of the earliest depictions being a dead ringer for monitor lizards. Charizard is said to love fighting, which is reminiscent of how western dragons have been depicted as dangerous, destructive, and even demonic monsters. It is only relatively recently that western dragons have been depicted as anything but evil. Charizard doesn’t have the dragon type (unless it mega evolves to X form), but that’s more because back in gen I, dragon was intended to be the special type exclusive to the late-game powerhouses that are the Dratini line. Charizards mega evolutions and gigantamax form don’t really add much to the origin, they’re just exaggerations of Charizard.

(image: art of a western dragon by Friedrich Justin Bertuch)

Cyndaquil is based on an echidna, an Australian monotreme (egg-laying mammal) that has a long snout and quills like a porcupine.

(image: a long-beaked echidna. I don't know why, but its snout makes me very uncomfortable)

Despite being an echidna, its species name is the Fire Mouse Pokémon. This is actually a hint to an additional inspiration for its origin. The Japanese word that got translated to “Fire Mouse” is “Hinezumi”. This is the Japanese name for a monster originating in Chinese legend called the “huǒshǔ”. It’s a flaming mouse that lives in volcanoes. The flaming mammal and volcano association continues through the line. Also, when I googled “hinezumi” the first thing that popped up was the Monster Girl Encyclopedia. If you know, you know (don’t google it). Quilava and Typhlosion completely drop the echidna inspiration, which is a bit disappointing to me. That’s why I made regional variants of them for my Australia/New Zealand fakemon region where they stay as echidnas. While being based on badgers, they retain the quills that are found in many animals, most famously porcupines and hedgehogs. Hisuian Typhlosion is based on Kamuy-huci, the Ainu goddess of the hearth. The Ainu are the indigenous people of Hokkaido, the island that inspired Sinnoh and Hisui. There are multiple Ainu references in Hisui’s design, plot, and regional variants. In the Ainu religion, the hearth was the connection between Earth and the world of spirits and was therefore never allowed to go out. It could also be used to communicate with the kamuy (gods and spirits) and was the passage through which the souls of the dead would leave the world and eventually return for reincarnation. This is why Hisuian Typhlosion is part ghost-type. The fire around H Typhlosion’s neck looks like magatama beads, which are used in the spiritual practices of multiple belief systems. These flames can release 108 ghost lights. 108 is an important number in Buddhism and is the number of beads in a Japamala, another type of beaded necklace used for spiritual practices in (among other religions) certain types of Buddhism.

(image: a japamala with wood beads)

The Torchic line is, I suspect, the place where the trend of basing fire starters on Chinese zodiac animals started. Typhlosion really doesn’t fit the zodiac, though some people say it’s supposed to be the mouse. The line is based on chickens. More specifically, they are based on the basan, a legendary fire-breathing chicken.

(image: art of a basan by Takehara Shunsen)

Torchic is a chick, a hatchling chicken. It being bright orange comes from a tradition of dying chicks bright colors to be sold at festivals. Male Torchics have a tiny black spot on their rear ends that females don’t. This is probably based on vent sexing, a technique for determining the sex of chocks, a notoriously difficult task. It is done by examining the cloaca, looking for a bump that usually only males have. Combusken and Blaziken are based on cockfighting, a form of animal abuse where people force chickens to fight and bet on the winners. The official art for Blaziken’s normal and mega evolved forms have it in poses used in the martial art of Muay Thai. Blaziken is usually depicted as fighting primarily with kicks and Muay Thai emphasizes kicking. Blaziken being an humanoid with a bird head may also reference the bird-headed Egyptian gods Horus and Ra, or off of the karura, a diving being that looks like a human with a bird’s head in Japanese mythology.

(image: a statue of a karura)

The Chimchar line are based on the monkey from the zodiac. Chimchar’s species name is the Chimp Pokémon, and it does bare some resemblance to a young chimpanzee. When Chimchar’s flame goes out, you can see prominent red marking on its butt. Several monkey species have marking on their hindquarters, but the most famous by far is the baboon. Chimchar’s lack of a tail identifies it as an ape, but its evolved from gain tails, making them monkeys. A lot of people think that apes are separate from monkeys, but really apes are a subset of old-world monkeys. Apes are monkeys, you are an ape, therefore you are a monkey and that’s nothing to be ashamed of. Monferno and Infernape both have prominent facial markings heavily reminiscent of those of mandrills.

(image: a male mandrill's face)

Monferno having blue facial marking and orange fur also makes it look like a golden snub-nosed monkey.

(Image: a golden snub-nosed monkey's face)

These are native to China and the line does have some heavy Chinese influence. The martial art that Monferno and Infernape use is most likely Monkey Kung Fu or Hóu Quán, which was inspired by the movements of monkeys. Infernape is based on the character of Son Goku, the Japanese name for the character Sun Wukong from the Chinese epic novel Journey to the West. Sun Wukong is the king of all monkeys, a martial artist, and has several magic powers.

(image: Japanse art of Son Goku/Sun Wukong. Art by Shunman Kubo)

Sun Wukong may be based on the older Hindu god Hanuman, a monkey-like god associated with strength and heroism who was also a member of the varana, a species of monkey people.

(image: a sculpture of Hanuman)

The Tepig line are based on the boar of the zodiac. Ken Sugimori said that the Unova starters were based on different cultures to reflect Unova being a very diverse place. The Tepig line were given Chinese design elements whole the Snivy line were “western” and the Oshawott line were Japanese. Tepig having a dark marking on its head and rear but being light everywhere else comes from the markings of the British Saddleback pig breed.

(image: a British saddleback pig)

The fire and pig combination references how pigs are bad at regulating their body head and need to use external sources like mud to cool off. Pignite takes on more boar traits with its exposed tusks. The markings on its body look like it is dressed in a wrestling singlet, which fits as both Pignite and Emboar are based on wrestlers. The yellow markings on Pignite and Emboar resemble patters found in ancient Chinese cauldrons called dings.

(image: a ding)

Ken Sugimori also stated Emboar was inspired by the character Zhang Fei in the Chinese novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. In the story, Zhang Fei is betrayed and decapitated by his own men. This could be the purpose of the fire scarf Emboar has, to separate its head from its body. Pignte and Emboar also draw from another Chinese story, the afore-mentioned Journey to the West, specifically the character of Zhu Baije. Zhu Baije is a pig man who joins the titular journey. He is also jealous of Sun Wukong, which kind of fits with how Emboar is a much worse Pokémon than Infernape.

(image: an artists depiction of Zhu Baije. Unknown artist)

The Fennekin like take the place of the fox in the zodiac. Design-wise, their large ears mark them as being based on fennec foxes. They are also based off of the kitsune, magical foxes in Japanese mythology. Among the many powers attributed to kitsune were the ability to breathe fire and perform magic. Kitsune could also take on the form of human women, which is referenced in Fennekin’s evolutions becoming humanoid and having feminine designs.

(image: art of a Kitsune scaring two people by Utagawa Kuniyoshi)

Human could also learn magic form foxes, becoming  fox witches or kitsune-mochi/kitsune-tsukai. Braixen and Delphox take quite a bit of their design from these fox witches, they also draw from the classic wester witch, using magic wands and Braixen having a tail that looks like the head of a flying broomstick. The association of witches with fire might be a reference to witch burnings. Delphox is also based on a prophet or seer, with its ability to see the future. Delphox’s English name directly references the ancient Greek oracle at Delphi. The final forms of the Kalos starters are based on the fantasy character archetypes of the fighter, the mage, and the thief. Delphox is very much the mage.

Litten is a black cat with tabby cat features. Tabby cats are defined by the stripes on their faces and legs. The orange and black stripes also identify it as the tiger from the zodiac. Its eyes plus forehead stripes are a dead ringer for the alchemical symbol for brimstone, another name for sulfur. Sulfur is a highly flammable element, fitting the fire type. This is one of several references to alchemy found in gen VII.

(image: the alchemical symbol for brimstone. two horizontal lines crossed by a vertical line that leads down into an infinity symbol)

Torracat doesn’t change much from Litten, just adding more stripes and a fireball that looks like a bell on a cat’s collar. It does change when it evolves to Incineroar, and not for the better. Incineroar is my least favorite final stage starter and easily in my top 10 most hated Pokémon. I could go on for a while about how much I hate it, but this isn’t the post for that. It’s still a tiger, but now it has been combined with a professional wrestler. You can tell they really wanted to do another fire/fighting type but knew there would be backlash. The belt of fire is based on a championship belt and its dark type comes from being a heel. In wrestling language, a heel is a villainous character, someone the audience is supposed to boo (a face is a heroic character). This fits with Incineroar being describes as a violent and egotistical Pokémon. However, Incineroar does have a soft side. This fits with how wrestlers are performers playing characters. A performer playing a heel character may cheat, lie, steal, and generally be an asshole while in character, but when not in character they probably won’t be nearly as unpleasant a person.

Scorbunny is the rabbit of the zodiac. More specifically, it is a white rabbit and like with real rabbits, its feet are considered good luck charms. The yellow patch on its face comes from a Japanese character design trope where a bandage over the nose is supposed to indicate that the character is tough and rambunctious. Maylene from the Sinnoh games shares this design element. Its fire typing could come from the Jataka tales, a collection of Buddhist stories from India. In tale 316, a rabbit is placed in a fire as a burnt offering, but it is unharmed by the flame. Another connection could come from the fact that rabbits have unusually high body temperatures for mammals. If Scorbunny is cheerful child, Raboot is a moody teenager. It’s fur and the stripe on its head look like a tracksuit and headband, giving it a connection to athletics. This continues with Cinderace, who is now an association football (or soccer to Americans) player. Football is a huge deal in England, the basis for Galar. Its fur looks like athlete’s attire and it uses a flaming berry like a football. This is another one where you can tell they wanted to make another fire/fighting type.

The Fuecoco line ditched the zodiac theme to become a crocodile. Its upright posture makes it look like a chibified theropod dinosaur and its silhouette looks like a chili pepper. The white face of both Fuecoco and Crocalor resembles a calavera, skull imagery used in the Mexican Day of the Dead. This is a Mexican holiday which is a celebration of dead loved ones that is typically very spirited and cheerful as opposed to glum and mournful. Folklore says the ghost will return to the world of the living on the Day of the Dead. While Paldea is based on Spain and Portugal, several of the new Pokémon have designs based on elements from central and south America, possibly because of both countries’ history of colonialism in those areas. Crocalor adds several references to mariachi players. The flaming nest and egg on its head is a sombrero while the markings on its abdomen look like a traje cordobés, a type of vest often used in mariachi.

(image: a mariachi band wearing wests and sombreros)

The hat combined with the calavera face makes it look like La Calavera Catrina, a skeleton wearing a wide-brimmed hat that is used as a common symbol in the Day of the Dead.

(image: art of La Calavera Catriana by José Guadalupe Posado)

It could also be a bouquet of Tagetes erects, the Mexican marigold, a flow also used for the Day of the Dead. Skeledirge continues the mariachi and Day of the Dead theme by becoming an undead singing crocodile. Real crocodiles will vocalize during mating and nesting season. There are several stories of ghostly or monstrous crocodiles in Spanish folklore, such as the Cocollona and the Drac de Na Coca, the latter of which is displayed as a taxidermied specimen in a museum in the city of Palma de Mallorca. There is also the Coco or Cuca, a boogieman-like that originated in Spain and Portugal and spread to the Americas that is often depicted as a monstrous crocodile. All three of the Paldea starters are based on entertainers and Skeledirge is based on a singer. Given its typing and English name, it probably single funeral dirges. The fiery bird on its nose could come from the gharial, another type of crocodilian. Male gharials have large bumps on the tips of their snouts in the same spot the bird sits.

(image: a male gharial)

Another, possibly more likely source is the Egyptian plover, a bird that will land on top of Nile crocodiles and eat parasites off of their skin. Skeledirge could also be based off of alebrijes, very colorful statues of mythical creatures in Mexican folk art. This is making me think about how cool a Mexico-based region could be.

#pokemon #pokemon origins #pokemon lore #fire type #fire starter #charmander #cyndaquil #torchic #chimchar #tepig #fennekin #litten #scorbunny #fuecoco #charizard #typhlosion #hisuian typhlosion #blaziken #infernape #emboar #delphox #incineroar #cinderace #skeledirge