Caterpie
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Caterpie | |
|---|---|
 National Blastoise - Caterpie (#010) - Metapod Johto Raichu - Caterpie (#024) - Metapod |
|
| Japanese name | Caterpie |
| Stage | Basic |
| Evolves from | None |
| Evolves to | Metapod |
| Generation | First |
| Species | Worm Pokémon |
| Type | Bug |
| Height | 1 ft (0.3 m) |
| Weight | 6.4 lb (2.9 kg) |
| Ability | Shield Dust |
Caterpie (キャタピー Kyatapī?) are one of the 493 fictional species of Pokémon creatures from the multi-billion-dollar[1] Pokémon media franchise – a collection of video games, anime, manga, books, trading cards and other media created by Satoshi Tajiri. The purpose of Caterpie in the games, anime and manga, as with all other Pokémon, is to battle both wild Pokémon, untamed creatures encountered while the player passes through various environments, and tamed Pokémon owned by Pokémon trainers.[2]
Caterpie’s name is derived from the word caterpillar.[3] “Kyatapī” is how the Katakana is pronounced.
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[edit] Characteristics
Caterpie is a relatively weak Pokémon, but like many real caterpillars it employs biological adaptations to help it survive. Its green coloring allows it to hide easily in foliage, and the eye patterns on its head serve to scare away predators. That failing, it can release a sticky liquid from feeler on its head, as those foolish enough to touch this antenna learn the hard way.
Its short feet end in suction cups that allow it to easily climb on any surface, no matter how steep. It uses these to climb trees and satisfy its voracious appetite, even feeding on leaves larger than its own body! When it has eaten enough to fuel its growth, it sheds its skin, covers itself in silk, and becomes a Cocoon Pokémon, Metapod. The design of Caterpie closely parallels the appearance of the Tersa Sphinx caterpillar, as well as the Spicebush Swallowtail caterpillar.
Caterpie serves as the main prey of Pidgey, Spearow, and Taillow.
[edit] In the Pokémon video games
Caterpie is one of the first few Pokémon found in several Pokémon video games, and, just as real caterpillars are the fastest-growing animals in our world, caterpillar-like Pokémon evolve into their secondary and final forms faster than any others. For this reason, Caterpie is a good Pokémon to catch and evolve early on, since its final form Butterfree is has fairly good stats and a nice variety of moves.
Among other locations, Caterpie are found in the Viridian Forest in Kanto, and in the Ilex Forest in Johto.
As a Bug-type, Caterpie is vulnerable to Fire-, Flying- and Rock-types and is resistant to Grass-, Ground- and Fighting-types. In Pokémon Red and Blue, it was vulnerable to Poison-types.
[edit] In the Pokémon anime
In the anime, Caterpie was the very first Pokémon Ash Ketchum captured - probably through beginner’s (dumb) luck, as he didn’t even bother to weaken it in battle first. He soon sent it out in an attempt to capture a Pidgeotto, but it was badly beaten because of its type disadvantage. Later, despite its weakened state, it helped Ash to defeat Team Rocket using String Shot, and evolved into a Metapod - faster than any known specimen, according to Dexter (the A.I. of Ash’s Pokédex).
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[edit] In other media
In the Pokémon: The Electric Tale of Pikachu! manga, which (very) loosely parallels the storyline of the anime, Ash caught a Caterpie when it let its guard down. After battling Brock, they were having lunch with Misty (during which Pidgeotto eyed Caterpie hungrily), and it evolved into Metapod. In Pokémon Adventures, a Caterpie was the first Pokémon that Yellow captured on her own (albeit with instruction from Blue). At first, she had no idea how she was supposed to go about capturing it, since she hates to use Pokémon for battle, but she prevailed in the end and nicknamed it Kitty. As with all her Pokémon, she became close to Kitty, considering it her friend, and was reluctant to let it evolve.
Caterpie has not had a particularly extensive career in the Pokémon Trading Card Game, appearing only in the Base Set (and Base Set 2 plus the Legendary Collection), Neo Discovery, Expedition, and EX FireRed & LeafGreen.
[edit] References
- The following games and their instruction manuals: Pokémon Red, Green, and Blue; Pokémon Yellow; Pokémon Stadium and Pokémon Stadium 2; Pokémon Gold, Silver, and Crystal; Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald; Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen; Pokémon Colosseum and Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness
- Publications
- Barbo, Maria. The Official Pokémon Handbook. Scholastic Publishing, 1999. ISBN 0-439-15404-9.
- Loe, Casey, ed. Pokémon Special Pikachu Edition Official Perfect Guide. Sunnydale, CA: Empire 21 Publishing, 1999. ISBN 1-930206-15-1.
- Nintendo Power. Official Nintendo Pokémon FireRed Version & Pokémon LeafGreen Version Player’s Guide. Nintendo of America Inc., August 2004. ISBN 1-930206-50-X
- Mylonas, Eric. Pokémon Pokédex Collector’s Edition: Prima’s Official Pokémon Guide. Prima Games, September 21 2004. ISBN 0-7615-4761-4
- Manga volumes
- Ono, Toshihiro. Pokémon: The Electric Tale of Pikachu! Graphic Novel. VIZ Media LLC, September 9 1999. ISBN 1-56931-378-4
- Kusaka, Hidenori, & Mato. Pokémon Adventures, Volume 4: The Yellow Caballero: A Trainer in Yellow. VIZ Media LLC, January 9 2002. ISBN 1-56931-710-0
- Kusaka, Hidenori, & Mato. Pokémon Adventures, Volume 5: The Yellow Caballero: Making Waves. VIZ Media LLC, April 2002. ISBN 1-59116-027-8
- Kusaka, Hidenori, & Mato. Pokémon Adventures, Volume 7: The Yellow Caballero: The Pokémon Elite. VIZ Media LLC, January 2003. ISBN 1-56931-851-4
[edit] External links
- Official Pokémon website
- Bulbapedia (a Pokémon-centric Wiki)’s article about Caterpie as a species
- Serebii.net’s 4th Gen Pokédex entry for Caterpie
- Pokémon Dungeon Pokédex entry, full of statistics analysis
- PsyPoke Pokédex entry
- WikiKnowledge.net’s entry for Caterpie Previously hosted by Wikibooks
