A praying mantis (photo Dan Ferrin) inspired the menacing-looking Scyther.

The mobile game Pokémon Become made a big touch on on us at Highbanks last year. We had approximately 400,000 additional visitors to the park compared to 2015, and a big part of that increase was people coming to Highbanks in order to play the game. Visitors arrived at Highbanks from all over Ohio, and some even made trips from Indiana, Michigan, and Illinois so they could take hold of the rare Charmanders, which nosotros had in affluence. While nosotros were happy to come across so many new faces, nosotros hoped that they would occasionally look up from their phones and enjoy the natural wonders surrounding them.

In order to engage these new visitors, we naturalists attempted to brand connections between the game'southward creatures and the existent animals that inspired them. Equally we learned well-nigh the game, we passed our knowledge on to the players, helping them to connect to the natural history of Ohio and the rest of the globe. Though they may seem otherworldly, many Pokémon are based on existent animals or plants.

Bulbasaur

A snapping turtle bearing a growth of algae (photo Adam Brandemihl) is one of nature'due south rare connections to the strange Pokémon, Bulbasaur.

Number one on the listing of all Pokémon discovered and so far, Bulbasaur is a combination of found and brute. Information technology appears to be some sort of frog with a budding leaf attached to its dorsum. As it evolves, the fauna becomes more fearsome and the found blooms into an enormous flower in its final form.

In nature, though, this sort of relationship between plant and animal is very rare. Think near what a found needs to survive: water, sunlight, and soil. Virtually animals can't supply all of these things to a plant that happens to sprout on its back. In add-on, few animals volition tolerate a constitute's roots earthworks into its peel.

Nonetheless, in that location are a few examples of this sort of scenario existing on Earth. Algae, which are technically non plants but practice perform photosynthesis, are found on some tiresome-moving animals that live in moisture or boiling environments, similar turtles and sloths. Algae accept also been institute living within the cells of spotted salamanders, the only known example of such a relationship.

In order to detect an actual constitute growing on an fauna, you must expect very closely at some very pocket-sized animals. In certain rainforests in Africa and southeast Asia, atmospheric condition are so humid that mosses seemingly grow on every surface. They have fifty-fifty been plant growing on the backs of weevils (a type of protrude with a snout), and on the shells of living snails. Since mosses absorb water and nutrients through their leaves, their primitive roots do not harm the creature. The moss has a place to grow, and the animal gains some convincing camouflage. Within the moss, tiny mites take been found, which could exist the method by which the plants are transported to new animal hosts. Check out a fantastic example of this phenomenon on Flickr

Charmander

Charmander, as its proper name suggests, owes much of its origin to the salamander. However, information technology does not share many traits with the existent salamanders you lot can observe in the local forests and vernal pools. Rather, it bears the most resemblance to the mythological salamander, a cadger known to inhabit flames and extract energy from them. Several famous naturalists, including Aristotle, Pliny the Elder, and Leonardo da Vinci, were convinced that salamanders were furry (or scaly), oestrus-loving creatures that could impale thousands of people by swimming in their drinking water. This was apparently back when being a naturalist meant that yous made up stuff about animals you had never seen and everybody believed you.

Salamanders, like this cerise-eft at Articulate Creek (photo Andrew Boose) inspired the Pokémon with a flaming tail, Charmander.

Existent salamanders are shine, moisture-craving amphibians that cannot survive in dry environments. Their thin pare offers no protection from fire. Near of them are poisonous, merely only a few produce strong enough toxins to impairment a human. Fifty-fifty so, you would accept to eat ane for it to cause any permanent damage. Several species in Ohio, like the spotted salamander and tiger salamander, are brightly colored, alert predators of their distastefulness. One, the crimson eft phase of the red-spotted newt, looks just like a tiny Charmander, minus the flaming tail. This species produces tetrodotoxin, the same poison found in pufferfish, blueish-ringed octopus, and other highly toxic animals. You will often see red-spotted newts living happily aslope predatory fish like bluegill and largemouth bass, since the fish know to go out the poisonous amphibians lone.

Squirtle

Aquatic turtles, like this one in an Ohio quarry (photo Mark Thomas) inspired Squirtle.

Squirtle is clearly based on an aquatic turtle, though there don't seem to be any in nature that are really blue. There are several species of aquatic turtle constitute in your Metro Parks, including ruby-red-eared sliders, painted turtles, spiny softshells, and common snapping turtles. Though these turtles are able to survive on land, they spend near of their fourth dimension in and effectually water, only wandering away in order to find nesting sites. Being ectothermic (cold-blooded), they acquire most of their free energy from the estrus of the sun, and then are less active in winter. When temperatures drop in the fall, turtles will swim to the bottom of a pond or river and spend the winter under the ice. You tin sometimes see them swimming effectually even when the ice covers the surface. The cold water slows their energy consumption and their oxygen needs are profoundly reduced. They have several methods of staying alive under ice, only once the h2o warms up, they must have admission to the surface or they volition drown.

Squirtle's evolution, Wartortle, looks similar to its predecessor, but with the addition of two long ears and an extended tail. This creature takes oxygen with it underwater, equally its ears and tail are covered in very curt fur. The fur catches a thin layer of air, which forms a chimera, then the Pokémon can breathe while underwater. Though no real turtles take fur, there are many aquatic invertebrates that use this method as a sort of SCUBA tank. Diving beetles, water scavenger beetles, water spiders, h2o boatmen, backswimmers, and others all apply this method. They eventually do go back to the surface for more air, but they are able to stay underwater much longer than they would without their "bubble-lung."

Pikachu
No word about Pokémon is complete without mentioning Pikachu, the most famous of all the "pocket monsters." This yellow critter is and so recognizable, a balloon version of it has appeared in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade since 2001. It has a vaguely rabbit-similar appearance, merely has a lightning-shaped tail to betoken its electric powers.

A rabbit (photo Adrianne Stuart) inspired the look of the nearly famous pocket monster, Pikachu, simply not its electrical powers.

The pika, a mammal in the same group as rabbits, bears a superficial resemblance to Pikachu, though the connection appears to be coincidental; in Japanese, pikapika means "sparkle," and chuchu is the sound of squeaking. There are many species of pika (pronounced "PY-kuh") throughout the northern hemisphere. They are all small, rabbit-like creatures with curt ears. They do not control electricity.

A few animals tin can, though. The about well-known of these is the electrical eel, but there are also electric rays and electric catfish. These fish tin can use electrical pulses to both stun prey and impede predators. They use special organs called electrocytes, which are similar in form to an electric battery, to create the charge. Electric eels tin produce upwards to 860 volts in brusk bursts, which is non enough to impale an adult human being, merely has been likened to the daze of a stun gun. You wouldn't exist able to see the electricity in the class of a lightning bolt, but y'all would definitely feel it.

… And All The Rest

The Pokémon Tauros was inspired by bison, such as those at Battelle Darby Creek. (photo Tina Copeland)

To date, there are 802 Pokémon, and many of those are inspired by existent animals and plants. If yous relish playing Pokémon Become, I encourage you lot to keep an heart out for some of Ohio's living creatures as y'all search for Pokémon in the parks. As the weather warms upward, y'all may observe a snail with some algae on its trounce, or a salamander in a vernal pool. Look in the river and you could see a turtle sunning itself or a beetle with a shiny bubble on its belly. Lookout for stag beetles and mantises, the models for Pinsir and Scyther, or go to Battelle Darby Creek to see the American bison, the inspiration for Tauros. Real versions of Venomoth, Caterpie, Paras, and Poliwag tin be plant at all of your Metro Parks, if you take the time to expect. Only remember, if yous Gotta Take hold of 'em All, please put them back where yous plant them.

CRAIG BIEGLER
Highbanks Naturalist