Field Study on Nidoran

Common Name: Nidoran Female
Scientific Name: Pestillus Leporidae Infant

Common Name: Nidoran Male
Scientific Name: Pestillus Leporidae Infant


In this report, I will be focusing on the different sexes of Pestillus Leporidae. I would have loved to study the entire family; however, the evolved forms of these creatures are surprisingly vicious. Despite constant effort on my part and reluctance from my Pokémon counterparts, we were only able to safely study the youngest members.

Appearance

The Pestillus Leporidae are relatively small creatures that dwell in the grass. Similar to their powerless cousins of the Leporidae family, also known as rabbits, they walk on all fours. Dissimilar to their beloved and harmless alter egos, they have large claws and protruding horns growing out of their back, head, and ears.

These creatures may be one of the few Pokémon known to us that have such distinguishing traits between their genders, so much so that they have become categorized as separate Pokémon altogether. The changes are so obvious that I have not yet confused the gender of these Pokemon.

The female Nidoran is a dull, light blue. It is smaller than the male but has a more upward posture. It has spots across its flank that are a darker blue. Its ears are considerably smaller than the males and have two different shades of blue within them (or a blue and a green depending on your preference). The female also has four thick whiskers, two adorned on each side of its face.

The male Nidoran is a dark purple. It is slightly bigger than the female and has a more slouched posture; it appears as though its stomach is always touching the ground. It also has darker colored spots but they appear to be larger and more frequent on the male. The ears are longer than the females and have a single green color within them. The male has no whiskers but a single, longer horn sprouting from its forehead.

Habitat

Nidoran are thought to only live in forested areas and plains, but I have come to find out that they are surprisingly adaptable to a series of environments. Along with grasslands and forests, I have also come to find Nidoran in burrows in wetlands and even in deserts, living quite comfortably in their burrows.

It is easy for them to strive in places that can sustain them because their natural predators are so few. There are few Pokemon that are willing to risk the threat touching, let alone eating, their poisonous flesh. Other poisonous Pokemon, Snake-like Pokemon and Zangeese are a few I can name confidently that I know would attempt hunting Nidoran as they are either immune or used to poisonous effects.

Reproduction

We have all heard the jokes about rabbits and how they multiply faster than we can handle or imagine but Nidoran seem to be the exception. Nidoran are very specific about their mates and go through several trials in order to make sure that their mate is worthy. Similar to how birds go through courting rituals, Nidoran males must go through a series of tests in order to possibly woo a female.

First, a male must find a suitable place to make a burrow. This cannot be his own burrow. It also cannot be the burrow of another Nidoran chased away because the female will want the burrow to be fresh and without strong scents. Once he has found a preferred place, he must carefully dig into the ground and sculpt his burrow intricately. The more curves and turns there are in his route to the den, the more impressed the female will be.

If he has done this correctly and not has the burrow collapse in itself, he will have to exit his burrow and begin clearing out the area in front of the burrow. Fallen leaves, sticks and rocks must be taken away from the front in order to make everything look orderly. Once everything is clear, he is finished. Recently, I have noticed males leaving a few rocks and sticks here and there or purposefully ripping out flowers or berries and placing them in some kind of order outside of the burrow. This seems to be an offering or an example of the male's worth, as many more females visited burrows that had patterns made out in front of them compared to ones that were empty.

Once the home has been made, the male must gather patience and call loudly out in the air. Males have been seen doing this for hours at a time, stopping only to eat and drink before continuing once more. If the male isn't careful, he will be too weak for the female when she appears, ruining his chances.

If the male successfully attracts a female and the female accepts him, they will both fight each other and inject one another with their poison. Now, this may sound crazy, but the injection of poison seems to stimulate a gland located in both genders that affects their hypothalamus and releases adrenaline. This raises the possibility of the poison either, not taking effect or having little effect at all. After a few minutes, the Nidoran are satisfied that their mate is not weak and they go inside their burrow to, assumedly, mate.

A "weak" mate won't take too well to the poison and while they might not die from the injection, the other will be turned off by his/her weakness and leave. Males will do this even if they have waited weeks for the weakened female. The more failed injections of Nidoran poison a male or female gets, the stronger their tolerance, so it is rare to have an older Nidoran who has not found a mate if not once.

Behavior

Nidoran can be found in groups of 2 to up to 30 or more in a single warren. However, none of these Nidoran, male or female, are without partners. Nidoran are very competitive towards the same gender and having a mate-less Nidoran in a warren (series of burrows) would cause turmoil among the threatened competitors. That being said, new Nidoran are not accepted into a warren unless they have a partner and widowed Nidoran are faced with the threat of exile if they do not find a new mate.

Mate-less Nidoran usually do not settle down in a permanent burrow or warren unless they have a mate. Widowed Nidoran begin to become nomadic again in search of a mate and may return to the warren if they find a new mate in time.

Lifespan/Longevity

Nidoran are expected to live as they are for 12-18 years. The threat of persistent predators and the dangers of accidentally exposing itself to its own poison are very high and the control over such poison never gets stable. Such control does not happen until it evolves.

Communication and Perception

Nidoran are rather quiet creatures who usually only communicate through barks, murmurs and rubbing, as well as twitching of the nose and ears. I have yet to decipher what this means and I don't think I ever will. Excited Nidoran make a surprising amount of noise, especially when trying to scare away threats. It is a chilling sound…nothing short of a shriek.

Abilities

On contact with its body, Nidoran release poison from their horns and skin, causing poison to seep into their attacker's skin. This may take several hits for it to take effect, if it does at all, making contact with Nidoran only partly dangerous.

When in contact with the same gender, Nidoran release a hormone that causes a reaction similar to adrenaline, trying to force it at its physical peak. Originally this was supposed to help Nidoran win over the opposite sex, but over the years, the reaction began to happen in the presence not only other Nidoran but all Pokemon of the opposite sex. Trainers use this to their advantage to strategically gain the upper-hand in battles

Food Habits

Nidoran are strictly herbivorous. They eat mainly grass, low leaves and berries. In a group, they can graze for hours at a time, slowly trimming a part of a plain if they aren't interrupted. In more barren places, hardened Nidoran eat whatever plants they can find. Some Nidoran have become tolerant of the pain of cacti-thorns and seem to prefer the sting when presented with other, bare plants. These Nidoran have also been recorded to have sharper teeth than forest Nidoran, suggesting a switch in diet to survive the change in lifestyle.