Talk:Bulborb

Has anyone ever noticed how cute the bulborb's are? I mean look at those big o'll eyes, so please put yes or no votes in box below... Why won't anyone else anser!

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um, sure...

Only Red ones...

Hairy Bulborbs are SOOO cute, and Red Bulborbs are mildy cute.

Um.... Have you actually played Pikmin or Pikmin 2? The things will swallow your Pikmin without hesitation. They- never mind, bet this page is dead anyway...Pikdude 16:16, 5 January 2008 (UTC)

I,m not saying them eating the pikmin is cute, i'm saying that they look cute, got it! (and yes i,m a boy)Prof. 21:38, 8 March 2008 (UTC)

One of my fav beasts is the Hairy Bulborb. I also think the Red Bulborb is cute. And I am a boy too. IAMAHIPO_ocolor 23:56, 8 March 2008 (UTC)

I think hairy bulborb's are kinda squirrely.Prof. 21:59, 14 March 2008 (UTC)

If you ask me red bulborbs look O.k, Snow bulborbs are O.k to.But Orenge bulborbs are just ugly. The Hairy bulborbs just look like puffballs.

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Are we planning to keep the name thingy? I don't know what to do with it.--Prezintenden 10:03, 19 April 2008 (UTC)

Might be useful to have them on those with more cryptic names, but not in its own section - maybe mentioned in the opening sentence or two. And not unless it's absolutely undeniably true: however obvious it might seem that 'orb' is relevant, it's not fact; the 'red', of course, is.GP 10:41, 19 April 2008 (UTC)

Right, I'll remove this. It's fairly obvious.--Prezintenden 13:11, 19 April 2008 (UTC)

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if iney 1 well tell me y u delete my glicth and yet no other freaken tell me

...Because it hasn't already been said 4 times...GP 18:33, 12 June 2008 (UTC)

I left a message on your talk page. None of us have ever noticed this, so firstly we'd like to confirm that it's true, and once we do, it'll have to be written in a different style which doesn't use a first-person perspective, something similar to how it's written on the Shearwig page. —Jimbo Jambo

it olny happens for 2 or 1 rpwyb

Renaming?

So I noticed that starting from Pikmin 3, the Red Bulborb has been just called "Bulborb". It is written this way in the most recent smash games, and Hey! Pikmin. This is probably because it is known as the "normal" Bulborb. So maybe we should update the name of the article, and the Dwarf Red Bulborb article too? This seems to have happened before, like with the Armored Cannon Beetle Larva being shortened to the Armored Cannon Larva, and even this page itself has had a name change to the current "Red Bulborb". Although this name is more convenient and easier to classify, it technically is not the most recent/updated name. So I think we should change it to simply "Bulborb". There is already a disambiguation page for Bulborbs, so it might not be too confusing. However, the many times the name is mentioned in other articles will be inaccurate, which would make things more messy. I still think that we should do this, but I'm not quite sure if its necessary. - CrazyCow, Febuary 16 2019

I've thought of that too. I agree it should be renamed to "Bulborb"...even if that will generate a lot of confusion. However, we should wait until we get the next Pikmin game, which should be around the corner, given all the interviews, rumors, and what have you. If the next game calls it "Red Bulborb" again, then we'll be glad we haven't changed anything. If it, however, keeps the "Bulborb" name, then we might as well go all the way and standardize the name everywhere. — {Espyo^T} 16:35, 16 February 2019 (EST)

No. Because people will confuse this page with the page about it's family. Anyways Bulborb is a term that could be used for any type of Bulborb. -Green Shy Guy 54 11/25/2019. 5:20 PM

I think the name of the article should stay as "Red Bulborb" to differentiate it from other bulborbs. I'm fully aware that more recent games simply name them "Bulborb", but it's much too generic a name for my liking. The same logic, of course, also applies to dwarf red bulborbs and their breadbug brethren. Cheepy (talk) 00:36, February 23, 2020 (EST)

I think we should wait until the next Pikmin game. --Ben (talk) 08:29, March 25, 2020 (EDT)

Exactly Cheepy. That is like calling a Holstein cow a cow. – The preceding unsigned comment was added by Green Shy Guy 54 • (talk) • (contribs)

A prerelease Piklopedia screenshot.

I agree that the name should be changed. Now that Pikmin 3 Deluxe has been announced and we have a screenshot of the enemy's Piklopedia page, on which it is simply called 'Bulborb', it's safe to say that Bulborb is the official name now. I think that the name Red Bulborb should still continue to be used on articles on Pikmin 2, but this article should be renamed to Bulborb, just like what's happened to the other enemies with changed names between Pikmin 2 and Pikmin 3. There could be a clarification at the top of the article that links to Grub-dog family, to provide more general notes on Bulborbs. - Botanist (talk) 00:27, September 13, 2020 (EDT)

Agreed, though we should wait until the game releases. We shouldn't base ourselves off of unreleased content, and we don't even know if names will change between the US and European versions... Nintendo loves doing that. — {Espyo^T} 09:49, September 13, 2020 (EDT)

I disagree, it wouldn't be specific enough and cause confusion. We could make it so looking up Bulborb redirects you to the Red Bulborb Page. Green Shy Guy 54 (talk) 09:29, September 23, 2020 (EDT)

Bulbmin

This article should describe how Parasiticus pikminicus interacts with the creature. ChozoBoy 22:14, 31 August 2008 (UTC)

The details are unknown if it is most likely something like this: it probably has tiny ultra-sharp teeth and burrows through the creatures skin, then to control the Bulbmin, it impants itself or in this case its roots in the brain. Then discards its skin, putting its roots in the stomach for nourishment and "Control Roots" in the bones, and removing the marrow to make sure it has every aspect of the creature is under its all superior command! MUHAHAHAHAHAHA! Errrmmm... But what do I know...? I'm ~CrystalLucario~ And I approve this message.

0_o This isn't the bulbmin artical? Oh well... whatever... I'm ~CrystalLucario~ And I approve this message.

Yeah... I didn't mean that type of thing. Just the stuff we know: Mind-controlling Parasite, etc. and how it behaves differently as well as the extra size variations observed. Just thought it was odd that they weren't even mentioned here. ChozoBoy 22:46, 31 August 2008 (UTC)

Yeah I know... It just makes a little bug going and taking over a bigger bugs brain sound more interesting. Errr... Well go ahead and add it... I 'm ~CrystalLucario~ And I approve this message.

I'm generally a better editor than writer. I was hoping that someone else might feel that they were better qualified to add a new section. ChozoBoy 13:02, 1 September 2008 (UTC)

...Okay... I'm ~CrystalLucario~ And I approve this message.

Well, it's on Bulbmin. This is the Red Bulborb page; are you saying it should be added here too since it seems Red Bulborbs become Bulbmin when the parasite takes control of the body?GP 16:58, 1 September 2008 (UTC)

I think there should be a section. Maybe a paragraph. This page doesn't even seem to reference them. Also, I wouldn't say that they "become" Bulbmin, as that is not the way that a parasite is treated. The Bulborb is a host, and the Bulbmin integrates with it. ChozoBoy 18:47, 1 September 2008 (UTC)

I don't think you could write an entire paragraph about it. All that can really be said is that Bulbmin usually favor Bulborbs as hosts. —Jimbo Jambo

Yea, but i don't think we'll ever know. I am rocky0718 and i PWN

Like I said, behavior and size variations. ChozoBoy 19:56, 1 September 2008 (UTC)

How about: "The Dwarf Red Bulborb is the most favored/common form of an unknown color of parasetic Pikmin. I'm ~CrystalLucario~ And I approve this message.

Not Dwarfs, those are a different species. These are juevenille Red Bulborbs, which aren't seen in the game, otherwise. (This kind of leads me to speculate that Bulborbs may rely on Bulbmin to survive through infancy underground, but that obviously isn't something to be stated as a fact. It would be pretty ironic, though.) ChozoBoy 20:14, 1 September 2008 (UTC)

Ok I'll add it. I'm ~CrystalLucario~ And I approve this message.

I find it extremely unlikely that having a Bulbmin is part of the normal development of young Bulborbs, since Bulbmin seem to be the only ones to actually benefit from the relationship. We already know that Bulborbs do in fact live in packs, so I don't think the Bulborbs would in any way depend on Bulbmin to organize themselves in such a way. It's true that we never see juvenile Bulborbs, but Bulborbs are supposed to be nocturnal, so it's probably likely that they hide from other predators during the day, hence why we never see them sleeping out in the open like the adults. Besides, if we read Olimar's notes on Bulbmin, it says that the parasites spend their entire lives inside Bulborbs, and I can't imagine any reason why a Bulbmin would want to leave its host when it matures.

Also, why are we assuming that Bulbmin only take over young Bulborbs? Yeah, the bigger ones are smaller than the Bulborbs we usually find around, but I think it's pretty clear by the way young Bulbmin follow them that they're fully matured adults. Most likely its growth has been stunted by the parasite for any number of reasons.

Like I said, all I that I think is really worth mentioning on the Red Bulborb article is that Bulbmin favor them as hosts. The rest is either too speculative or better suited to the Bulbmin article. —Jimbo Jambo

You don't see an advantage to the Bulbmin? No parasite or disease is considered efficient if it is detremental to its host's existance (prior to reproduction). Bulborbs don't generally cooperate when hunting, they just seem to attack their prey/predators as they see it even if they are outnumbered or have assistance, Bulborb behavior is never displayed to vary aside from Bulbmin. These young Red Bulborbs seem like they would be the first thing to be eaten, without assistance, so it appears to be at their advantage to accept the parasite's will. This is a symbiotic relationship, not a dominating one. I apologize if that was a bit controversial to be including all of the developmental facts, I was just adding what I knew. I study biology and ecology a lot, and Bulborbs are a very dynamic group for a videogame species. 204.52.215.28 20:41, 2 September 2008 (UTC)

Blah, you edited your post as I was responding. As you pointed out, a parasitic relationship is by very definition not beneficial to the host. It's true that we never see Bulborbs hunt in packs, but remember that they are nocturnal, so most of that probably goes on behind the scenes during the night. Olimar's notes for the Empress Bulblax also say that Grub-dogs form packs in response to sudden changes in their environment. I would think that juvenile Bulborbs simply stay low during the day and hunt at night either with their parents or by themselves upon smaller animals; otherwise they would have to compete with the Dwarf Bulborbs for food. Also, I just don't really see how either creature would benefit from the Bulbmin dying when its hosts reached maturation, unless the adult body was somehow unsuitable for it, although this doesn't seem terribly likely since there aren't a lot of apparent differences between an adult Bulborb and on in its last stage of development. —Jimbo Jambo

I wonder what a Bulbmin would be like as a burrowing snarget. Or a Snargetmin with little baby Snargetmin. 0_o I'm ~CrystalLucario~ And I approve this message.

I was considering the same thing earlier, CL... Imagine more of these with other animals in the next game. It might be impractical game design, but it would be pretty neat.

About the Bulborbs, there are a number of ways that type of thing could work. And for what is helpful or detrimental about the relationship, you must remember that in nature, the only thing that is important for any species is to survive long enough to reproduce. Maybe the Pikmin becomes dormant or dies off after speading seeds, who knows? I'm not going to speculate on aspects of these creatures that I do not have any information about. I'm only commenting on what is available. ChozoBoy 23:08, 2 September 2008 (UTC)

Hey, Olimar's notes say that they do occasionally leech off of other creatures. Guess it wasn't to far out, after all. ChozoBoy 23:14, 2 September 2008 (UTC)

Indeed every life form's ultimate goal is to ensure the survival of its lineage, but the longer you live, the more offspring you can potentially have. Especially if you're a parasitic organism, you will want to reproduce more frequently than your host so you can evolve ways around any defenses they might evolve themselves. Then again, you're suggesting that Bulbmin have a symbiotic relationship with Bulborbs, in which case it Bulborbs would evolve no such defenses, and might even evolve ways to accommodate their parters better. Still though, if that were the case then it seems like Bulborbs would suffer from losing their partners upon reaching adulthood, and Bulbmin too, indirectly, because they would not be able to aide in the survival of their offspring. —Jimbo Jambo

Like I said, dozens of ways that such a system could function can be proposed. Salmon reproduce just one before they die and are a very successful species. We don't see parasites or diseases survive very long if they inhibit or kill the host in an impractical way (though, both can be done practically). This is why the Black Death (Yersenia pestis) isn't around anymore. We can't fully study the biology of these guys, but there are no observable harmful side-effects, aside from a general loss of bodily control, which is not as important to natural selection as we generally consider it. We'd probably survive better if we had our cars computer-controlled. :P ChozoBoy 12:01, 3 September 2008 (UTC)

Exactly my point, which is why it wouldn't make a ton of sense for Bulbmin, if in fact the relationship was beneficial to the Bulborbs as well, to suddenly die off once their hosts reached maturity, especially if their hosts had offspring more than once which they could potentially infect. I admit that a Bulbmin parasite might not be a huge detriment to the survival of a Bulborb - in fact, the better its host does, the better its parasite does - but I don't believe that carrying a Bulbmin is part of the natural development cycle of a Bulborb, or that Bulborbs depend on them to survive to adulthood. Cooperative behavior is not totally alien to Bulborbs, as Olimar's notes tell us that they are known to form packs when they need to, and even though cooperation has never been observed, we don't know what goes on when the sun sets when the Bulborbs are most active. We could look for some insight in the behavior of Bulborbs' diurnal relatives, Spotty Bulbears, but I don't really want to use that as definitive proof since they're clearly different animals and also compete with different creatures. —Jimbo Jambo

Many creatures, like spiders, die after reproducing. Olimar's notes also tell us that the Bulmin doesn't simply pass on to the offspring, so for the creature to remain there for the duration of the Bulborb's life is unecessary. I don't believe that the Bulbmin is a part of the life cycle, but with a decent amount of evidence for it, I wouldn't rule it out either. The article only lists the facts and does not suggest a conclusive answer. This is the same way that the color issue on the Bulbmin article was handled. ChozoBoy 15:12, 3 September 2008 (UTC)

Such creatures usually give birth to thousands independent offspring, so there's no need for the parent to stick around, especially if it would be competing with its children for food. I wasn't suggesting that the parasite was passed onto the offspring, but that the parasite would infect its hosts offspring with its own children, not just once, but as many more times as the host gave birth to new larvae. Also, if Bulborbs did in fact depend on Bulbmin for cooperative pack behavior, then it would seem like both animals have all the benefit to reap from a lifelong relationship, since the more successful its host is, the more successful the parasite/symbiont is. —Jimbo Jambo

If Bulborbs/Bulbmin died after ?laying eggs all the fully matured Bulborbs/Bulbmin would be male... interesting... I'm ~CrystalLucario~ And I approve this message.

Wha...? 76.116.90.5 20:34, 3 September 2008 (UTC)

Crystal's saying that if female Bulborbs died as soon as they gave birth, the only mature members of the species (at least the ones who have mated at least once before) would be male, unless the males died immediately after mating of course, but I think what Chozo is/was suggesting is that the Bulbmin parasite dies or disappears once the Bulborb host reaches maturity based on the apparent absence of mature Bulborbs carrying Bulbmin (I only say apparent because I still maintain that the guardian Bulbmin are in fact mature adults, despite their smallish size). —Jimbo Jambo

Adulthood is relative. There are a number of scientists that believe Megalodon is just an "adult" Great White, with a better environment. (Nowadays, they have more competitors and difficult prey, as well as humans killing off ALL of the largest ones.) On the other hand, an "adult" human is getting older recenty (last 1-200 years), with the lifespan going up. ChozoBoy 04:05, 4 September 2008 (UTC)

When I say adult Bulborb, I don't mean a Bulborb who is of the age of consent or has had a bar mitzva, I mean one which is sexually mature and able to reproduce (or has reproduced), or has finished developing for the most part. I was assuming that was what you meant too, though it might help if you clarified it a little. But either way, I don't see what either creature would gain from losing a relationship which was mutually beneficial. It seems more likely that a Bulborb would simply be stuck with its Bulbmin for life, whether it's a symbiont as you say or a parasite. —Jimbo Jambo

I did some reaserch yesterday. Two things. 1) It seems they avoid Whites? 2)And I looking at them have made a few guesses: The reason it eats Pikmin is they have the type of nutrients inside of them, needed for a Pikmin. Once hungered the Bulbmin errrr... "Relives" Its Animal Instinct for hunger which Pikmin don't normally have, and just goes eating. I'm ~CrystalLucario~ And I approve this message.

If reproduction is your definition, then yes, the large Bulbmin are adults. According to Olimar, at that stage, they are also considered "independent". ChozoBoy 18:42, 4 September 2008 (UTC)

Crystal, they avoid whites you say? I wonder if other creatures do too, sort of like how lots of things go after blue Pikmin.... Also, Pikmin do probably have nutrients which are vital or useful to the Bulbmin, them being Pikmin themselves and all (even if they could potentially get it from another source), but I can think of reasons why Bulbmin would hunt Pikmin which are even more simple. I mean, Pikmin are food, the Bulborb is hungry, and it has nothing to lose from eating them, plus it might be eliminating some of the competition by doing so.

Anyway Chozo, yeah.... Wait, what's your argument again? —Jimbo Jambo

During the same test with a normal Red Bulborb... It started to eat the whites almost right after the blues... I'm ~CrystalLucario~ And I approve this message.

Test it with something that doesn't gobble up mouthfuls of eight Pikmin at a time, like a Snagret or a few Dwarf Bulborbs. —Jimbo Jambo

Ok... I'm ~CrystalLucario~ And I approve this message.

I wonder if some enemies realy do ignore whites, I'll cunduct some tests later... 'Nin10dude'

Ok... I'm ~CrystalLucario~ And I approve this message.

I tried the expeariment on a groupe of dworf bulborbs, and they didn't seam to ignore the whites. In fact once the whites were the first to get gobbled up... but that could just be pure coincidence. Nin10dude

Myth: Plausible... :P I'm ~CrystalLucario~ And I approve this message.

I agree.Nin10dude

No you see, oh nevermind... I'll just go back to my sulking... I'm ~CrystalLucario~ And I approve this message.

Wait, there was a moment where you weren't sulking?--Prezintenden

No, wait... yes... uhh... errr... oh, nevermind... I'm ~CrystalLucario~ And I approve this message.

For the "all adult normal bulborbs are male" theory: I say that the empress bulblaxs are just bulborbs specialized in "makin' babehs" while the others are just male and female that are not specialized in it but still reproduce, with the possibility of all male, female or even no gender at all. but you still know what I mean?--Prof. 02:10, 29 January 2009 (UTC)

1 thing is for sure.I don't

...? \: Nin10dude

... ...? ... ...?! ... ...! ohhh! I think I get it now. NIN10dude

I mentioned that it wouldn't make sense for the Bulbmin to die after reproducing once if the Bulborb was able to reproduce multiple times, so Crystal suggested that female Bulborbs actually died after giving birth for the first time. Only from there did the logic that all adult Bulborbs were male come. —Jimbo Jambo 21:51, 12 February 2009 (UTC)

WARNING! A USER DELETED THIS PAGE! HE MAY GO ON OTHER VANDELISM STRIKES!-- the master --MewFan128 13:57, 27 June 2009 (UTC)

that was a year ago...and he got banned. it was sonic something Rpwyb

He did it again while everyone was offline and I was on!-- the master --MewFan128 01:18, 28 June 2009 (UTC)

DEH RED BULBORB IS TEH DARN EASIEST THING TO DEFEAT

I think that the Bulbmin host is a subspecies of the Red Bulborb. It has more spots and is noticeably smaller in its adult stage. --Itsa me! Louie G. 17:10, 4 June 2012 (EDT)

"Red" vs. "Spotty"

There seems to be some disagreement with calling Red Bulborbs "Spotty Bulborbs" in Pikmin 1 related articles and sections, so I'd like to clarify my (at least) position. Anyone searching for Pikmin 1 information is likely playing Pikmin 1 at that time, and thus themselves will know the creatures, as they are known in that game, as Spotty Bulborbs. The articles are written assuming the readers have never played Pikmin 2, so this is actually to avoid confusion for people who indeed have not. Both will link to the same article and never appear in the same section, so there's little chance of getting the two mixed up. —Jimbo Jambo 20:57, 15 October 2010 (EDT)

I agree. Vol (Talk)

Yeah, makes sense. GP

Uh, why did you remove my comment, Green? Vol (Talk)

...You see my second edit, where I doubled my comment up? That was meant to add yours back. I fail, I know. GP

Japanese name

The (common) Japanese name of these definitely does not "literally [translate] to 'spotted crimson bug-eye'" (they are called アカチャッピー, red Chappy, as the Japanese Pikmin 2 website confirms). I'm not sure what the Brawl trophy is referring to there; the scientific name in the Japanese version, maybe? Can someone research this and clarify it (at least in the trivia section, where this statement is referenced)?--Vellidragon (talk) 15:23, 28 July 2013 (EDT)