Pikmin extinction occurs when every single Pikmin, including those planted in the ground and stored in the Onions, is lost. The day ends immediately and the Onions each produce a single seed at the beginning of the following day.
In Pikmin 1, the following is Olimar's Journal entry on the first day extinction occurs:
- The Pikmin have all perished because of my own carelessness. I am an utter disgrace as a leader... How can I continue to collect parts without them? Still the Onions join me in low orbit, as if this Pikmin extinction had never happened. I shan't sleep tonight...
Many fans regard Extinction as being "childish", "careless" and even "cruel" due to the fact that after extinction, the player must regrow all of their armies from scratch.