We all know of the Seviper and Zangoose rivalry but are their any lesser known species of arch nemises? if not are their any species that tend to be symbiotic towards each other?

Actually, the answer is yes to both questions.

Regarding rivalry, there’s the classic “literally any canine pokémon versus literally any feline,” as well as “literally any feline pokémon versus literally any rodent.” Granted, few of these rivalries actually have any current truth to them. When it comes to canines and felines, that simply has roots in both of their social behaviors. Dog pokémon are highly social and expressive, and they display affection through non-combative play routines. They also have a tendency to chase after pokémon that are smaller than they are, either to hunt or to play-hunt, depending on whether or not the dogs in question are wild. On the other hand, feline pokémon are more reserved and play by sparring with one another, and they don’t take well to anything deemed as a threat, even if that threat is larger than them. Thus, a dog pokémon may attempt to chase after a cat pokémon, which in turn is interpreted as an act of aggression to the cat; alternatively, the cat pokémon may attempt to play in its own way with the dog, which results in the act being interpreted as aggression by the dog. Either way, these miscommunications are interpreted by humans as bitter rivalry, rather than as what they are (that is, an unfortunate crossing of perfectly natural behaviors).

As for felines and rodents, well. Considering the fact that feline pokémon eat many creatures smaller than them, including and especially rodent pokémon, it only stands to reason that the two don’t always have positive interactions for both sides. Granted, humans didn’t help in that regard either: as rodent pokémon had been pests to us at one point, we’ve trained feline pokémon, their natural predators, to … well, chase them off.

Of course, these are only perceived rivalries, or merely interactions between species that are not combative but rather pokémon simply following instinct, no animosity intended. On the other hand, there are plenty of instances of actual rivalries in the pokémon world. Both types of basculin, for example, if only because red and blue basculin are highly territorial and protective of their own kind (and thus, yes, a little bit racist). Then there are yungoos and Alolan rattata (intended to be predator and prey and instead ended up as rivals for territory and resources), braviary and mandibuzz (territory disputes, usually), heatmor and durant (for the same reason seviper and zangoose don’t get along), gyarados and anything that moves, and for some reason, clefairy and jigglypuff. Some even say omanyte and kabuto are rivals, but this is more hearsay from obscure texts, rather than anything founded on scientific fact.

As for symbiotic relationships, that can actually apply to a number of pokémon. Many pokémon are capable of living in harmony with one another, within delicately balanced ecosystems. Take the bibarel, for example. Bibarel create dams, which in turn create freshwater lakes for finneon and shellos. Thus, finneon and shellos tend to gather and follow (in rivers and streams, of course) wherever bidoof and bibarel are, just waiting for either pokémon to construct new habitats and breeding grounds.

Then you have the more well-known symbiotic relationships, such as shellder and slowpoke (the two evolve together to form slowbro or slowking), mantine and remoraid (remoraid helps mantyke to evolve, in exchange for protection), and shelmet and karrablast (they help one another evolve, even in the wild). Most lines that are considered counterparts to each other (nidoran, plusle and minun, miltank and tauros, volbeat and illumise) are likewise actually symbiotic species, as they gather in pooled herds to use their lines’ respective skills for survival. For example, although they may mate with other pokémon in a forest in order to obtain fertilized eggs, nidoran herds will set up combined nests guarded by nidorina and nidoqueen (which are better at defending territory). The male counterparts, nidorino and nidoking, will often either establish and patrol outer boundaries of the warren or go out to hunt and forage for the group, as, being the more aggressive of the two, they can form dangerous mobs to effectively drive away predators before they even reach the nests.

Why do nidoran evolve differently based on gender, but other pokemon which experience relatively extreme gender dimorphism (such as frillish) become the same pokemon no matter what their gender? What sets nidoran apart?

Strangely, the nidoran lines are the only pokémon lines whose male and female counterparts … are not the same species. That is, although the two get along well enough, they’re about as similar to one another as plusle are to minun. The only reason they’re both called nidoran is because they look like one another, often form mated pairs (even if the advanced stages can’t breed), and live in the same burrows, so scientists mistook them for the same species with a divergent evolution tree (much like the burmy line) until later studies revealed that they’re only related, not the same.

So that should answer the question about their evolution lines: they are, quite simply, actually two separate lines from their base onwards.

Hi I hope your day is going well, I have a male Nidoran and he tends to be really quiet and doesn’t enjoy battling too much. My father wants to pass down his gym to me and I would love for him to be a part of my main team. How do I get him excited about battles? I should probably already know this if I’m going to be a gym leader…

Don’t.

You must excuse me for my tone, anonymous, but the long and short of it is that if a pokémon doesn’t wish to be a part of a gym team, they shouldn’t be forced into it. Gym battles are more intense than average, everyday training, and if a pokémon’s heart isn’t into it, then that will translate badly on the battlefield. Your pokémon may be at a higher risk of getting injured if he’s not battling to his fullest capabilities, with his heart 100% in what he’s doing. It’s better to allow him to watch from the sidelines than to force him to take part in something he doesn’t wish to participate in.

Perhaps, down the line, he may change his mind, especially if he’s allowed to watch you battle frequently. However, don’t press him (into either battling or watching), and until he shows an interest in battling, don’t risk his safety by battling with him.

Hey there Bill, I’ve had both a Nidoran Male and Female since I was little. I grew up with them by my side and they grew fond of each other. Now they’ve evolved into Nidoking,and Nidoqueen and I was hoping to breed them to get a new generation of Nidorans. I’ve hit a snag though, it seems from whatever reason, they can’t breed. I went to a few other experts and they told me that Nidoqueens can’t breed with Nidokings, and i was wondering if you had any idea why?

By and large, nidoqueen and nidorina are incapable of breeding because for whatever reason, evolution sterilizes female nidoran. Male nidoran and their evolutions, meanwhile, retain the ability to breed throughout their lives, and thus, male nidoran often mate with either female nidoran or ditto to perpetuate their species; they don’t actually mate with a female nidoran’s advanced forms.

As for why evolution sterilizes female nidoran, that’s still a subject of debate in the scientific community, but to be fair, considering the fact that male nidoran grow longer, sharper, and more numerous barbs upon each subsequent evolution (including and especially exactly where you would think), one can hardly blame nature for wanting to offer female nidoran a bit of mercy, if you get my meaning.

The Nidorino Line

Nidoran (male)
The Poison Pin Pokémon
Type: Poison
Official Registration #: 32
Entry: A small, rabbit-like pokémon. An interesting fact about nidoran is that the first pokémon ever to be recorded using the move Poison Pin were members of this and its sister species, hence why they’re both described as “poison pin” pokémon in the pokédex. Of course, the story of how Poison Pin was discovered is equally interesting. Evidently, male nidoran are very protective of female nidoran, and female nidoran have a tendency to fire Poison Pin in tandem with their mates when alarmed. Suffice to say, this writer’s father learned very quickly about the value of antidotes.

Nidorino
The Poison Pin Pokémon
Type: Poison
Official Registration #: 33
Entry: The evolved form of male nidoran, by battle experience. It is interesting to note that nidorina and nidorino have co-adapted for the express purpose of defending different parts of their shared territory. While it is the nidorina’s job to protect the burrow and young via defensive maneuvers, it is the nidorino’s job to protect the general area with highly aggressive offensive maneuvers. Additionally, nidorino are specially adapted to do this job well; while the barbs of many other members of the nidoran family are small and retractable, the barbs of nidorino are, at minimum, six-inch-long venomous horns of danger. This in itself is not necessarily terrifying, considering the fact that many pokémon possess fangs or horns of unreasonable lengths, but in nidorino’s case, these horns are coupled with a nasty temper and a rather unfortunate tendency to charge at anything that is not a member of the nidoran family.

Nidoking
The Drill Pokémon
Type: Poison/Ground
Official Registration #: 34
Entry: The evolved form of nidorino, by exposure to moon stone. True to his name, nidoking rule over nidoran territory, much as a human king would rule over his kingdom: with an iron fist, a penchant for violence, and an extreme fondness for imperialism. Whereas nidoqueen tend to be more focused on protecting their habitats by standing their ground and fighting off intruders, nidoking seem more content on fighting literally anything short of a nidoqueen and her young. This includes other nidoking, anything with a type advantage to nidoking, inanimate objects that happen to be in the way of a nidoking, and bystanding researchers traveling along roads that cut through nidoking territories. It should also be noted that although nidoking are referred to as the drill pokémon (which is an allusion to its drill-like horn), this creature’s preferred form of attack is by smashing things with his heavy, armor-plated tail, an appendage so powerful it is capable of smashing through the engine of a jeep … which this writer mentions as an off-handed example that has subsequently and incidentally been included in expense reports to the Pokémon Symposium.

Any notable encounters with the Nidoran line, Bill?

Ah, the Nidoran line. This may be a bit complicated because the male and female lines are so vastly different from one another that they’re officially considered to be separate species, so I’m afraid I’ll have to cover them on two separate days. Below is the first, and tomorrow will be the second.

Nidoran (female)
The Poison Pin Pokémon
Type: Poison
Official Registration #: 29
Entry: A small, rabbit-like pokémon. An interesting fact about nidoran is that the first pokémon ever to be recorded using the move Poison Pin were members of this and its brother species, hence why they’re both described as “poison pin” pokémon in the pokédex. Of course, the story of how Poison Pin was discovered is equally interesting. Evidently, male nidoran are very protective of female nidoran, and female nidoran have a tendency to fire Poison Pin in tandem with their mates when alarmed.

Nidorina
The Poison Pin Pokémon
Type: Poison
Official Registration #: 30
Entry: The evolved form of female nidoran, by battle experience. Upon evolution, nidorina and their brother evolution lose their ability to breed. However, make no mistake: nidorina still possess mothering instincts—such as, specifically, the tendency to unsheathe their barbs and emit ultrasonic cries when anything threatens their burrow and young. As a note, what the pokédex says about nidorina’s docile temperament is true except in the above mentioned case, but the trouble with pokédex entries is that they never accurately describe how frequently exceptions to the rule occur. For example, in this case, yes, nidorina are docile, but it is highly useful to know that all routes where nidorina thrive are literally covered in nidorina burrows. Thus, when traversing routes through nidorina territory, bring antidotes. A lot of antidotes.

Nidoqueen
The Drill Pokémon
Type: Poison/Ground
Official Registration #: 31
Entry: The evolved form of nidorina, by exposure to moon stone. Nidoqueen are large, bulky pokémon covered in rock-hard plates. Both nidoqueen’s size and skin are highly useful in defending its young from threats, which it does with pride and enthusiasm. On the positive side, moon stone is very rarely found in nidorina habitats, making nidoqueen a very rare evolution to find naturally. However, on the negative side, nidorina territories really only need one nidoqueen to defend them, and that nidoqueen very rarely travels far from human roads. Luckily, hospitals are likewise very rarely far from nidoqueen territories.