Every Real Animal That Exists In The Pokémon Universe

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The Pokémon games are mainly known for their exotic and wonderful monsters, but there are also a number of real-world animals that exist in their universe too. The extended roster of Pokémon designs encompasses all sorts of life forms from the majorly cute Water-type starter Pokémon, Sobble, to the huge draconic Eternatus, standing at 65-feet tall, both featuring in Sword and Shield. Real animals have been spotted in the Pokémon anime, but the extent to which animals exist in the game world seems debatable.

There are Pokémon categories that reference real-life animals, such as Pikachu's Mouse category, that infer the existence of real-world animals within the Pokémon games. Some familiar Pokémon also take inspiration from real animals without much change, like Caterpie closely resembling an Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Caterpillar, but this does not confirm the animal's existence in the region. Despite the large number of Pokémon in the current roster — standing at a huge 898 monsters — there are still more real-world animals that could inspire Gen 9's starter Pokémon that have not yet been seen.

Related: How Many Pokémon Are There Total In 2021

References to real animals in the Pokémon games are relatively few and far between, but players can stumble across them in dialogue with NPCs. In Generation 1, talking to a chef aboard the S.S. Anne reveals that the ship's menu includes dishes mentioning multiple real animals: Eels au Barbecue, Salade de Salmon, and Prime Beefsteak. This sentiment is echoed in the later games as in Pokémon X & Y, players can discover fresh-caught fish being served at restaurants in Lumiose City. It is a known fact that humans consume Pokémon in this universe as Pokémon like Farfetch'd are endangered