Lifespan of Pokemon

[pokemongarnet]

I''l just accept that thery're pretty much immortal from aging.

Could you imagine having a pokemon transfered from R/S and it ends up dying of old age XD

 

[Tater Tot]

I think the only way a Pokemon could die is not getting it to a Pokemon Center fast enough. Like Gary's Raticate, you battle him on the SS Anne. When you see him in Lavender Town, his Raticate is dead. Because there was no Center on the boat.

 

[Dubstep]

I've never really thought about that. It would suck to have a bug Pokemon live for only a couple of months, but looking at, say, Ash's Butterfree, I don't think that's really the case.

 

[PiPVoda]

I've never really thought about that. It would suck to have a bug Pokemon live for only a couple of months, but looking at, say, Ash's Butterfree, I don't think that's really the case.

That is what you think. Professor Oak really replaces Butterfree twice a year due to it dropping dead every 6 months. So since it's been about....11 years since the anime started and Ash got his caterpie into a butterfree..I'd say he's had 22 different ones it's just that he doesn't know it :P

 

[Dubstep]

That is what you think. Professor Oak really replaces Butterfree twice a year due to it dropping dead every 6 months. So since it's been about....11 years since the anime started and Ash got his caterpie into a butterfree..I'd say he's had 22 different ones it's just that he doesn't know it :P

He's certainly dense enough for such a scheme to work. XD

 

[Jack]

Another than popped up they have such great technology, but i dont see freeways and cars.

 

[Åzurε]

Their technology seems to have focused upon making things better for Pokemon. Creature comforts seem to have advanced more slowly than medicine and Pokemon research. Perhaps they've found ways to extend the lifespans of captive Pokemon?

So, untrained Butterfree I would give roughly 4-5 years. Evolution may be forced as the Pokemon gets older, in level-up evolution at least.

 

[gorgono]

The thing that makes me think that some pokemon's lifespans aren't based off of real life creatures is because of the differences.

For instance - a manthis lives about a year in real life....I would imagine that Scyther doesn't die in just a year.

also, for steel types like Scizor, do you think that their lifespans are 100+ because they are made of steel? I know Steelix can live 100+ years for sure (from pokedex) but the theory may not work well with the ones that aren't steel-like (Empoleon, Scizor).

 

[MalRune]

Pokemon death has already been brought up with the presence of Pokemon Tower, in which trainers bring their deceased pokemon to bury them and such.

Pokemon do seem to age, as shown with Surfing Pikachu, who grew up with his trainer (in the anime), as well as Tracy's Scyther, who is said to be older than the rest and is, thus, a bit less physically fit than the others.

As far as a clear-cut maximum age limit is concerned, I don't think there is one. There are a good deal of pokemon -- such as Ninetales (Kitsune) and Espeon (Bakeneko / Nekomata) -- that, by design, would require a relatively high lifespan in order to exist in their current forms. If I recall, Vulpix alone would have to have existed for a good deal of time just to get its current 5 tails, and yet they are simply born as they are. I must also mention that I have yet to see a bug-type pokemon, aside from Tracy's Scyther, that demonstrated any effects due to age. If they had such short lifespans, then the variance due to age would become obvious with Beedrill swarms, as a Beedrill even a few weeks older than another would have a noticeable difference. Contrary to this, however, it can also be said that their lifespans are *so* short that they don't even survive long enough to appear old.

This is countered with the continued survival of the Butterfree that Ash happened to release early on in the series, as it does manage to appear later on in the series.


I, personally, believe that a pokemon can live indefinitely provided it does not cease being active. Even with great age, a pokemon that continues to be active would maintain its strength and power. Once a pokemon stops doing this -- such as if its trainer dies and it becomes disheartened, or pokemon that are kept inside the house (such as Skitty) -- it becomes more and more vulnerable to the effects of age and may even perish.

This would also explain just how pokemon battles came about. In order to maintain the lifespan of their pokemon, it would be understandable to pit them in combat against each other with the knowledge that doing so would keep them alive for a longer period of time (barring fatal injuries). From there, it could easily evolve into pokemon battling growing into a recreational activity or even a professional one.


But I'm reading a lot into it.

 

[Volroc]

Pokemon death has already been brought up with the presence of Pokemon Tower, in which trainers bring their deceased pokemon to bury them and such.

Pokemon do seem to age, as shown with Surfing Pikachu, who grew up with his trainer (in the anime), as well as Tracy's Scyther, who is said to be older than the rest and is, thus, a bit less physically fit than the others.

As far as a clear-cut maximum age limit is concerned, I don't think there is one. There are a good deal of pokemon -- such as Ninetales (Kitsune) and Espeon (Bakeneko / Nekomata) -- that, by design, would require a relatively high lifespan in order to exist in their current forms. If I recall, Vulpix alone would have to have existed for a good deal of time just to get its current 5 tails, and yet they are simply born as they are. I must also mention that I have yet to see a bug-type pokemon, aside from Tracy's Scyther, that demonstrated any effects due to age. If they had such short lifespans, then the variance due to age would become obvious with Beedrill swarms, as a Beedrill even a few weeks older than another would have a noticeable difference. Contrary to this, however, it can also be said that their lifespans are *so* short that they don't even survive long enough to appear old.

This is countered with the continued survival of the Butterfree that Ash happened to release early on in the series, as it does manage to appear later on in the series.


I, personally, believe that a pokemon can live indefinitely provided it does not cease being active. Even with great age, a pokemon that continues to be active would maintain its strength and power. Once a pokemon stops doing this -- such as if its trainer dies and it becomes disheartened, or pokemon that are kept inside the house (such as Skitty) -- it becomes more and more vulnerable to the effects of age and may even perish.

This would also explain just how pokemon battles came about. In order to maintain the lifespan of their pokemon, it would be understandable to pit them in combat against each other with the knowledge that doing so would keep them alive for a longer period of time (barring fatal injuries). From there, it could easily evolve into pokemon battling growing into a recreational activity or even a professional one.


But I'm reading a lot into it.

id have to agree for the most part with your assessment ^_^
cuz even with humans if consumed the correct amount of calcium, protein, & other vitamins, while stayin active,one can appear not to age ^_^ and wont feel the adverse effects of aging that much.

 

[gorgono]

I just now realized that about Espeon...pretty neat. Does Umbreon look similar to any mythological species?

 

[xDaisuke0]

possibly, but then again the bond is with its trainer, not the parent ;) loop holes, i always find them :laugh:

So lets say i had an Absol and I pass it down to my son before I die and he does the same and it just goes on. The Absol could live forever?

 

[Volroc]

So lets say i had an Absol and I pass it down to my son before I die and he does the same and it just goes on. The Absol could live forever?

dunno if thatd last forever, its sure ot have a limit but itd definitely last a few generations ^_^

 

[Myles]

I wouldn't put too much thought into Ash's Butterfree; nobody ages in the anime.

 

[edguitar]

I'd say it's probably based off the animal the pokemon is designed after.

 

[gorgono]

I'd say it's probably based off the animal the pokemon is designed after.

The thing is, some aren't based off of anything. Granted they look similar, but even so, they are much larger - a few inches in real life to 6 feet in the poke world.

Also, maybe someone can confirm this? : The butterfree episode, after butterfree breeds, it dies..but they changed it for the US episode...I heard that somewhere, but IDK if its true or not.

 

[PiPVoda]

Pokemon death has already been brought up with the presence of Pokemon Tower, in which trainers bring their deceased pokemon to bury them and such.

Pokemon do seem to age, as shown with Surfing Pikachu, who grew up with his trainer (in the anime), as well as Tracy's Scyther, who is said to be older than the rest and is, thus, a bit less physically fit than the others.

As far as a clear-cut maximum age limit is concerned, I don't think there is one. There are a good deal of pokemon -- such as Ninetales (Kitsune) and Espeon (Bakeneko / Nekomata) -- that, by design, would require a relatively high lifespan in order to exist in their current forms. If I recall, Vulpix alone would have to have existed for a good deal of time just to get its current 5 tails, and yet they are simply born as they are. I must also mention that I have yet to see a bug-type pokemon, aside from Tracy's Scyther, that demonstrated any effects due to age. If they had such short lifespans, then the variance due to age would become obvious with Beedrill swarms, as a Beedrill even a few weeks older than another would have a noticeable difference. Contrary to this, however, it can also be said that their lifespans are *so* short that they don't even survive long enough to appear old.

This is countered with the continued survival of the Butterfree that Ash happened to release early on in the series, as it does manage to appear later on in the series.


I, personally, believe that a pokemon can live indefinitely provided it does not cease being active. Even with great age, a pokemon that continues to be active would maintain its strength and power. Once a pokemon stops doing this -- such as if its trainer dies and it becomes disheartened, or pokemon that are kept inside the house (such as Skitty) -- it becomes more and more vulnerable to the effects of age and may even perish.

This would also explain just how pokemon battles came about. In order to maintain the lifespan of their pokemon, it would be understandable to pit them in combat against each other with the knowledge that doing so would keep them alive for a longer period of time (barring fatal injuries). From there, it could easily evolve into pokemon battling growing into a recreational activity or even a professional one.


But I'm reading a lot into it.

Wow, do you by any chance teach Pokeology at the Institute of Pokemon Etymology? :D

I agree with everything you said and I figure it could possibly relate to some real creatures. For instance some sharks have to continue swimming in order get water through their gills in order to stay alive. Stopping in one place would mean death due to lack of oxygen..somewhat comparable to pokemon without a trainer who doesn't do much that eventually becomes a victim of aging.

 

[MalRune]

I wouldn't put too much thought into Ash's Butterfree; nobody ages in the anime.

Point taken. Let us then direct our attention to the manga.

Giovanni's prized pokemon happens to be a Beedrill, which has survived with him for quite a good deal of time (from his childhood onward). I think that this, at least, is somewhat credible in acknowledging that bug pokemon -- or, at the very least, Beedrill -- do not die off nearly as quickly as their real-life counterpart.

The thing is, some aren't based off of anything. Granted they look similar, but even so, they are much larger - a few inches in real life to 6 feet in the poke world.

Also, maybe someone can confirm this? : The butterfree episode, after butterfree breeds, it dies..but they changed it for the US episode...I heard that somewhere, but IDK if its true or not.

If I'm not mistaken, it was indeed implied that Butterfree die after mating (whether due to the act itself or time span, I cannot say), but the Pokemon creators themselves had actually not intended this. To dispel these rumors, they created an episode in which Ash's butterfree is seen, alive and kicking.

Wow, do you by any chance teach Pokeology at the Institute of Pokemon Etymology? :D

I just read very deeply into things. One of my major strengths is plugging up plot-holes and making things, for lack of a better phrase, make good sense.

Actually, it might be possible that the very thing that allows these pokemon to do such astounding feats (shooting mass amounts of water from their orifices, maintaining a fire somewhere on their body) is also the source that keeps them alive. By fighting, they release the impurities generated by this source and within it, as well. This may be why pokemon can "level-up" -- the source of their being is slowly becoming more and more pure -- and how they can evolve miraculously -- their body changing to accomodate the amount of energy the purified source gives off. Stones may do the same thing, but perhaps *give* something to the source that is vital for that pokemon's continued evolution, such as a slight modification to the intricate type of energy generated (even a minor change can have drastic results). This can be why even though a pokemon purifies their source with continued battles and grows more powerful, they do not evolve without the stone -- their evolved body would only be generated by the modified energy present only when said pokemon had been exposed to the stone.

Happiness may be an indication of "will", the pokemon's desire to remain with you as well as their contentment in life. It has already been shown to have an effect on their power as demonstrated with the moves "Return" and "Frustration", so it is not so outlandish to also rule that they might modify the type of energy generated from said pokemon source and produce the necessary evolution.

But I've begun to ramble...

 

[Kirbychu]

Also, maybe someone can confirm this? : The butterfree episode, after butterfree breeds, it dies..but they changed it for the US episode...I heard that somewhere, but IDK if its true or not.

I'm pretty sure that's false, but I don't have much to back myself up with. Ash's Butterfree did appear (Alive, mind you.) in the Japanese opening Spurt at :40.

I also found this on Bulbapedia...

It is a common misconception that Butterfree die after mating. However, this comes from a mistranslation and there is nothing to stop Butterfree returning in the future.

 

[edguitar]

The thing is, some aren't based off of anything. Granted they look similar, but even so, they are much larger - a few inches in real life to 6 feet in the poke world.

Also, maybe someone can confirm this? : The butterfree episode, after butterfree breeds, it dies..but they changed it for the US episode...I heard that somewhere, but IDK if its true or not.

yeah but the ones that arent based off a real animal, like ghosts and mythical creatures is left open to the imagination. :P