"Pokémon" YOU'VE Seen IRL!

Soaring Sid said:
Swablu looks beautiful! What's with the Ironstone nodule though?
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Not sure. Most of the ironstone nodules I find are relatively smooth, but I thought this one looked pretty interesting. (The broken end almost makes it look like a turtle shell.)

An actual Iron Stone item probably wouldn't look much like an ironstone nodule.
 
I'd read theories that Lickitung was based on a lizard, perhaps a chameleon or blue-tongued skink, but it hit me while doing some research that it's definitely a salamander! Many lungless salamanders, like chameleons, have projectile tongues. Lickitung also appears in damp places (caves, near water, or on rainy routes), just like salamanders. Furthermore, being licked by Lickitung can result in paralysis or a rash, which may nod to the toxins that some salamaders secrete through their skin.

Here's a two-lined salamander (Eurycea sp.) I found the other day. These salamanders have "free projectile" tongues, meaning that their hyoid bone (or tongue bone) disconnects from their skeleton and launches out with their tongue to maximize reach (which can be nearly the length of the salamander's body).

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The yellowish coloring sort of reminds me of Shiny Lickitung​

I guess this would make the "Charmander" in my main post more of a Lickitung since that species (a fellow lungless salamander) also has a free projectile tongue and, unlike the salamander above, may be toxic. Charmander would probably be more of a "true salamander" (Salamandridae, which includes fire salamanders) as opposed to a lungless salamander (Plethodontidae). Time for an edit!
 
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Butterfree, is that you?

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Butterfree appears to be based on the Pierinae subfamily of butterflies, also known as "Whites." (More specifically, it's thought to be based on the Black-Veined White, but I like to imagine that all whites would translate into Butterfree.)
 
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Salandit seems to be based on newts, given its Japanese name. Its coloring is closer to that of a fire belly newt, which its evolution is based on, but lack of a colored belly suggests that it may not be based on them alone.

Here's an Eastern Newt. No red stripe running down its back, but it does have red spots.

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Also, funny story. It was too bright out to see my LCD, so it wasn't until I got inside that I could see how the photos turned out. I was surprised to find that one of the newt photos had a glare at the tip of its tail, making it resemble a Charmander!

Spoiler:
 
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Although it may have more organic inspirations, I can't help but compare Ditto to Play-Doh or clay (the fact that all of Ditto's forms in the EX-series of the TCG were modeled with clay may be a nod to this). Ditto is said to turn into a stone when asleep, which could refer to hardened clay. Furthermore, Ditto's normal coloring resembles purple Brazilian clay while its Shiny coloring may reference "blue" clay, and its wild hold items (Quick Powder and Metal Powder) could represent clay powders or the minerals found within clay.

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Probably the closest I'm going to get to an IRL Vileplume without leaving my yard (or maybe even the country)...

Spoiler:


While the Common Pawpaw is most known for its custardy fruit, its flowers exhibit a trait unusual for plants outside the tropics: carrion mimicry. Complimenting their fleshy appearance, mature flowers exude a faint odor similar to that of rotting meat to attract the likes of blowflies and carrion beetles as pollinators.
 
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No Pokémon based on it yet, but I've got a new favorite bird—the Tufted Titmouse! Isn't it a cutie?

Spoiler:


Rookidee is based on a blue tit, a relative of titmice, and evolves into what is thought to be based on Steller's jay (and lastly a raven, which is related to jays). Since the tufted titmouse looks like it could evolve into a blue jay, I could totally see a regional variant of Rookidee being based on it. (It would also be neat to see some kind of connection with Arcanine or another fluffy dog Pokémon since these guys are prone to stealing dog hair for their nests.)
 
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Real-life Bellsprout?

Spoiler:


Okay, so this isn't a pitcher plant. However, due to the similar appearance and female flower's ability to trap insects (for pollination purposes), some believe that Jack-in-the-Pulpit plants could evolve to become carnivorous. (It may also be worth noting that Bellsprout is classified as a Flower Pokémon, despite the "pitcher" of a pitcher plant not being a flower.)
 
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Baby Volbeat/Illumise sure looks strange!

Spoiler:


As a reminder, please share your own photos only. If you don't have photos, stories are also fine! Also, if you want your photos included in the main list, make sure your photos are 500px wide or small (whichever is smaller).
 
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