Pokémon Biology: Combined Evolution

A rare sight around the seas of Johto, Mantine biology was not properly explored at all until fairly recently, and as such, even the very existence of its juvenile form, Mantyke, was unknown to most scholars. However, after researchers at Sinnoh were indeed able to identify and confirm its existence (in point of fact, it is quite literally as common as muck in Sinnoh, so you have to wonder how they didn't make the connection sooner), it became a hot research topic for its bizarre method of evolution, which involves the Pokémon Remoraid, a bizarre fish best known for acting as a "cleaner" in underwater communities by biting away pieces of fungus and other potentially infectious pieces from larger organisms, and for undergoing some bizarre form of regressive evolution, reverting from a vertebrate fish to an invertebrate cephalopod form, Octillery, after a sort of metamorphosis.

The life cycle, then, is quite bizarre. It appears that Mantine congregate extensively in coastal areas, such as Undella Bay and the environs of Sunyshore City, until they encounter a Remoraid, at which point they will accompany the fish out to sea, evolving into a Mantine once sufficiently mature, which then migrate to their breeding grounds in Johto—the discrepancy between numbers indicates that very few Mantyke survive the journey. After breeding, the females lay their Eggs in the seabed and abandon them; once the Eggs hatch, the Mantyke must make their way back to the coastal areas, where they will be safe from predators. Even so, large quantities of Mantyke are a big part of the ocean food chain, so at least they're useful for something.

Ah. Possibly the single most bizarre evolutionary method to date, Shellder and Slowpoke are a particularly noteworthy example of chimeric evolution—a fusion of two individuals to form an entirely new, evolved form. Advanced horizontal gene transfer, if you like. However, what is special about these two is that they are entirely different species—where Magneton is merely a simple colonial organism, Slowbro and Slowking are both much more than a symbiosis—indeed, it would not be unreasonable to describe it as a chimera, although admittedly the center of neural activity is still up for debate. This has led some to propose that Slowpoke and Shellder should be classified as a single species—that they have adopted the function of being, effectively, very large gametes, and that Cloyster exists purely as a sort of "sperm factory", producing more Shellder for the continued survival of the species.

However, one cannot adopt such a simple explanation too readily, as it ignores a number of crucial pieces of evidence. Fossil evidence makes it clear that Shellder and Slowpoke, whatever they are now, were once separate species, and follow entirely different evolutionary descents. More importantly, Slowpoke and Shellder are rarely, if ever, found in the same areas, meaning that an encounter is often more likely due to chance than design, although it is possible that certain places, such as the Seafoam Islands and Route 205, are like breeding grounds, as the Sargasso Sea is to European eels. A more likely explanation for the above, however, has surfaced recently in comparing the ribosomal RNA sequences of Slowbro "shells" and Shellder, in that the Slowbro "shell" may actually be a new, parallel evolution for Shellder, brought about by enzyme-linked morphological changes initiated by Slowpoke sap, which is entirely parasitic, and is forced to live alongside its host owing to its low defensive stats, manipulating it like some malevolent puppetmaster, and enhancing its psychic capabilities. Certainly it could offer an explanation as to why Slowking appears to possess such significantly developed mental capabilities compared to its prior and parallel forms.

Metagross's intelligence has been equated to that of a supercomputer, and certainly, if the complexity of its genome offers any indication, this is not difficult to imagine. Metagross's success can largely be linked to its extremely complex life cycle, which involves some form of double-gamete fusion. The following model was developed to explain the phenomenon: Metagross reproduction, poorly understood though it is, produces haploid "spores" that develop into fully functional Beldum. These gametic organisms can live quite happily in the wild, though with limited capabilities, and of the four that are produced in the meiotic reproduction, there are four types—alpha, beta, gamma, and delta. Alpha and beta Beldum fuse to form αβ-Metang, while gamma and delta fuse to form γδ-Metang. This has no bearing on their morphology, but affects the eventual Metagross—an αβ-Metang can only fuse with a γδ-Metang that is not from the same original parent Metagross. Once these Metang fuse, the body is divided up by brain, such that the α-brain coordinates perception and knowledge retention, the β-brain coordinates logic and mathematical computation, the γ-brain coordinates intuition and deduction, and the δ-brain coordinates all other bodily functions. Even after fusion, it is estimated that it takes at least a month before the Metagross is fully mature and can start producing its own offspring.

Interestingly, while Metagross is most commonly associated with Hoenn thanks to the patronage of its former champion, Steven, it is in fact endemic to Unova, where a small native population resides in the Giant Chasm, although research specimens of Beldum have been known to escape in the past, where they have been quickly wiped out. Unfortunately, while Metagross is a formidable organism indeed, its development is so long and time-consuming that it is quite unsuitable for any region other than the one that it developed in, where it has no natural competition bar Piloswine, and Delibird, Solrock, and Lunatone provide an ample prey source—when tested in any region other than the Giant Chasm, the Beldum gametes are wiped out within days. Indeed, although Metagross release thousands of Beldum "spores", less than 1% of them go on to form a Metagross, and when you consider that it takes four Beldum to make a Metagross, this is quite alarmingly wasteful. It is also notable that the Giant Chasm is one of the few places in the world containing wild Ditto, which is intriguing considering that Metagross can only breed in captivity when Ditto are present. Could it be that the Ditto are necessary for Metagross reproduction, and why is this the case? The research, as ever, is ongoing.

Karrablast and Shelmet are a relatively recent entry into the scientific journals, though their peculiar life cycles have been known to Unova's witch doctors for centuries prior. This relationship is all the more bizarre for the fact that, until recently, the two species did not even share the same habitat, an observation that boggled ecologists—Shelmet were found primarily in the watery moors surrounding Icirrus City, while Karrablast were exclusively found in the grasslands far south of there. Currently, thanks to some clumsy students, the two communities have reintegrated and are currently enjoying a happy predator-prey relationship.

The explanation for the bizarre phenomenon of mutual evolution remains a mystery, though that is not to say that hypotheses do not exist. One such theory suggests that the Shelmet and Karrablast once existed in the same ecosystem, and had their own separate evolution pathways, with Shelmet evolving into a slow, powerful "gastropod knight" and Karrablast evolving into an agile, predatory "ninja beetle". However, once geographically separated they lost the ecological need for the evolution, rather similarly to Pokémon such as Kadabra and Machoke, and could no longer evolve without an external energy input that activated the enzymes and proteins necessary for evolution. This does not, however, explain on its own why such a thing should only occur while the two are traded together. Another explanation suggests that Karrablast and Shelmet were originally a single species that underwent allopatric speciation—their isolation caused them to differentiate into two species. This may explain why the two must be combined alongside the energy input, in that possibly some biological controls are retained in one but not the other, and vice versa, but there is no fossil evidence for any common ancestor and analysis of ribosomal RNA sequences suggests that the two are not even closely related, relatively speaking.