Author Notes - I'm just posting this one immediately so the story isn't just some generic introduction for about a week. How often am I doing to release these? Um... I don't know. As often as possible. Since we're going alphabetically (and saving the Pikmin 3 bosses till last), the first family is that of the Amphitubers (i.e. Wollywogs). Which is actually not a bad way to start, seeing as it perfectly demonstrates what you should expect from this story. Such as the inclusion of a species exclusive to Hey! Pikmin.

When it comes to elaborating on details that the game doesn't, there's a few paths I want to go down. First, taking inspiration from real life. This shouldn't be surprising. Another is taking the game elements themselves into account, i.e. seeing if they're typically seen in groups. The third way is to just have some fun and make something up. After all, where would be the fun if these bizarre enemies followed the rules of real life?

AMPHITUBER FAMILY

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Amphibia
Order: Anura

EMILY'S PERSONAL NOTES

Mature Amphitubers are a complete pain to deal with if you don't have Rock Pikmin to resist their crushing attack. The baby Wogpoles are too, but they're much cuter and harmless so it's okay.

WAIT, no. That sounds bad. Being cute is no excuse for being annoying! And how could I insulate that Wogpoles are 'so much cuter'? The mature Amphitubers are adorable too! Oh, what am I saying? EVERY critter on this beautiful planet is adorable! Just… in their own little ways. Look, the point is, the baby Wogpoles are not much cuter than the adults, because that would imply that the adults aren't cute. Which they certainly are!

… When they're not crushing my little Pikmin army, of course.

PHYSICAL APPEARANCES

Mature Amphitubers highly resemble frogs, albeit without any obvious distinction between the head and the body and with much smaller legs. They have bodies somewhat resembling potatoes, with the Amphicaris frodendum (Yellow Wollywog) having a taller, pyramid-like body to contrast the flatter bodies of the Amphicaris albino (Wollywog, hereby referred to as 'Albino Wollywog' to prevent confusion).

Yellow Wollywogs, as their name suggests, are a bright vibrant yellow. The tops of their bodies are a deep shade of green. Right behind their bulging eyes is a series of three green spots on both sides, and their feet are a dark shade of orange.

Albino Wollywogs, once again as their name suggests, are almost completely white, except for a light patch of green on their backs and a bright orange on their feet. The only other visible colour on their bodies is their red eyes. This appearance is the result of their underground habitat (see 'Habitat'), which often results in albinism in several species.

Yellow Wollywogs have a rarely seen variant, the Amphicaris frodendum volcanus (Fiery Yellow Wollywog). They are easily identifiable from their more common counterparts by their orange colouring and the flames they produce from their backs. These flames appear to be caused by a flammable waxy substance excreted through their skin, not unlike the substance on the hinds of Fiery Bulblaxes (see 'Bulblaxes' for more information).

Wogpoles are the juvenile stage of Wollywogs, the first stage after they hatch from their eggs. They resemble typical tadpoles, with a big teal body and a tail. Their eyes are noticeably bulging, making them somewhat resemble their mature selves. They do not develop the distinctive colouring of the mature Amphitubers until they start growing their legs.

HABITAT

Yellow Wollywogs can be seen anywhere aquatic. They have been seen in lakes and ponds around the tropical areas such as the Tropical Wilds and the Perplexing Pool, as well as more temperate locations like the Awakening Wood, the Wistful Wild, and the Garden of Hope.

Albino Wollywogs, by contrast, have only ever been spotted underground. They live near underground ponds, such as those in the Forest Navel. They thrive in marshy caves and those covered by shower-like tiles, and can easily live wherever there's water nearby. It has been theorised that this species evolved when an underground current carried Wogpole eggs deep into the caverns, where they managed to survive and thrive with little consequence aside from losing their bright colours.

Fiery Yellow Wollywogs, by contrast, have rarely been spotted and only ever in hot, arid places such as around volcanoes. They cannot thrive in wet areas at all, and will often drown in any body of water no matter how shallow. It is unknown how the subspecies managed such an extreme evolution, but it is theorised that a volcano once erupted in a marshy area. The resulting change of climate and biome forced the Wollywogs to adapt.

Wogpoles can be spotted just about everywhere that the mature Wollywogs can be found. They will typically be seen only in shallow waters, away from the dangerous creatures that live in larger bodies of water. This, unfortunately, makes them easy prey for Blue Pikmin.

DIET AND DEFENCES

All mature species of Wollywog hunt in the same way. As they evolved away from the other members of the Anura order, they lost their ability to swim efficiently as their jumping capabilities increased. Whenever they see small insects or Pikmin, they will turn to face them in order to gauge distance, leap into the air, inflate a special organ in their throat to maintain height for a few moments, and hope to crush their prey beneath their body.

Unlike the other members of the Anura order that they are closely related to, Amphitubers do not have mouths once they mature. This may lead to one wondering how it eats, or even if it eats at all. In a similar way that frogs breathe through their skin, mature Wollywogs actually eat through their skin instead of eating through a mouth. This is why they crush their prey; the small insects and Pikmin need to be adequately liquefied in order to be absorbed into their body. Fiery Yellow Wollywogs have shown a preference for cooked meals.

Since Wogpoles are incapable of hunting prey until they grow legs and can leave the waters, they typically consume the algae that grows underwater instead. They are omnivorous, however, and will gladly eat any dead insects that float on top of the water. In fact, bigger Wogpoles have been spotted eating any Skitterskates (see 'Spitterspatter') that skate around on the water above them. Unlike mature Wollywogs, Wogpoles do indeed have mouths, though they are incredibly small and hard to see.

SOCIAL STRUCTURE

Very few Wogpoles will survive until adulthood (see 'Courting and Childrearing'). The surviving members of any given litter will continue to stay together in a group long into adulthood, and even once fully independent siblings never stray too far away from each other. In any particular habitat (i.e. the Perplexing Pool or Tropical Wilds), the matured Wollywogs typically belong to the same litter despite how distant they may be at times.

Unlike many species of animals, who rarely if ever see any siblings again once becoming independent, mature Wollywogs will occasionally meet up at dusk and rub heads with each other. If a Wollywog finds that one of their littermates has died, they exhibit behaviours quite similar to grief. This bond retention of same-litter specimens is quite unusual even on PNF-404. This, alongside their methods of hunting, show that they are possibly among the more intelligent creatures in this ecosystem.

Independent Wollywogs are not uncommon, but are either wandering males in search of eggs to fertilise, or the sole survivors of their litters.

COURTING AND CHILDREARING

Wollywogs, like many egg-laying species, do not court nor do they mate.

When mating season arrives, female Yellow Wollywogs will lay their eggs not in the water as one may expect, but instead on the underside of low-hanging branches and shrubs growing just above the surface of the water. This is to protect them from predation by Water Dumples (see 'Grub-Dog, Aquatic') and Blue Pikmin (see, 'Pikmin') which would otherwise see these eggs as an easy lunch.

Albino Wollywogs will lay their eggs under the leaves of underground aquatic plants if any can be found, but will often resort to lay them on the walls near pools of water instead. Fiery Wollywogs will lay their eggs in shallow pools of hot springs, since the usual Amphituber predators cannot thrive in the volcanic areas they call home.

At around the same time females are searching for safe places to lay their eggs, male Wollywogs go searching for eggs to fertilize. They will travel far to do so, and can easily find these eggs by detecting the pheromones left behind by the females. These pheromones also alert any males if the eggs were laid by any littermates, so they know to avoid them. When they find eggs that were not laid by a sister, they unleash their sperm in a rather haphazard manner to ensure all eggs are fertilised. As you may be able to guess, the water beneath Wogpole eggs can appear rather white for a few days afterwards.

When the eggs are fertilised, the male Wollywog who fertilised them will stay around until they hatch. He will attack any creature that goes near the eggs, whether or not they intend to eat them. Any nearby Wollywogs, whether they're littermates or not, will help him defend the eggs and will often help him gather food as well. The eggs take approximately four weeks to hatch, whereupon the father Wollywog will continue to defend them for another two to three weeks. By 12 weeks, the Wogpoles will lose their tails and leave the waters as fully mature Wollywogs.

OTHER NOTES

The entire family is known to most parts of the galaxy as 'Wogs', but certain places change it to 'Hop' instead; i.e. 'Wollyhop' instead of 'Wollywog'. This is because 'wog' is a slur in certain parts of the galaxy. The names are close enough to prevent confusion, but there have been debates over whether or not the 'hop' part of their names should be true for the entire galaxy. This document uses 'wog' as it is the most commonly used name, and I mean no offence to those who are affected by such a term so horrible when used outside of this context.

NOTES FROM OTHER RESEARCHERS

Yellow Wollywog -

There are definite signs of intelligence in this brute. It always faces its prey first, as if to gauge the distance, before jumping into the air for a stomp. If you don't move while it hangs for a moment in midair, you could lose a lot of Pikmin. It's big, but not strong—as few as five Pikmin can weigh it down so it can't jump. Rock Pikmin also have nothing to fear from it. - Alph

Look at that thing. It's so bloated. I feel that way too sometimes when I can't stop chugging down juice. I have to lie down for a while after that, but this thing keeps jumping. I bet it gets the worst cramps. - Brittany

I don't understand how it manages to hang in the air at the height of its jumps, but I don't have to understand. I just have to get out of the way, and its weird hang time helps a lot with that. Let that be a lesson: don't stand around gawking at a creature's weird attack moves—do something about it! - Captain Charlie

Albino Wollywog -

A white colouring and blood-red eyes are common among underground variants of many models, and this one is no exception. It may have lost its pigmentation, but it still hasn't lost its jumping prowess. Seeing as its colouring wasn't necessary, nor does it have anything above its yellow counterparts, I'd call this a nice neutral change. - Alph

Oh, where's the fun in this? Instead of being bright and sunny, it's all plain and white. Don't get me wrong, white can look simply amazing on some things. This guy, however, just doesn't pull it off. - Brittany

I don't care about the different colours. I'm practically colour blind! I'll attack my opponent with my steely fists regardless of the colour of their skin! … That either sounds a lot better or a lot WORSE than I think it does. - Captain Charlie

Fiery Yellow Wollywog -

Never thought I would see an aquatic creature with flames as one of its best features. As bizarre as it seems, it pulls it off surprisingly well. If only it didn't drown so easily… - Alph

Geez, and I thought the cramps and bloating were bad enough. This one seems to have a bad case of heartburn! Gosh, I hate it when that happens... - Brittany

Normally, fire would pose a difficult challenge for even a captain such as me. But when you have red troops immune to their flames, nothing can stop you! … Except maybe a burnt behind. Ow... - Captain Charlie

Wogpole -

It's built for one thing: swimming. On everything else, from engaging predators to environmental awareness, it kind of falls apart. - Alph

You know the saying "It's more afraid of you than you are of it"? This is the only thing on this planet where that feels true. Something about getting close to this creature at all feels like cruelty to animals. - Brittany

Strange how such a scrawny pushover grows up to flatten Pikmin left and right. Then again, maybe it remembers being helpless and holds a grudge. - Captain Charlie

Author Notes - I can't believe I seriously put the sentence 'unleash their sperm in a rather haphazard manner' into a story of mine, but that's fun. And that's why this story gets a 'T' rating. It's all biology, so it should be fine, but we have to be careful. That aside, I really like what I did here. The idea of Amphituber families actually being really close into adulthood was not something I was expecting, but what happens happens.

And, if I can be honest with you, I'm only including notes from the Koppai captains so I can write their notes on creatures who only appear in Pikmin 1 or 2. Regardless, see Emily next time when she talks about the Arachorb family! Hope you bring your Rock Pikmin.