Author Notes - Anyone who's played a lot of Pikmin 2 knows how horrible Bulbears are. Once again, I wrote this 'chapter' a while ago and had to go through and rewrite it so it was on the same level as the others. Which is why this entry is a little late compared to the ones before.
BULBEARS
GRUB-DOG FAMILY
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Bipoda
Order: Bulborousa
EMILY'S PERSONAL NOTES
If these critters weren't so fascinating, I would hate them with every fibre of my being. I mean, seriously… REVIVAL?! Who thought that was a good idea?!
PHYSICAL APPEARANCES
Oculus terribilis dotticum, commonly known as Spotty Bulbears, highly resemble their less aggressive counterparts - a head that takes up nearly half of the creature's body, two purple eyes on short stalks, two legs with two toes each, and a black hind depicting an array of perfectly-round red spots (if you'll pardon the copy-and-pasting). Unlike Bulborbs, however, no variant of the Bulbear is yet to be discovered. They do, however, have other differences from the regular Bulborb aside from the colouring. Their heads are noticeably more stocky, and their lips are significantly wider.
Unlike Bulborbs, where any given 'juvenile' seen is actually an unrelated species simply pretending to be a juvenile, Dwarf Bulbears are true offspring. They resemble the mature specimens in every way except for their size and proportions. While adult Bulbears are 9cm tall, the juveniles are rarely taller than 2-3cm.
HABITAT
Bulbears are seen just about anywhere a Bulborb and its variants can be found, albeit in much lower numbers. They have been spotted all over PNF-404, showcasing an astounding adaptability, from tropical areas like the Perplexing Pool to colder climates like the Distant Tundra. They also inhabit the underground caverns beneath their above-ground territories, able to be found in many kinds of caves whether they be made of wood or brick.
Bulbears are known for having gigantic territories. They follow patrol paths (more details in Diet), and will attack any other adult Bulbear in the area. This aggressive behaviour is most likely what led to almost all specimens to disappear from the Perplexing Pool, when Captain Olimar noted high concentrations of them in that area during his first visit.
DIET AND DEFENCES
The Bulbear's feeding habits differ greatly from those of Bulborbs and Bulblaxes. While Bulborbs typically wait until dusk to devour animals running back to their homes, Bulbears have little need for rest and well spend all day and night patrolling a set path in its territory. Every single Bulbear has its own patrol path that it will wander about in circles. It will only consume prey that step into this path, which consists of Pikmin, Sheargrubs (see 'Mandiblards'), and even Blowhogs in rare scenarios. Dwarf Bulbears are capable of hunting on their own, but prefer to follow after the nearest mature Bulbear. They haven't established their own territories, after all.
Note that fully mature Bulbears have a certain indefatigability. They sleep only during the break of dawn, and - most importantly - will not stay down once they are 'killed'. In fact, they will only be 'dead' for a few minutes at most before they stand right back up again and return to full strength. If one manages to down a Bulbear, the body must be taken care of immediately. If this cannot be done, the only thing to do is to run.
SOCIAL STRUCTURE
While Bulborbs and Bulblaxes follow a bee-like social structure, Bulbears have a social structure more resembling that of solitary mammals. It can best be compared to - appropriately enough - bears.
Adult males live completely on their own, only interacting with others of their species when their territories are invaded. These interactions are quite violent, and if there are no surrenders there's a good chance that both parties will end up dying from severe bloodlost. They are even willing to kill the offspring of female Bulbears, so she will breed with him instead.
Adult females, meanwhile, are typically seen with children following them. Since the males are prone to killing offspring who are not theirs, a mother Bulbear will defend her babies aggressively and violently. Some say that there's nothing scarier than an angry Mama Bulbear.
COURTING AND CHILDREARING
Male Bulbears are outnumbered by the females, but can by identified from them by the spots on their behinds pulsating, increasing and decreasing in size slightly every few seconds. These pulsating spots are used to attract mates. While the male does the courting, it is entirely up to the female if the mating will go through or not. Once the offspring are born, the males leave to find another female who wanders into their territories.
The females do all the childrearing. Since Dwarf Bulbears don't have their own patrol paths yet, they'll follow any adult female around, regardless of whether or not she is their mother. Recently-birthed offspring are fed food regurgitated by their mothers, but they soon learn how to hunt and eat on their own.
Once they get old enough, the mother Bulbear will force them out to make patrol paths of their own. The females often make their paths close to those of their mother, but males typically stray further away, sometimes even going into completely different climates.
OTHER NOTES
Bulbears are - at the time of writing - the only known member of the Grub-dog family where the 'Dwarf' counterpart is the juvenile form of the species, and not a Breadbug family mimic.
NOTES FROM OTHER RESEARCHERS
Mature Bulbears -
It's sort of like...the rare, limited-edition version of regular bulborbs. I'm much too afraid to get close to them in the dark caves where they live, so I'm thinking about bringing a Bomb Rock next time. Couldn't hurt! - Alph
The red-on-black thing is very bold, but it's a vicious predator, soooo points off for that. It's big and tough and never backs down even when it probably should. Like some captains I could name. - Brittany
The first problem with this guy is that he never sleeps. The second problem is that he can gulp a whole platoon of Pikmin in one move. Well, not on my watch, buster! I'll make you wash down that meal with a dessert of pain! - Captain Charlie
Dwarf Bulbears -
Their behaviour around a Spotty Bulbear reminds me of satellites orbiting a larger body. Like satellites, they exist in darkness and are hard to see, but can be destroyed with a well-placed strike. If it's with the larger body, though, stay away. You wouldn't want to get...pulled into...its gravity? This metaphor is getting away from me. - Alph
It takes after the big guys in a lot of ways. They're not as brave, though. Walk up to one and just watch it run to get help. I'd laugh at it, but I'm usually running away by then myself - Brittany
I'll admit, these critters have a certain charm. I'd like to stuff one and keep it as a trophy in my office, but I'd have to pry it from the Pikmin's eager hands first. - Captain Charlie
Author Notes - Fun Fact: The red spots on a Bulbear will pulsate in the first game, but the first game only. The implication is meant to be that those Bulbears in the Distant Spring were male while those in later games are female. Mostly just to explain why the spots don't change size in later games.
Next in our Grub-dog marathon is the BULBLAX subgroup. I had a lot of fun with them. I don't care how that sounds.
