Author Notes - I'm sure anyone who's played through all of Pikmin 2 can recall how irritating it is to reach a certain sublevel and find that the treasure gauge is being messed with. It's actually quite rare and only happens about three or four times, but you groan in irritation each time.

KETTLEBUG FAMILY

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Pseudoinsecta
Order: Buzzoptera

EMILY'S PERSONAL NOTES

Screw this thing. Seriously, screw this thing. I like to do a little bit of treasure hunting while I'm here on this planet, and that's near impossible when the frequencies of this thing's whistling causes my equipment to go haywire whenever it comes near! For goodness's sake, one of them made my treasure tracker blow up! I'm just lucky that none of my biology-related equipment blew it.

PHYSICAL APPEARANCES

The only known member of the Kettlebug family - the Mesmeri raiocontra (Antenna Beetle) - has a dark green body in the shape of a jellybean, with visible segments on its underbelly. It has two long legs resembling the back legs of a grasshopper, and two small wings at the base of its neck. Its head is somewhat bell-shaped, albeit one blocked up by a ball. Its big eyes are red, and its two antennae are slightly longer than the length of its body.

HABITAT

The Antenna Beetle is a very rare creature, only known to inhabit a select few caves deep underground and in small amounts even within these caverns. It has demonstrated an ability to live around dirt-covered concrete (Hole of Heroes), bathroom tiles (Dream Den), and even rusted metal floating in an abyss (Snagret Hole) though they are much rarer in these areas. They have never been spotted above ground.

DIET AND DEFENCES

Antenna Beetles are herbivorous, consuming primarily moss and nectar though they will also eat certain leaves and roots. Those living in metallic areas can struggle to find enough plant-life to consume, leading to them having even more limited numbers.

This creature's method of self-defence is unique in the ecosystem. When a predator approaches, it will vibrate its wings and antennae to create a horrid whistling sound that is fortunately outside of the hearing range of most humanoid beings. Note, however, that a select few humanoids can indeed hear this horrific sound. Those who cannot hear it will only pick up on a low murmuring sound, while thoses who can are unfortunate victims. Approximately 5% of humanoids can hear the real sound (number depends on species).

This sound generates at a frequency that often drives predators mad and leaves them howling with pain, dissading any attackers. However, when members of the Pikmin family hear this frequency, it affects them quite differently. Instead of putting them through pain or madness, it instead pacifies them and causes them to gather around the Beetle. The Pikmin will be unable to do anything other than stare blankly at the Beetle until it jumps away, whereupon they will panic until they hear another calming frequency.

If it feels the need to, an Antenna Beetle is capable of jumping thirty times its own height to escape danger. Note that it often stumbles as it lands, so it will never attempt to jump near a thin ledge for it may end up stumbling to its demise.

SOCIAL STRUCTURE

Antenna Beetles do not like the presence of others of their kind. They are few and far between, so encounters are rare, but those that do meet will greet each other with a special frequency that will put the other Beetle in great pain. This frequency, fortunately, only affects other Beetles and most other species will be incapable of hearing it. Even those that do will not receive the painful effects.

COURTING AND CHILDREARING

Mating season is the only time Antenna Beetles will interact with each other willingly and without any violence. Once a year, all Antenna Beetles in an area will congregate to one particular spot deep underground. Both males and females will attempt to attract mates by playing tunes, which cannot be heard by other species. If recordings of these sounds are slowed down to be in normal hearing range, they are revealed to be beautiful songs with distinct tunes.

Egg-laying happens all at once, leaving the floor of this hidden area completely covered by almost-microscopic white balls. All of the mature specimens will work together to keep these eggs safe from any predators, and raise the offspring until they are capable of producing their own tunes. Once the offspring reach this stage in development, the mature Beetles will leave and return to their solitary lives.

Much like sea turtles, Antenna Beetles will return to this spot every year.

OTHER NOTES

The reasoning for the Antenna Beetle's ability to affect Pikmin is yet to be fully understood, and the scientific community cannot agree on one single theory. Some believe the connection is purely a coincidence, while many others argue it is a defence mechanism that's an holdover from when Pikmin would hunt them down in higher numbers. A few are convinced, however, that Antenna Beetles were the Pikmin's original master.

NOTES FROM OTHER RESEARCHERS

Antenna Beetle -

I wonder why its whistle seems so finely tuned to Pikmin specifically. Is it just a coincidence, and it's just whistling in a panic? Or is it a holdover from a time when Pikmin were the dominant species? Or… was it the Pikmin's original leader before Captain Olimar arrived? I'm getting more questions than answers from this creature, each more puzzling than the last! - Alph

MA-A-A-A-KE IT STO-O-O-P! Goodness, that awful sound it makes gives me such an awful headache! Not to mention that it really messes with our technology. One nearly broke our juice-making machine! - Brittany (Emily's Notes - Looks like we found the five percent!)

I'm all but certain that forcing someone else's troops to follow you is a war crime. Still, I must commend this creature for trying such a potent strategy. Shame it has to deal with my steely fists when it takes control of my squad! - Captain Charlie

Author Notes - Enemies with attacks that affect Pikmin in interesting ways are always intriguing. You have to wonder if they're going after Pikmin in particular to take control of them or something.

We've got a pretty big family coming up. Get your Rock Pikmin ready because the next entry is the Lithopods!