Many contemporary biologists credit the strange form of Raichu found in Alola entirely to their diets of pancakes and Alolan berry species before evolution. Yet Alolan folklore claims the species arrived, not in the hulls of boats like Rattata, but from some distant land after surfing across the ocean. Corroborating this, rare Pikachu have been reported surfing outside Alola or even floating above the ground with the aid of hot air balloons, although these individuals are even more rarely capable of maintaining their abilities through evolution. Possibly, a climatic variance or a founder effect (after all, ancestral mouse pokemon, like Alolan Raichu and Marill today, were semi-aquatic piscivores) made the Alolan variant of Raichu an exception to this rule.
Alolan Raichu are more often found on the seas separating the region's islands than on any individual isle, surfing Alola's tall waves and showing off a dazzling array of spins and jumps as they hunt for Wishiwashi to eat. While pokemon around the world have indeed learned surf, it is no accident that the sport of surfing developed in Alola, in emulation not of a water but an electric and psychic pokemon.
The use of electricity in fishing is banned by international treaty, sparked by concerns about declining global fish stocks and the damage done to marine ecosystems by Chinchou and other electric pokemon. Alola was not an initial signatory to the treaty, although its government had pushed hard for earlier drafts, because it is a rare fisherman in the region who goes to sea without their Alolan Raichu. Thankfully, Raichu's psychic powers give it careful control of its electric attacks, and they damage bystanders no more than water-type predators – an argument Alolan representatives used to finally win a globally recognized exemption for this unique variant of pokemon.