Disclaimer: What? Pokemon belongs to Nintendo? Oh darn.
Common Name: Spearow, Onisuzume
Scientific Name: Parvabuteo fera
Description: Spearow are small, avian pokemon, measuring 17 inches long with a 30-inch wingspan. They have a cream underbelly, a black back and sides, a brown head with a short, ragged crest, a short brown tail, and rounded reddish wings with pale tips and a white underwing. Their three-toed feet and sharp beak are pinkish beige.
Range: Spearow are found throughout northern and central Kanto and Johto, and are widespread in the Sevii Islands. They have also been introduced to the Northeastern Island of Sinnoh.
Habitat: Spearow will live in any lowland, wooded habitat.
Call: Spearow sing a warbling song with two phrases: paroo, piroo. Their alarm call is an extremely loud shriek, audible from quite a distance away even through thick brush.
Diet: Spearow are almost entirely insectivorous, feeding on nonpokemon insects. They will also eat nonpokemon rodents and reptiles, if they can, and occasionally sample fruit.
Spearow hunt from a perch, or by flapping their wings at clumps of vegetation and snapping up anything that is disturbed by the breeze.
Life Cycle: Spearow select their mates based on singing ability, and will pair bond for many years, and sometimes their entire lives. They will often sing together and allogroom to cement their bond, and are fierce in protecting each other.
Spearow are cooperative breeders, meaning that multiple pokemon work together to rear their young. Parent Spearow will often recruit older siblings, aunts, and uncles to help raise the 3-5 chicks, especially if those relatives have not found mates. In years with ample food, the parents may have to rear their young alone, but in lean years the Spearow come together, rearing their young in cooperation. This gives the chicks a better chance of survival.
Spearow can live about 15 years.
Relationship with Humans: Although the public tends to not particularly like Spearow, viewing them as coarse and violent, they are very common in most regions of Kanto and Johto. They have not been overly impacted by the battle trade, and have in fact benefited from the removal of most of their major predators. They are thus not considered threatened.
Historically, Spearow have been trained to deliver mail, an art that is still practiced in some secluded regions.
Naturalist's Notes: Spearow are very social pokemon, living in large, loosely-related flocks. They often nest all in the same group of trees, and have even been seen sharing food, seemingly altruistically. They defend the flock's territory as one, and mob predators together. However, an observer would never guess at this level of group cohesion, for Spearow often squabble amongst themselves for feeding rights, kicking and pulling feathers. Still, they are rarely seriously hurt in these fights.
Spearow are prey for Meowth, Persian, Ekans, Noctowl, and Yanma, and their eggs are food for many others.
Spearow are thought to be quite intelligent, and can mimic both the voices and actions of other pokemon, learning about the world through observation and imitation. Interestingly, they have not been recorded to mimic human speech.