Disclaimer: What? Pokemon belongs to Nintendo? Oh darn.
Common Name: Yanmega, Megayanma
Scientific Name: Trigonithorax orcatextor
Description: Yanmega are enormous entomic pokemon, measuring more than 6 feet long with an incredible 14-foot wingspan! Their segmented exoskeleton is dark green in color, with two red spots on the sides of each segment. Their eyes are bulbous and red, each with a black 'T' marking. Their exoskeleton has four triangular crests growing out of the head, thorax, and tip of the abdomen. They have three pairs of wings, four large wings on the thorax and two small ones at the end of the abdomen, to stabilize and give extra lift. The two main wings have red tips. Yanmega have six black, spiny legs, a pair of claspers on the abdomen, and two small white antennae above the powerful mandibles.
Yanmega nymphs are dark brown in color, without wings or crests.
Range: Yanmega are native to southern Sinnoh.
Habitat: Yanmega live in coastal wetlands and marshes.
Call: The sound of a Yanmega's wings is truly incomparable. Like an airplane taking off, it is bone-rattling, and carries for more than a mile. Close up and at the right pitch, the sound can cause permanent ear damage.
Diet: Yanmega are consummate predators, pursuing Starly and Staravia in mid-air. Too loud in flight to be stealth hunters, they will perch silently on tall trees and other lookout points and survey the air for flying prey, which they overwhelm with speed and pluck out of the sky.
Life Cycle: Mating for Yanmega is a violent affair. They form huge breeding swarms in fall, flying in tight circles and trying not to crash into each other. There, in order to prevent her from mating with other males, the male Yanmega grabs the female behind her head with his claspers and forces her into the water, where she lays her eggs. He may stay hooked to her for days, until hunger finally drives him to let her go.
The eggs, of which there may be more than seventy, hatch into aquatic nymphs. These predators feed off of Marill, Wooper, and Barboach for about 6 months, until they reach adult size. At this point they shed their skin and emerge as winged adults.
Yanmega grow quickly, for their entire lifespan is only one year. They die with the coming of Sinnoh's harsh winter.
Relationship with Humans: Yanmega are often considered nuisances due to the noise of their wings. However, their range is fractured due to the draining and paving over of wetlands, and they rarely become numerous enough to be considered a pest. They are considered threatened, and the only place they may be caught is the semi-protected Great Marsh.
Naturalist's Notes: Trainers who own Yanmega often complain of headache and loss of hearing, and for good reason! Spending too much time around these pokemon is considered dangerous, for their sound often passes the pain threshold. Captive Yanmega must be trained to change the pitch of their wingbeats so as not to inflict harm on their trainers, but damage from long-term exposure can still occur.
As with Yanma, Yanmega nymphs are not considered pokemon, since they cannot be trained and learn no attacks.