#015. Forgegg

Fanart by : Forgegg





Pokémon is © to Nintendo and Game Freak

Forgegg is © to me.

Egg Mimic PokemonGenderlessOften mistaken for Pokemon eggs by inexperienced trainers, Forgegg spend their whole lives intruding upon the nests of other Pokemon, without their knowledge. They are able to withraw into their egg-shaped shell, which is highly adaptive and able to change its color to match the eggs of specific Pokemon species. Forgegg depend on the host Pokemon to blindly keep them warm, feeding on scraps of food, skin or feathers that are left behind. Forgegg prefer to invade the nests of feathered Pokemon which brood their eggs, enabling them to charge up on the static electricity emitted by the brooding Pokemon. If discovered, they are able to discharge an electric shockwave that temporarily paralyzes their hosts, giving them enough time to escape and potentially invade another nest in the vicinity. These genderless Pokemon reproduce through parthenogenesis, as their shell contains a compartment that houses their own egg. Once their egg is partially developed, it is detached along with the whole surrounding shell and left in the host nest until fully incubated and hatched. The parent Forgegg quickly forms a new shell and invades the next available nest. They tend to stay camouflaged as eggs when picked up by trainers, being drawn to the static electricity of their equipment. This disguise is maintained until the Pokemon's true identity is discovered.These Pokemon can only be obtained from Pokemon nests, an NPC trying to sell a "Mysterious Egg" to the player, or from the Pokemon Day Care (10% of the time). After obtaining it, a Forgegg will be labeled as a "Pokemon Egg", but will never hatch. In order to properly reveal it, a player must either send this egg into battle or show it to an NPC called an "Egg Specialist", who is able to determine the number of steps required for a Pokemon Egg to hatch. Forgegg can have different forms based on the egg of the Pokemon whose nest it was invading before being obtained."Forged" + "Egg"Man I love this concept, it mixes up 3 very bizarre biological adaptations, but first let me say something about the design. I was originally intending it to a be snail with an egg-like shell, however, snails are slow and it would be impossible for such a creature to escape quickly if discovered (though it would be pretty hilarious for it to paralyze the hosts and then spend hours just moving to another nest a few feet away). So its just a cute blob fairy Jigglypuff-like thing. Now for the concepts. Firstly we have the phenomenon of kleptothermy, where usually cold-blooded animals intrude upon the nests or burrows of warm-blooded animals and live there, stealing warmth from the hosts. This is perfect for an egg mimic concept. Secondly, I utilized brood parasitism, a phenomenon where a parent animal will leave its egg in the nest (or even mouth!) of another species. This host species will then unintentionally incubate the egg, thinking it is theirs. Sometimes, like is the case with the cuckoo bird, the parent will actually feed and care for the hatched young. Many bird species that rely on brood parasitism have actually adapted to lay eggs that look almost identical to the eggs of their hosts, thus Forgegg's various shell forms. Finally, we have parthenogenesis, the ability of a female animal to produce offspring out of unfertilized eggs. These organisms are almost exclusively female. A very well-known case of this is in aphids, that are actually one of the rare species of insect which give birth to live young, and to top it off, aphids are actually born pregnant, making them able to produce a gigantic number of offspring in a short time period.You can use or share my artwork however you see fit as long as you also credit me and/or supply a link to this page.