In commemoration of Nintendo’s 135ᵗʰ anniversary, September 20 to 30 is NIWA Cross-Wiki Week. Click here for event details and the possibility to win a $20/€20 Nintendo eShop gift card. Please remember to follow the manual of style and code of conduct at all times. Check the Bulbagarden home page for up-to-date Pokémon news and discuss it on the forums or in the Bulbagarden Discord server.
Ivysaur, like its pre-evolved form, Bulbasaur, resembles a toad or a quadruped dinosaur, though the patches in its skin cause it to resemble a dinosaur more closely. After evolving from Bulbasaur, Ivysaur grows small fangs and has visible ear insides and pupils. Ivysaur's skin is also a little bit bluer than Bulbasaur's. The most notable difference in Ivysaur's appearance, however, is that its bulb has changed into a pink flower bud with leaves extending. This flower bud is heavy, thus making its back legs grow strong and sturdy to support it, causing it to be unable to rise on its hind legs. In Sugimori artworks and game sprites, Ivysaur's eyes are red. In the anime, Dream World, and Pokémon Trozei!, its eyes are purple. Again, it has three toes or claws growing out of its legs.
Gender differences
None.
Special abilities
Much like its previous form, most of Ivysaur's abilities originate from the plant on its back. Naturally, these attacks are stronger than Bulbasaur's.
Its abilities focus on the manipulation of petals, powders, and scents more than vines and leaves, most likely because of the larger flower on its back.
In the anime, Ivysaur are shown to manipulate nature.
Behavior
Being much more commonly found in captivity than in the wild, Ivysaur's natural behavior is largely unknown, but it can be theorized that they are more aggressive than Bulbasaur, although it is still very loyal to its Trainer. When its plant is ready to bloom, it gives off a distinct, strong sweet-smelling aroma and starts swelling. Ivysaur will also start spending more time in sunlight in preparation for its upcoming evolution. Like its plant, exposure to sunlight adds to Ivysaur's strength.
Ivysaur's natural habitat seems to consist of plains with access to large amounts of sunshine and fresh water but can be found in forests and jungles. However, they are rare, as many are in captivity. They are normally native to Kanto.
Ivysaur was among the numerous Pokémon who moved closer to the sea as it sensed the disturbance caused by Lawrence III in the second movie, The Power of One.
Multiple Ivysaur appeared in the intro of Destiny Deoxys.
The Seed Pokémon, Ivysaur, Bulbasaur's evolved form. The bulb on its back absorbs nourishment and blooms into a large flower.
In the manga
In the Electric Tale of Pikachu manga
In I'm Your Venusaur, Ash's Bulbasaur and Pikachu befriend a wild Ivysaur who tells them the legend of a 300-year-old Venusaur, who is the local guardian. Together, they search for the Venusaur, and defeat Team Rocket, who attempted to steal it.
Ivysaur is a playable Pokémon used by the Pokémon Trainer. It can use the moves Bullet Seed as a rapid aerial striking move and Vine Whip as a recovery move where the vine is shot out to latch onto edges of a stage and pulled back up again. It also uses the projectile attack Razor Leaf. Ivysaur is a Middleweight and uses mostly physical Grass-type attacks. It uses SolarBeam in Red's Final Smash, Triple Finish.
"A Seed Pokémon that is the evolved form of Bulbasaur. It has a flower bulb on its back, the weight of which has made it develop strong legs and hips. If the blossom gets too big, it can't stand on two legs alone. At a certain level, it evolves into Venusaur. When this happens, the bulb absorbs nutrients and blossoms into a large-petaled flower."
Game data
Pokédex entries
This Pokémon was unavailable prior to Generation I.
There is a bud on this Pokémon's back. To support its weight, Ivysaur's legs and trunk grow thick and strong. If it starts spending more time lying in the sunlight, it's a sign that the bud will bloom into a large flower soon.
Additionally, Ivysaur is the only playable quadrupedal character in the Super Smash Bros. series (although both Pikachu and Pichu will be on four legs when running).
Ivysaur is the only second stage Grass/Poison Pokémon that does not require an evolution stone to reach its final form.
Ivysaur is the only second stage form of the Kanto starter Pokémon to not be directly seen under the ownership of a main character in the anime. May owns a Venusaur that she evolved from a Bulbasaur, but it was never seen onscreen as an Ivysaur.
Ivysaur is the only second stage dual-type Grass-type starter Pokémon.
Ivysaur is the only Generation I Pokémon whose name begins with I.
Ivysaur is the only second stage form of Generation I starter Pokémon that evolves at level 32. Charmeleon and Wartortle evolve at level 36.
Starting at level 15, Ivysaur learns moves alternatively every 3 and 5 levels, until level 44.
Due to the censor that prevents Pokémon with offensive nicknames being traded on the GTS, an English language Ivysaur cannot be traded on the GTS without a nickname in Pokémon Black and White.
Origin
Ivysaur appears to be based primarily on some form of reptile, specifically mammal-like reptiles known as Dicynodonts from the Permian period. Along with visible ears and no genuine metamorphosis stage (evolution aside), Ivysaur appears to have more in common with mammals than amphibians like frogs and toads, which metamorphose from one definite creature into another as they mature as opposed to just growing into a larger adult version of itself the way that Bulbasaur does.
The bulb on its back now resembles the bud of a species of parasitic flowering plants known as Rafflesia.
Name origin
Ivysaur is a combination of the words ivy (woody climbing or trailing plant genus) and the Greek saur (lizard).
Fushigisou can be taken to mean "it seems strange" or 不思議 草 fushigi sou (strange grass).
This Pokémon article is part of Project Pokédex, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on each Pokémon species, as well as Pokémon groups and forms.