Wurmple
Wurmple is a Bug-type Pokémon, the Worm Pokémon, number 265 (#0265) in the National Pokédex. It was introduced in Generation 3 and comes from the Hoenn region. It is 0.3 m tall and weighs 3.6 kg.
Wurmple is the Worm Pokémon, a spiky red caterpillar that grows into either the graceful Beautifly or the poisonous Dustox, and nothing about its looks reveals which. The Pokédex admits nobody knows why it evolves differently.
How to pronounce Wurmple
Wurmple is pronounced WURM-pul. The capital letters show the stressed syllable.
Listen to Wurmple said out loud:
In Japanese it is ケムッソ (Kemusso).
Hear every other name on the Pokémon pronunciation guide.
Lore
Biology
Wurmple is a small red caterpillar with a cream face and underside, large yellow eyes and five pairs of stubby white legs. It has a stinger on its head and two on its rear, stands 0.3 m tall and weighs 3.6 kg.
Behaviour
Wurmple is abundant in the wild. Birds such as Swellow and Starly hunt it, and when a predator closes in it turns its rear to face it and seeps poison from the spikes there to sap its strength.
Habitat
The Pokédex says it lives in tall grass and forests. In Ruby and Sapphire it is found on Hoenn Routes 101, 102 and 104 and in Petalburg Woods.
Diet
It strips bark from trees with the spikes on its rear end to get at the sap, and the Pokédex also says it loves eating leaves.
Powers
Wurmple knows Tackle, String Shot, Poison Sting and Bug Bite. Shield Dust blocks the extra effects of moves that hit it, and Run Away, its Hidden Ability, guarantees escape from wild battles. With only a 195 base total it exists mainly to evolve.
Name origin
Wurmple may combine 'worm' with 'rumple' (creased) or 'simple'. The Japanese name is Kemusso (ケムッソ), possibly from kemushi ('caterpillar').
Design inspiration
Wurmple is based on a caterpillar, perhaps those of the puss moth and the pipevine swallowtail. Bulbapedia cites Ken Sugimori saying it was made like Caterpie, to fill Caterpie's role in Hoenn as a simple line that teaches evolution.
Evolution notes
At level 7 Wurmple becomes Silcoon or Cascoon, decided by a hidden personality value, so it is effectively random. They become Beautifly and Dustox at level 10.
In the games
Wurmple fears being eaten by its partner Swellow as half of Team Tasty in Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darkness. It debuted in Ruby and Sapphire, and in Legends: Arceus it appears in mass outbreaks and in Request 1, 'Wurmple Can Evolve'. Bulbapedia lists it as unobtainable in Scarlet and Violet and Legends: Z-A.
In the anime
May caught her Wurmple in 'All in a Day's Wurmple'; it became a Silcoon and then a Beautifly, while Jessie's Wurmple became a Cascoon and then a Dustox.
Fun facts
- Bulbapedia notes a trick: evolve a Wurmple, then quit without saving, to see which form it takes; evolving the same Wurmple again always gives the same result.
- Only Wurmple's and Applin's lines in the game data fork and then keep evolving: both of Wurmple's branches do, but only Dipplin does for Applin.
- Wurmple has sometimes been drawn with a yellow horn behind its head by mistake, in Pokémon Pinball: Ruby & Sapphire sprites and in pre-release Legends: Arceus material, but the released game removed it.
Base stats
- HP: 45
- Attack: 45
- Defense: 35
- Sp. Atk: 20
- Sp. Def: 30
- Speed: 20
Wurmple’s base stat total is 195. Its highest stat is HP and Attack.
Type matchups
What is Wurmple weak to?
Wurmple takes extra damage from Fire (2×), Flying (2×), Rock (2×) moves.
It resists Grass (½×), Fighting (½×), Ground (½×).
Evolution
How does Wurmple evolve?
Wurmple evolves into Silcoon at level 7 (50% chance). Wurmple evolves into Cascoon at level 7 (50% chance).
The whole family: Wurmple, Silcoon, Beautifly, Cascoon, Dustox.
Abilities
- Shield Dust: Protects against incoming moves' extra effects.
- Run Away (hidden ability): Ensures success fleeing from wild battles.
Moves
Moves Wurmple learns by level up in Ultra Sun / Ultra Moon
| Level | Move | Type | Category | Power |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tackle | Normal | Physical | 40 |
| 1 | String Shot | Bug | Status | — |
| 5 | Poison Sting | Poison | Physical | 15 |
| 15 | Bug Bite | Bug | Physical | 60 |
Move tutor moves (3): Bug Bite, Electroweb, Snore.
Breeding & training
- Gender: 50% male, 50% female.
- Egg groups: Bug.
- Egg cycles: 15 (steps to hatch, Scarlet/Violet: 1,920).
- Catch rate: 255 out of 255.
- Base friendship (Gen 8 onward): 50.
- Growth rate: Medium (1,000,000 experience points to reach level 100).
- Defeating it gives 1 HP effort value.
- Base experience yield: 56.
Pokédex entries
Likes sap and is abundant in the wild. Why it evolves into various different forms is unknown. One cannot tell from a Wurmple's appearance which form it will take when it evolves. (Legends: Arceus)
Wurmple is targeted by Swellow as prey. This Pokémon will try to resist by pointing the spikes on its rear at the attacking predator. It will weaken the foe by leaking poison from the spikes. (Sapphire, Alpha Sapphire)
Using the spikes on its rear end, Wurmple peels the bark off trees and feeds on the sap that oozes out. This Pokémon's feet are tipped with suction pads that allow it to cling to glass without slipping. (Ruby, Omega Ruby)
It lives among the tall grass and in forests. It repels attacks by raising up the spikes on its rear. (HeartGold, SoulSilver, Y)
It loves to eat leaves. If it is attacked by a Starly, it will defend itself with its spiked rear. (Diamond, X)
Often targeted by bird Pokémon, it desperately resists by releasing poison from its tail spikes. (Platinum, Black, White, Black 2, White 2)
Names around the world
| Japanese | ケムッソ |
|---|---|
| Romaji | Kemusso |
| French | Chenipotte |
| German | Waumpel |
| Spanish | Wurmple |
| Italian | Wurmple |
| Korean | 개무소 |
| Chinese (Simplified) | 刺尾虫 |
| Chinese (Traditional) | 刺尾蟲 |
Trivia
- Shortest Bug type in Gen 3: 0.3 m.
- Lowest base stat total among Bug types in Gen 3: 195.
- Taller than 4% of all Pokémon (0.3 m).
- Heavier than 12% of all Pokémon (3.6 kg).
- Base stat total 195, ranked #1017 of 1,025.
- One of 92 Bug-type Pokémon (counting dual types).
- One of 97 red Pokémon.
- Number 14 of 135 Pokémon introduced in Generation 3 (Hoenn).
- Part of an evolution family of 5 Pokémon.
- Can learn 6 different moves in Ultra Sun / Ultra Moon.
- Catch rate 255: about 33.3% per Poké Ball at full health.
- Appears in 9 distinct Pokédex entries.
Sources and fact-checking
- Stats, types, abilities, moves, evolutions, forms and Pokédex entries: PokéAPI open game data.
- Lore: written by pokee.si in our own words, researched from Bulbapedia: Wurmple (Pokémon), Serebii: Wurmple (Sword/Shield Pokédex).
- Pronunciation (WURM-pul): it follows how the English anime, games or official videos say it.
Last checked: . Every sentence of the lore was checked against Bulbapedia, Serebii and the game data.
Explore
Bug-type Pokémon · Hoenn region guide · Shield Dust ability · Run Away ability · Compare Wurmple · Full Pokédex · Type chart · All moves
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