Ekans (Japanese: アーボ Arbo) is a Poison-type Pokémon introduced in Generation I.
It evolves into Arbok starting at level 22.
Biology
Ekans is a purple, serpentine Pokémon. Its eyes, underbelly, the thick stripe around its neck, and the rattle are yellow. Ekans have three pairs of black lines encircling their body, and another line connects to each slit-pupil eye and curves toward its nose. Its large mouth has a round, pink tongue and no visible teeth. While painful, a newborn Ekans's bite is not venomous. This Pokémon grows longer with age.
Ekans live in grassy savannas and plains, moving stealthily through the grass. It can also be found in forests and desolate wastelands, where it preys on Eggs from Pidgey and Spearow nests but will strike other prey from behind. By flicking its tongue out, it can detect danger and the scent of prey. Its jaw can detach to swallow large prey, but such a meal can make Ekans too heavy to move or become stuck and cause them to faint. It wraps itself around tree branches at night to rest. If not in a tree, it will coil itself up—a position in which it can defend itself from all directions. In the second movie, it is revealed to possess some swimming abilities. As shown in Pokémon Sleep, Ekans are known to sleep with their bodies all coiled up. It is believed that Ekans do this to terrify foes, no matter which direction the foe is.
Before Generation II, Ekans and its evolved form, Arbok, were the only known Pokémon capable of learning the move Glare.
Evolution
Ekans evolves into Arbok.
(For specifics on this Pokémon's Evolution in the games, refer to Game data→Evolution data.)
Game data
NPC appearances
Pokédex entries
| Generation I | | | Kanto
#023 |
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| Red(JPN) | (This entry was originally untranslated in English until it was reused in Pokémon FireRed.) |
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| Green |
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| Red(ENG) | Moves silently and stealthily. Eats the eggs of birds, such as Pidgey and Spearow, whole. |
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| Blue |
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| Yellow | The older it gets, the longer it grows. At night, it wraps its long body around tree branches to rest. |
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| Stadium | Slithers silently through grass, searching for its favorite food--Pidgey and Spearow eggs. |
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| Generation II | | | Johto
#050 |
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| Gold | It can freely detach its jaw to swallow large prey whole. It can become too heavy to move, however. |
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| Silver | It always hides in grass. When first born, it has no poison, so its bite is painful, but harmless. |
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| Crystal | It flutters the tip of its tongue to seek out the scent of prey, then swallows the prey whole. |
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| Stadium 2 | It can freely detach its jaw to swallow large prey whole. It can become too heavy to move, however. (Pokémon Red, Silver, or Crystal inserted)
It always hides in grass. When first born, it has no poison, so its bite is painful, but harmless. (Pokémon Blue, Gold, or Yellow inserted) |
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| Generation III | | Hoenn
#— | | Kanto
#023 |
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| Ruby | Ekans curls itself up in a spiral while it rests. Assuming this position allows it to quickly respond to a threat from any direction with a glare from its upraised head. |
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| Sapphire |
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| Emerald | An Ekans curls itself up in a spiral while it rests. This position allows it to quickly respond to an enemy from any direction with a threat from its upraised head. |
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| FireRed | A very common sight in grassland, etc. It flicks its tongue in and out to sense danger in its surroundings. |
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| LeafGreen | Moving silently and stealthily, it eats the eggs of birds, such as Pidgey and Spearow, whole. |
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| Generation IV | | Sinnoh
#— | | Johto
#050 |
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| Diamond | It sneaks through grass without making a sound and strikes unsuspecting prey from behind. |
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| Pearl |
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| Platinum |
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| HeartGold | It can freely detach its jaw to swallow large prey whole. It can become too heavy to move, however. |
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| SoulSilver | It always hides in grass. When first born, it has no poison, so its bite is painful, but harmless. |
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| Generation V | | | Unova
#— |
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| Black | It sneaks through grass without making a sound and strikes unsuspecting prey from behind. |
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| White |
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| Black 2 | It sneaks through grass without making a sound and strikes unsuspecting prey from behind. |
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| White 2 |
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| Generation VI | | Kalos
Mountain #037 | | Hoenn
#— |
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| X | The older it gets, the longer it grows. At night, it wraps its long body around tree branches to rest. |
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| Y | Moving silently and stealthily, it eats the eggs of birds, such as Pidgey and Spearow, whole. |
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| Omega Ruby | Ekans curls itself up in a spiral while it rests. Assuming this position allows it to quickly respond to a threat from any direction with a glare from its upraised head. |
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| Alpha Sapphire |
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| Generation VII | | Alola
US UM : #061 | | Kanto
#023 |
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| This Pokémon has no Pokédex entries in Sun and Moon. |
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| Ultra Sun | By dislocating its jaw, it can swallow prey larger than itself. After a meal, it curls up and rests. |
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| Ultra Moon | The eggs of bird Pokémon are its favorite food. It swallows eggs whole, so sometimes an egg gets stuck, and Ekans faints. |
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| Let's Go Pikachu | The older it gets, the longer it grows. At night, it wraps its long body around tree branches to rest. |
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| Let's Go Eevee |
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| Generation IX | | Paldea
#— | | Kitakami
#18 | | Blueberry
#— |
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| Scarlet | It can freely detach its jaw to swallow large prey whole. It can become too heavy to move, however. |
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| Violet | A very common sight in grasslands and such. It flicks its tongue in and out to sense danger in its surroundings. |
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Game locations
In side games
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| Generation II | |
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| This Pokémon is unavailable in Generation II side games. |
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In events
Held items
Pokémon caught in Generation I must be traded to a Generation II game in order for a held item to appear.
Stats
Base stats
Pokéathlon stats
Type effectiveness
| Under normal battle conditions in Generation IX, this Pokémon is: | |
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Learnset
Ekans is available in Scarlet and Violet Version 2.0.1+.
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- Bold indicates a move that gets STAB when used by Ekans
- Italic indicates a move that gets STAB only when used by an Evolution of Ekans
- Click on the generation numbers at the top to see level-up moves from other generations
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- Bold indicates a move that gets STAB when used by Ekans
- Italic indicates a move that gets STAB only when used by an Evolution or an alternate form of Ekans
- Click on the generation numbers at the top to see TM moves from other generations
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- Moves marked with an asterisk (*) must be chain bred onto Ekans
- Bold indicates a move that gets STAB when used by Ekans
- Italic indicates a move that gets STAB only when used by an Evolution of Ekans
- Click on the generation numbers at the top to see Egg moves from other generations
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Side game data
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Pokémon Ranger| Group: | | Poké Assist: | 
| Field move: | None | | Loops: 5 | Min. exp.: 28 | Max. exp.: 42 | Browser entry R-151
| | If it spots a Capture Disc, Ekans will slither straight toward it. |
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Pokémon Rumble Rush | Walking Speed: 2.33 seconds | Base HP: 43 | | | Base Attack: 67 | Base Defense: 48 | Base Speed: 60 |
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Evolution data
Sprites
In the anime
Main series
Major appearances
Jessie received an Ekans as a chūgen gift (a birthday gift in the dub) prior to the start of the series. It debuted in Pokémon Emergency!, which also marked the species' debut. It was extremely loyal to her and eventually evolved into an Arbok in Dig Those Diglett! just to make her happy.
Ekans was part of Team Meanies in Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Team Go-Getters Out of the Gate!. Gengar commanded the Poisonous Snake Pokémon to eat all of the Berries Team Go-Getters had collected. At one point, Ekans was incorrectly referred to as Arbok by Gengar. While this was an intentional error that Ekans rebuked in the original version (due to the similarities between the Japanese names), this came across as a general mistake in the dub and was corrected in reruns of the episode.
Other
In A Poached Ego!, multiple Ekans were captured by Rico. Jessie released her Arbok along with James's Weezing so they could protect these Ekans and a group of captured Koffing.
In Turning Heads and Training Hard!, a Team Skull Grunt's Ekans was quickly defeated by Ilima and his Eevee. In Battle Royal 151!, it competed in the Manalo Conference, only to be defeated by Ilima's Eevee again.
In Dreams Are Made of These!, Goh caught an Ekans during a Pokémon Orienteering competition. It has since made further appearances in Pokémon Journeys: The Series.
Minor appearances
A Trainer's Ekans appeared in Mewtwo Strikes Back and Mewtwo Strikes Back—Evolution.
In Pikachu's Vacation, an Ekans was at the Pokémon Theme Park.
In The Power of One, multiple Ekans sensed the disturbance caused by Lawrence III.
An Ekans appeared in the Japanese credits of Pikachu's Rescue Adventure.
In Carrying On!, a sick Ekans was in Way Away Island's Pokémon Center.
In Different Strokes for Different Blokes, an Ekans was a resident of Bewilder Forest.
An Ekans appeared in a fantasy in A Dancing Debut!.
In The Power of Us, Ash caught an Ekans in a special blue Poké Ball for the Pokémon Catch Race.
In a flashback in Enter Pikachu!, an Ekans attacked Pichu, only to be scared off when Pichu retaliated.
An Ekans appeared in Trade, Borrow, and Steal!.
A Trainer's Ekans appeared in Crowning the Chow Crusher!.
A Trainer's Ekans got stuck in Gulpin's giant ball in A Rollicking Roll….
Pokémon Origins
In File 1: Red, an Ekans was one of the Pokémon seen in Professor Oak's introduction.
An Ekans appeared in File 3: Giovanni.
In the manga
The Electric Tale of Pikachu
Main article: Jessie's EkansJessie's Arbok first appeared as an Ekans in Pikachu's Excellent Adventure.
Magical Pokémon Journey
Main article: Ekans BrothersA pair of Ekans known as the Ekans Brothers are part of the supporting cast in Magical Pokémon Journey. Led by Arbok, they are originally antagonists, but later befriend the main characters when Arbok gets a crush on Wigglytuff.
Pocket Monsters HGSS Jō's Big Adventure
An Ekans appeared in JBA4, under the ownership of a Team Rocket Grunt.
Pokémon Adventures
Ekans debuted in Go for the Golbat, under the ownership of Koga. It appeared on his arm.
An Ekans appeared in a flashback in Growing Out of Gengar, where it was driven away from its home after the Power Plant had been abandoned.
Harry of the Team Rocket Elite Trio has an Ekans, which first appeared in The Coming of Slowpoke (Eventually).
A Team Rocket Grunt in Johto owns an Ekans, as seen in Sneasel Sneak Attack.
An Ekans was one of the Pokémon pitted against Gold when he offered to help out at the Day Care near Goldenrod City in Quilava Quandary.
An Ekans appeared in The Final Battle IV, where it was one of the Pokémon that helped Emerald with his disabilities.
Team Skull Grunts were seen with an Ekans in Flash and Cosmog's Secret.
Pokémon Gold & Silver: The Golden Boys
An Ekans appeared in The New Pokémon Is Hatched!!.
Pokémon Gotta Catch 'Em All
An Ekans appeared in GDZ21.
An Ekans appeared in GDZ23.
An Ekans appeared in GDZ27.
An Ekans appeared in GDZ34.
Pokémon Pocket Monsters
An Ekans appeared in Catch That Pokémon Thief!!.
An Ekans appeared in Marill's Special Training to Surpass Pikachu!!.
An Ekans appeared in To the Dragon's Den!!.
Pokémon Ranger the Comic: Double Mission
An Ekans appeared in Pokémon Ranger the Comic: Double Mission Episode Two as one of the Pokémon that Solana captured with her Capture Styler. It reappeared in Pokémon Ranger the Comic: Double Mission Episode Four and was released in Pokémon Ranger the Comic: Double Mission Episode Five.
Pokémon Zensho
An Ekans appeared in a fantasy in PZ01.
In the TCG
Main article: Ekans (TCG)In the TFG
One Ekans figure has been released.
Trivia
- In the Pokémon Red and Blue beta, Ekans was originally known as "Arbo", its romanized Japanese name.
- In early official art of Ekans, all of the bands on its body were colored yellow instead of just the one on its "neck". This was changed in later art.
- An Ekans was originally going to be featured in Pokémon Snap, as shown in an early test shot of an environment that was never featured in the final product. This is also true of its evolution, Arbok.
- Ekans is one of fourteen Pokémon that one can collect foreign Pokédex entries for in Pokémon Diamond and Pearl.
- Ekans has never been scanned with a Pokédex in the animated series, despite debuting in the second episode of the original series. Thusly, it is the Pokémon with the most episodes aired after its debut without it getting a Pokédex entry.
Origin
Ekans seems to be based on various snakes. Its venomous bite and tail rattle are similar to a rattlesnake, while its lack of visible teeth and diet of eggs are similar to an egg-eating snake. The single yellow stripe around its neck is reminiscent of the ring-necked snake, and the line connecting its eyes is reminiscent of the marking on the back of the Indian cobra's hood. The fact that it is in the Dragon Egg Group and its ability to learn Glare may be a reference to the legendary basilisk, a venomous, serpentine dragon said to be able to kill people with its stare.
Name origin
Ekans is snake spelled backwards.[1][2]
Arbo may be derived from cobra or ボア boa spelled backwards.
In other languages
Related articles
References
External links
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