Wolpole

Wolpoles (known as Wogpoles in North America until the Switch ports of Pikmin 1 and Pikmin 2 and in Europe until New Play Control! Pikmin) are harmless enemies in the Pikmin games. They resemble s in appearance, and are in fact the larval form of the frog-like Yellow Wollyhops.

In Pikmin, they only appear in the The Forest of Hope and The Distant Spring areas. They are typically a hard-to-get, low-reward enemy in that they are fast swimmers which produce only one Pikmin seed when carried to the Onion. In Pikmin 2, Wolpoles are found in the Awakening Wood (being chased by wild Blue Pikmin) and the Perplexing Pool, as well as the sublevels of certain caves where they have the treasure value of merely. While being chased, Wolpoles may sometimes accidentally beach themselves, flopping about helplessly until they land safely back in the water. They may also drop from the ceiling, usually on a dry spot in an otherwise wet level. As a side note, the Wogpoles in Pikmin seem to be younger than those in later games, due to the presence of external gills.

In Pikmin 3, they can be found in the Tropical Wilds, the Garden of Hope, and the Distant Tundra. Their skin is now a teal color instead of dark blue, and their AI has been refined to run directly away from approaching leaders instead of in random directions.

Strategy
In Pikmin and Pikmin 2, although they constantly swim away from leaders, Wolpoles will occasionally stop for a few seconds when only chased by Pikmin, giving the Pikmin a chance to attack. Wolpoles themselves can't attack, but they can cause flower Pikmin to lose their petals when they shake the predators off. Since they only yield one Pikmin seed when retrieved, they're almost always more trouble than they're worth.

One way to catch it mid-chase is to extend your Pikmin group into a line such that the creature swims into the line. This does not necessarily mean it will be hurt, though. If any Wolpoles are on land (such as in the Shower Room, where they drop from the ceiling), they can easily be attacked with any Pikmin, though their floundering can make the process slower.

The new AI in Pikmin 3 allows the player to rather easily force the Wogpole along the pond walls until it flops onto land, allowing even non-Blue Pikmin to kill it and take it with them. If the Wogpole is not killed in time, it will eventually flop its way back into water and swim to its spawning location, regardless if it is being chased or not, making it even easier to defeat than the original Wolpole with Blue Pikmin. It might also stand still for a while, granting an opportunity for a charge.

Trivia

 * The Wolpoles that spawn in Garden of Hope, within the water near base, no longer appear in . This change was likely made to discourage new players from throwing their Red Pikmin into the water. Their absence means Wolpoles do not appear in the Garden of Hope at all in this version.
 * Despite this, Wolpoles still appear in that location in their Piklopedia video and have their main habitat listed as "Garden of Hope, etc.".
 * Their legs are only present in Pikmin, having been removed in later games for unknown reasons.
 * Before the inclusion of the Puckering Blinnows and Sputtlefish in Pikmin 3, Wolpoles were the only enemy in the Pikmin series to be exclusively water dwelling.