Spindly Culinid

The Spindly Culinid is a small member of the culinid family that feeds exclusively upon nectar. It may be found resting idly on the ground or walls, alone, or in groups consisting of up to five individuals that travel together. They remain completely stationary and motionless until approached by Pikmin that have bud- or flower-stage maturities, which they fly after, or leaders or leaf-stage Pikmin, which they flee from. Upon getting close enough to its prey, a Spindly Culinid will land on and proceed to suck the nectar out of them, reducing their maturity to the leaf stage, a process that takes a mere few seconds. Additionally, because Spindly Culinids can swiftly transfer between hosts, swarms of them can quickly diminish the efficiency of a Pikmin squad. To make matters worse, Spindly Culinids relentlessly pursue their prey until they flee far enough away, even following them throughout an entire area when given the opportunity. Spindly Culinids will also drink any nectar they find sitting out in the open. A Spindly Culinid may consume up to an entire blob of nectar before it becomes full. When it consumes an eighth or more of a blob of nectar, it becomes lethargic, a state in which its mobility is reduced significantly. It digests a tenth of a blob of nectar every fifteen seconds, which results in the permanent loss of that bit of nectar.

Spindly Culinids are small insects that strongly resemble real-world mosquitos, and are roughly the size of an average-size Pikmin. They have a black head and thorax, a transparent, beige abdomen, which allows its liquid contents to be visible, and a long proboscis. Their wings and legs are long and thin, giving the creatures their name, and their bulging compound eyes are red in color.

As annoying as they may be, Spindly Culinids are very fragile creatures and are just as easy to kill. Even a single hit delivered from a Pikmin or leader in any way will kill one instantly, and any nectar currently inside of its abdomen will be spat out upon its death and able to be used.