‘Pokémon Go’ Gender Differences Update: Female Pikachu Are Appearing In The Wild

Pokémon Go was updated to version 0.53, which changed how the mobile game tracked distance and accounted for GPS drift. It also tweaked the interface of the Apple Watch Pokémon Go app to display Pokémon eggs obtained at PokeStops.

But another feature was added to Pokémon Go and it has gone unannounced by Niantic. It seems that gender differences in Pokémon have popped up in the game, specifically with Pikachu.

The Pokémon Go subreddit and The Silph Road have images and claims of finding female Pikachu in the wild and a male Pikachu becoming a female Raichu when it evolves.

These reports are saying that only Pikachu has seen the gender difference because it’s one of the most recognizable in Pokémon.

Female Pikachu have a heart shape at the end of their tails. Male Pikachu have the normal lightning bolt tail. Gender differences in Raichu are not as obvious. Female Raichu have a shorter tail than male Raichu, and that’s all.

Genders in Pokémon were formally introduced in Gen 2 (outside of the Nidoran lines in Gen 1), and while genders don’t affect battles, they affect how certain Pokémon look and in some cases how they evolve.

If more gendered Pokémon appear in the wild of Pokémon Go, or if Niantic confirms this new feature we will update.

In the meantime, let us know if you encountered a female Pikachu in Pokémon Go, and sound off with your thoughts on the secret update in the comments section below.