Cataquack

Cataquack
Artwork of a Cataquack in Super Mario Sunshine
Chronological information
First game	Super Mario Sunshine (2002)
Latest game	Super Mario 3D All-Stars (2020)
Game appearances	Mario Kart: Double Dash!! Super Mario Galaxy Mario Kart Wii
Biological information
Located	Gelato Beach Gold Leaf Galaxy Beach Bowl Galaxy
Subspecies	Plungelo
Game information
Attacks	Lunging Mario up into the air

Cataquacks (ポイハナ, Poihana^?) are a duck-based species which appear in some Mario games. They first appear in Super Mario Sunshine.

Profile

Physical description

A Cataquack has a round body, usually colored either blue or red, and a large, green circle surrounded by a yellow ring on the left and right sides of its body each. Cataquacks have a beak similar to a duck. Cataquacks have a pair of thins legs and wear shoes matching the main color of their body. The main part of a Cataquack's body resembles a Wiggler segment.

Behavior

Throughout their appearances, the main behavioral trait of a Cataquack is using its beak to fling Mario or another character high into the air, similar to Heave Hos in Super Mario 64. Cataquacks have a tendency to quack like regular ducks, as their name suggests.

Etymology

A Cataquack's name is a portmanteau of "catapult," referring to how they lunge a character up into the air, and "quack," an onomatopoeia of the sounds that they make.

In the Super Mario series

Super Mario Sunshine

A red Cataquack moving toward Mario in Super Mario Sunshine

Cataquacks are mainly just encountered in Gelato Beach. They are also among the enemies to appear at random in Sirena Beach's fifth episode, King Boo Down Below, during the boss fight against King Boo, who sometimes spits out Cataquacks if he rolls three question mark slots.

Cataquacks appear in blue and red varieties, the former of which is more common. Both share a common trait of wandering around aimlessly until they sense Mario nearby, upon which the Cataquack gives chase. If a Cataquack's beak touches Mario, he is flung high up into the air. The advantage to this is that it enables Mario to reach certain higher areas and coins that he cannot do otherwise, but the disadvantage is that Mario can take damage upon falling back onto the ground. Red Cataquacks are more aggressive and instantly damage Mario upon lunging him upward. Blue Cataquacks are lazy and often tend to sleep if Mario is outside of their range for a while. Mario can still take damage from a blue Cataquack if he touches its body.

Both types of Cataquacks are invulnerable to most attacks. Mario can stun a Cataquack by spraying it with FLUDD, causing the Cataquack to flip over. While a Cataquack is stunned, Mario can spray it again to keep the Cataquack stunned for longer. If Mario jumps onto a Cataquack that has been flipped over, it releases a coin. A Cataquack can only be entirely defeated by either having Yoshi eat it, using a Dune Bud to launch it into the air, or by guiding it to a body of water while using the Hover Nozzle.

According to a Noki in Gelato Beach, the red Cataquacks are new to Gelato Beach. In Episode 1: Dune Bud Sand Castle Secret, there is only one red Cataquack. Their presence of Cataquacks increases gradually throughout the episodes, up to Episode 8: The Watermelon Festival, in which red Cataquacks have taken over almost the entire area, and only one blue Cataquack can be found standing on a palm tree. In Episode 1 and Episode 8, Mario can flip over the only red and only blue Cataquack to have it release a Blue Coin, respectively.

Red Cataquacks are the main obstacle in Episode 8, as they appear throughout most of Mario's path as he takes the large watermelon over to the Surf Cabana. Whenever one of the watermelons touch a Cataquack, the watermelon is launched upward and breaks upon hitting the ground.

Super Mario Galaxy

Two Cataquacks approach Mario in Super Mario Galaxy

Cataquacks appear in the Gold Leaf Galaxy and the Beach Bowl Galaxy, and all of them are colored blue. Cataquacks are no longer classified as enemies, and some Honeybees keep them as pets. Just as before, a Cataquack launches Mario up into the air if he touches one. Mario no longer takes damage from falling down from a height. Being launched by a Cataquack allows Mario to access certain higher areas that he cannot otherwise reach. A Cataquack can only be defeated if it walks into a body of water, but it respawns . Mario can flip over and briefly stun a Cataquack by either spinning next to it, ground-pounding next to the Cataquack, or touching it as Rainbow Mario.

According to one of the bees, Cataquacks are native to the Flower Planet of the Gold Leaf Galaxy.

In the Mario Kart series

Mario Kart: Double Dash!!

Cataquacks in the course select icon of Peach Beach in Mario Kart: Double Dash!!

Both red and blue Cataquacks are encountered as obstacles on the course Peach Beach in Mario Kart: Double Dash!! as well as the newly introduced green and purple colors. If a racer touches a Cataquack, they get thrown into the air, and they also lose their item, which lies on the ground. A Cataquack can be flipped onto its back if hit by either a Red Shell or a Green Shell or whenever a racer uses a Lightning.

Unlike in Super Mario Sunshine, none of the Cataquack color variations are any different from one another.

Mario Kart Wii

Catatquacks return in GCN Peach Beach. Here, they do not chase racers during online races or Time Trials, making them easier to avoid. An exclamation point is displayed on Cataquack's head whenever a racer drives near it. Cataquacks can be briefly stunned from the same items as before, but with the addition of using a POW Block, driving into the Cataquack while under the effects of a Mega Mushroom, and charging into one while using a Bullet Bill.