To compete, Trainers must catch the single best Template:Type2Pokémon they can find. To do this, Trainers are given twenty Sport Balls (similar to Safari Balls; called "Park Balls" in Generation II), and they are only allowed to use a single Pokémon from their party. The rest of a Trainer's Pokémon and all of their items remain with the contest officials until the competition is over.
Any Pokémon caught will be recorded in the Pokédex, but only one Pokémon can be kept to be judged. The Pokémon that is judged may be kept after the competition.
The competition ends when all the Sport Balls are used, the trainer whites out, the trainer leaves the park, or 20 minutes have passed. After that, the judging will occur, in which Trainers are scored on their skills of capturing rare and powerful Pokémon.
A colored background means that the Pokémon can be found in this location in the specified game. A white background with a colored letter means that the Pokémon cannot be found here.
Scyther, Pinsir and one family of Template:Type2s (Caterpie, Metapod and Butterfree in Silver, Weedle, Kakuna and Beedrill in Gold) can only be caught during the Bug-Catching contest. All the others can be caught in the wild outside the contest.
A colored background means that the Pokémon can be found in this location in the specified game. A white background with a colored letter means that the Pokémon cannot be found here.
A colored background means that the Pokémon can be found in this location in the specified game. A white background with a colored letter means that the Pokémon cannot be found here.
Scoring
The score earned for a given Pokémon in the Bug-Catching Contest is the sum of the individual Pokémon's stats, which can be estimated by its rarity and its level, multiplied by the percentage of its HP remaining after capture. Other factors, even shininess, do not significantly affect the outcome.
In The Bug Stops Here, Ash and Casey competed in the Bug-Catching Contest. During the competition, Casey caught a Weedle, and her Chikorita evolved into a Bayleef. Ash won the competition with a Beedrill, earning himself a Sun Stone. After the competition, he gave the Beedrill to Casey since she loves Pokémon with yellow and black stripes.
Trivia
The music used during the contest is a remix of the Kanto-based games' Bicycle music.
After the player obtains the National Pokédex and enters the contest on Thursdays and Saturdays, some of the other competitors may be announced as having caught a Pokémon in the Caterpie or Weedle lines, despite those Pokémon not being available on those days.
File:Bag Thunderstone Sprite.png
