Is yoshi a frog???

[Acesayo]

i just thought because of the tough

[Blitzzoshi]

Many people believe he's a dragon, but I like to put trust in the official source (AKA Nintendo) and believe in him being a dinosaur.

[Brute]

Yeah, many believe he's a frog because of his tounge, and others believe hes a dragon because he can breath fire if he eats the proper koopa shell. But we better leave it to the big guys at Nintendo and just call him a dinosaur. XD

[Rainbow Yoshi]

No. He's a yoshi. :<

There've been several threads like this, by the way, so you can look at them if you want.

But yeah, I think Yoshi's a yoshi; his own species. I think the real life creature he's closest to is a dinosaur though.

[teh yoshi]

No.

[Bry]

Many people believe he's a dragon, but I like to put trust in the official source (AKA Nintendo) and believe in him being a dinosaur.

You do realise that Nintendo has officially referred to him as both a dragon and a dinosaur? That's kind of how its not so easy. Combined with how Nintendo like to change their mind about that kind of thing from time to time.
In Japan, originally, he was a dragon. The old "Super Dragon Yoshi" which was cut from the Western version (and later put back in place in the re-translated GBA version)

Logically, he started out as a dragon (called one in the Japanese SMW, also his powers of spitting fire, having wings to fly and that the 'Yoshi coins' were called Dragon coins)

Really, its just best to call him a Yoshi. There is 'irrefutable' evidence for both cases.

[Acesayo]

One wbe site said he was 50% dino 49% dragon and1% frog^^

[Anjil]

I think he's 100% Yoshi.

[Teo]

I'm going to go with Genotype: Dinosaur and Species: Yoshi.

In other words, he's a Dinosaur, but a Dinosaur called a yoshi. You don't tell your friend you just went to see 'a dinosaur' at a museum, you usually specify what kind, as is the case here.

Although the question is more or less... Dino or Drago? I believe Dino according to Nintendo's current 'mood'.

[Toshi]

Didn't we have this debate before?

Oh, and no he isn't a frog, to answer your question.

[firespikez]

yoshi is a dragon... i made a post that says it. you know in smw, the big coins with yoshis on it? well in the tourist tip thing, its says its DRAGON COINS!!!!!! EAR THAT? DRAGON coins... so what makes you think its a dino or other? exept for thongue and paws..etc. look:

jotchi said:

dtyvk said:

Yoshies aren't born. They hatch. =P

they does'nt hatch. ive looked at some tourist info in smw, and look what they say:

yoshimastar said:

That, and Yoshi's Island is in Dinosaur Land.

uh... i think they called it dinosaur land to say that its prehistoric. not to say(there's a yoshi so its a dinosaur land. ) there's not only yoshis in smw. theres bowser,rex,and almost all the enemies are dinosaurs.

[Blitzzoshi]

Huh, people only ever make references to SMW on that. Yoshi's design has changed drastically ever since Yoshi's Island, so I tend to find SMW a bit inaccurate for Yoshi facts. Every game after SMW seems to refer to Yoshi as a dinosaur, if I'm not mistaken.

Also, correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm led to believe that a Dragon just means any powerful creature in Japan, whereas over here, it refers to a specific creature.

[jukku]

I always thought dinosaur.

[Masakuni]

He doesn't even look like a frog...and I've always saw him as a dino

[Bry]

Also, correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm led to believe that a Dragon just means any powerful creature in Japan, whereas over here, it refers to a specific creature.

Not really. In the west you have traditional mythical dragons of your European variety. Eastern Dragons and of course, the real world dragons like the Komodo Dragon which are in effect, just large lizards.
A lot of people in the West might only think of the traditional European mythical kind, but that's mainly just from ignorance.
And in Japan, there are also specific Dragons: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_dragon

In Yoshi's Island DS, Yoshi is also referred to as a lizard which has its own problems and benefits. Technically Dinosaurs aren't lizards. But the lizard family does include the Kamodo Dragon and the Chameleon. And with the long tongue, there is a distinct bit of Chameleon-esque to Yoshi.

He doesn't even look like a frog...and I've always saw him as a dino

The Yoshi's Story design, which has subsequently become the official design, eliminated most of the neck.
Combined with how he has a long tongue, its not that hard to see how people could think he might be a frog.

Its odd that this should be such a controversion deal, yet the fact that Yoshis are asexual (Confirmed by Nintendo in the Japanese SSBM trophey, though that little tidbit wasn't included in the Western release) isn't mentioned at all.

[teh yoshi]

bryuk said:

Its odd that this should be such a controversion deal, yet the fact that Yoshis are asexual (Confirmed by Nintendo in the Japanese SSBM trophey, though that little tidbit wasn't included in the Western release) isn't mentioned at all.

For some reason, as disturbing as that SHOULD sound to me, I'm not really bothered by that at all. Not sure why. I don't mind that explanation at all, even though I was always under the impression that both genders can lay eggs, but males use it for ammunition only.

[Yoshifrog]

No.
Doesn't matter what nintendo says.
He is not anything but what he is.
It's like asking if a pen is a pencil, or at least related to one.
No. He's Yoshi. It's a pen.

[teh yoshi]

....I'm pretty sure it does matter what Nintendo says.

However, Nintendo says a lot of things. It's important to believe what you think of, because I remember what Nintendo told me is that a lot about Yoshi is really left to the imagination of the player.

I wouldn't go so far as to think Yoshi is a frog because there's no evidence of that at all. There's a whole lot more evidence on him being a dinosaur, and little on him being a dragon (or could be simply a title, it's all just theories, really). I just like to find a balance between my own take on Yoshi and what Nintendo has to say about him. I can't go on having Yoshi all for myself, believing in what he is and not consider anyone else's theories, but at the same time, it'd be quite absurd, and even boring, to try and justify absolutely everything Nintendo has to say, because even that information is a bit sketchy and hypocritical at times. We have no idea what his feet look like, so we imagine what it'd look like through fan art, yet at the same time, it is pretty clear to us that Yoshi hatches from eggs and is able to lash out a long tongue.

Personally, I believed that he's a dinosaur, and that is simply because Nintendo says so. But I also imagined there being female and male Yoshis, both of them able to lay eggs and only females are able to produce fertile eggs. To my knowledge, Nintendo hasn't explained anything like that at all. And to find out that Yoshis don't really have a gender, and they reproduce asexually according to Super Smash Bros. Melee (J).

Really, though, I just like to find a balance and how much fact is given on Yoshi by Nintendo, and how much is room left to our imagination without sounding utterly absurd.

Did this post even make sense? I don't even know...

[Bry]

The thing to remember which leads a lot of credience to the statement (so its not just a one off) is that Yoshis are one of the very few Mario characters where there has not been an obvious female representation, especially in the RPG games.

Toads, Goombas, Boos, Koopalings, Koopa Troopers, Magikoopas and even Bob-ombs have all been showing as having a distinct female counterparts which are identifiable on sight alone.

But not once, to my knowledge has there been what could be called a feminine Yoshi which is actually quite surprising. Especially with the whole of Yoshi's Island in Paper Mario which is the game that introduced us to most of the above.
Nintendo's idea of representing a female is pretty straightforward.
The use of bows, make up (usually just some blush on the cheeks), usually a pink colour, feminine hairstyles, eyelashes and highheeled shoes.

So while SSBM (J) was the first time it was committed to words, its been a pretty valid conclusion all along.

[Lord of the Dance]

Actually, little Yoshi in the Super Mario World TV show was born with no shoes.
He didn't have any toes.

Maybe the girls don't look anything like the guys...? I don't think Yoshi would be the only Mario character without a female counterpart.
And if Yoshi were asexual, why does he hang out with Birdo all the time?