Professor Birch

Professor Birch (Japanese: オダマキ博士 Dr. Odamaki) is the resident Pokémon Professor of Littleroot Town and the Hoenn region. He specializes in habitats and distribution.
==In the core series games==
In Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, , , Professor Birch is the resident Pokémon Professor and the father of the rival character (if the player is , then Professor Birch is 's father; if the player is May, then Professor Birch is Brendan's father).
At the start of the game, he is being chased by a wild /, and requests the player take a Pokémon from his discarded bag to save him. After he is saved, he allows the player to keep the first partner Pokémon they used in the rescue. Birch distributes Pokédexes and one of the three first partner Pokémon of Hoenn: , , or , to aspiring Hoenn Trainers.
After the player completes the Hoenn Pokédex in , he will give them one of the three first partner Pokémon of Johto: , , or . In Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, he will give one of the Johto first partner Pokémon after the player enters the Hall of Fame and meets Zinnia. Later, after the completion of the Delta Episode, he will give the player one of the first partner Pokémon from Unova: , , or . Finally, after the player enters the Hall of Fame a second time, he will give one of the first partner Pokémon from Sinnoh: , , or . He will also give the player the Oval Charm and Shiny Charm when the appropriate prerequisites are met.
He often works with his child to help observe and capture wild Pokémon. His wife worries about him, because he's always busy and rarely has time to come home. He is known to be more outgoing than the other Pokémon Professors, and oftentimes his research takes him outdoors. His field of study is primarily how Pokémon behave in the wild. Birch has known Norman since their school days.http://www.pokemonrubysapphire.com/en-gb/characters/professor-birch
He has also written several books:
*The History of the Hoenn Region
*The Ecosystem of Pokémon 3,000 Years Ago
*The Pokémon of Kalos and Hoenn
*The Coexistence of People and Pokémon
*Distribution of Pokémon Species, National Edition
*The Fieldwork 101
===Pokémon===
This listing is of Professor Birch's Pokémon in the video games in which he has appeared.
;
These Pokémon are given to a Trainer at the beginning of their journey:
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;Emerald
These Pokémon are given to a Trainer who has completed the Hoenn Pokédex:
		
;
The Generation III first partner Pokémon are available at the start of the game.
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After entering the Hall of the Fame along with meeting Zinnia, the Generation II first partner Pokémon become available.
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After clearing Delta Episode, the Generation V first partner Pokémon become available.
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After entering the Hall of Fame for the second time, the Generation IV first partner Pokémon are available.
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==In the spin-off games==
===Pokémon Breeder mini===
In Pokémon Breeder mini, after the player finished setting the time and choosing a name, Professor Birch tells them that he found rare eggs. However, he is too busy to take care of them, so he gives the player a choice between a , a , or a to hatch and raise.
===Pokémon Masters Arena===
In Pokémon Masters Arena, one of the questions in the Pokémon Trivia Challenge is about which Pokémon attacked Professor Birch. Since this was based on , the accepted answer is . However, one of the answers considered wrong by the trivia game is , a Pokémon which coincidentally also attacked Professor Birch in a later game, .
==Gallery==
===Artwork===
 	
Official artwork from ,and by	Official artwork from
===Sprites and models===
 	 	 	
Sprite from,	Sprite from	Overworld sprite from, and	Overworld model from
==Quotes==
==In animation==
===Pokémon the Series===
====History====
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Professor Birch first appeared in a flashback in Johto Photo Finish, where told that Birch inspired his latest to the Johto region.
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Birch physically debuted in Get The Show On The Road, where he rushed to the Littleroot Town ports in his SUV to pick up Ash and . He soon diagnosed Pikachu with an electrical overcharge and treated him at his lab. However, Pikachu's electricity overloaded the electrical absorption machine and he ran off into the wilderness. Ash and Birch chased after him with the three Hoenn first partner Pokémon in hand, as Ash had no other Pokémon on him. During the search effort, Birch slipped down a cliff and disturbed a sleeping pack in the process. He scrambled onto a tree branch, just as stumbled onto the scene. After she was unable to properly order to help Birch, he was forced to take over and had Mudkip settle the situation. After incidentally helped Pikachu in his recovery, Birch took everyone back to his lab. Later, he had May select her first partner Pokémon, and she picked out a .
Professor Birch appeared in flashbacks in There's no Place Like Hoenn!, You Said a Mouthful!, and A Mudkip Mission.
In A Three Team Scheme!, Birch was revealed to have traveled to Dewford Island to conduct field research during the nesting season. While examining a Wingull nest, he slipped from the sea cliff and subsequently landed on a . Ash and then came across the Professor and later joined him on his expedition. The group noticed a cave and found inside it a Secret Base belonging to Keanu, but they quickly left after being shouted at. After Team Rocket stormed the Base and stole Keanu's from him, Birch and the others attempted to confront the trio, but they realized the Base had been tunneled through. They followed the tunnel through to an ancient ruin site, and watched as Team Aqua and Team Magma confronted each other. Birch and the others remained undetected throughout the whole ordeal.
In the following episode, Birch spotted several wandering around aimlessly because of a recent landslide that left them without a home. He played with the Seedot just before Team Rocket appeared again. When Jessie called out her "", Birch corrected her, saying Jessie actually had a under her possession, but Jessie didn't believe him. May's Silcoon evolved during the confrontation, and Birch later handed May a frisbee to help her new strengthen its attack. Later, Birch and the others found an ideal location for the Seedot to drink from, but Team Rocket appeared again to disturb the peace. This time, Jessie's Cascoon evolved into a , confirming the Professor's earlier statement. After Team Rocket blasted off, and with the Seedot now happily relocated, Birch headed back to Littleroot Town.
The group headed towards Birch's laboratory in A Six Pack Attack. However, the Professor came across them first as he rushed off to pick up , who he was eager to meet for the first time. Ash and went with Birch to collect Oak from the Littleroot Town seaport, but they realized Oak decided to hitchhike on his own and had already reached the laboratory. After Team Rocket stole the Kanto first partner Pokémon that Oak brought with him, as well as Birch's trio of Hoenn first partner Pokémon, Oak, , and Max gave chase but were captured. Birch received word of the incident and headed over to Team Rocket's cave hideout with the help of his friend, Poochyena. Oak and the others managed to free themselves, and Ash's group then sent Team Rocket blasting off. Ash and his friends later boarded a ship towards Fortree City and waved goodbye to the two Professors and Joshua.
Ash and his friends encountered Birch again as he was relaxing on Island A of the tropical A-B-C Islands in The Evolutionary War!. He explained that he was already aware a Deep Sea Tooth caused to evolve into a , and that a Deep Sea Scale was needed to obtain a , though he was interested in the mystery around these two evolution methods. Ash's group joined Birch on his expedition, and local students Nancy and accompanied them to Island B and Island C, respectively. Birch took water samples at the respective islands and later concluded that Island B's water was infused with Deep Sea Scale and Island C contained Deep Sea Tooth fragments. Birch decided to remain on Island A to continue his research after witnessing both Keith and Nancy's Clamperl evolving from a Deep Sea Tooth and Scale, respectively, while Ash's group left for Mossdeep City.
As Ash arrived home to Pallet Town, Birch and Max had driven over there to attend the homecoming party in The Scheme Team. In the following episode, Birch visited Professor Oak's Laboratory, where Ash's Muk took a particular liking to him. Later, Birch tried to confront Team Rocket, but told him to leave it to the children, who went on to defeat the trio. With Ash and his friends setting off for the Kanto Pokémon Contests and , the two Professors gifted Ash and May an updated Pokédex each.
Birch reappeared in another flashback in Reversing the Charges. He also made a brief cameo in The Mastermind of Mirage Pokémon, after Dr. Yung revealed he had hacked the computer data of leading specialists, including that of Birch, to help with the construction of his Mirage Pokémon system.
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Professor Birch appeared in a flashback in Rivals: Today and Tomorrow!, where he was seen giving Sawyer a first partner Pokémon to choose from, which ended up being .
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In Battling as Hard as Stone!, Professor Birch was seen watching 's Masters Eight Tournament match against Ash alongside Drew and Harley on television.
====Character====
Birch has a keen interest in field research and likes to study Pokémon habitats and behaviors. Because his line of work requires him to be primarily outside his lab, Birch's assistant is often left running the lab in his place, doing duties such as giving new s their first partner Pokémon. He is good friends with Norman and was also familiar with Norman's daughter , as mentioned in Get The Show On The Road.
Personally, Birch is jovial and carefree, but he has a reckless driving style in which he regularly jumps ledges and travels on winding mountain roads. He was also a fantastic mentor, even though he does not like teaching, and he is held in high regard by s like . He enjoys playing with Pokémon, as seen in Seeing is Believing!, where he quickly understood a group of and befriended them. However, he often finds himself in precarious situations and is often attacked by wild Pokémon during his expeditions.
====Pokémon====
This listing is of Professor Birch's known in :
=====On hand=====
=====Befriended=====
=====Gives to new Trainers=====
=====Gave away to new Trainers=====
			
=====At his Lab=====
			
			
====Voice actors====
===GOTCHA!===
Professor Birch briefly appeared in GOTCHA!.
==In the manga==
===Ash & Pikachu===
Professor Birch appeared in Let's Save Pikachu!!.
=====Gave to new Trainers=====
===Pokémon Adventures===
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Professor Birch is the father of and is old friends with Norman. He first appeared in Making Mirth with Mightyena, where he registered wild Pokémon data on Pokédex before receiving a call from Norman, who had just moved to Littleroot Town with his family. Wanting to help his friend with the move, Birch decided to head back to town, but was attacked by a pair of wild . A passing-by saw the commotion but refused to help at the risk of getting his Pokémon dirty. During the chase, Ruby picked up Birch's bag, but accidentally activated his Running Shoes and ran off a nearby cliff. After returning to town, Birch called Ruby on the Pokégear in his bag and properly introduced himself. Ruby revealed he was saved by a green Pokémon, but accidentally angered it into attacking him, revealing that it was actually a human girl. Overhearing the commotion, Birch cleared up the misunderstanding by revealing the girl was actually his daughter, Sapphire.
In Distracting Dustox, Birch received his belongings back from Sapphire, though Ruby had forgotten to return the Pokédex. Afterward, they called Norman and informed him Ruby had run away from home. Birch suggested calling the police, but Norman decided to find Ruby on his own. Later, Birch wished Sapphire good luck as she set out to conquer all of the Gyms in Hoenn.
In The Beginning of the End with Kyogre & Groudon VII', Birch was caught in a flood caused by the awakening of . He had planned on giving and the third Pokédex to , the third Hoenn Pokédex holder, but a tidal wave caused him to lose the bag containing them. He was later rescued by Emerald, who didn't mind the loss of Treecko, as he didn't like Pokémon to begin with. In It All Ends Now VIII, returned the third Pokédex back to its proper owner.
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In Verily Vanquishing Vileplume I, Ruby and Sapphire arrived at the , having been sent there by Birch to assist Emerald protect from the armored man, Guile Hideout. Birch revealed to and that Treecko was also found by Wally and evolved into , but was lost when the boy awakened . He expressed concern over Grovyle's whereabouts, completely unaware that it had already evolved into the on Emerald's team.
====Pokémon====
=====Given away=====
=====Lost=====
===Pokémon Pocket Monsters===
Professor Birch debuted in PM117, where Red met up with him in Hoenn. In I Won't Let You Lead!!, he challenged and his Pokémon to a -catching duel and was able to easily win the contest, along with the other competitions he was involved in with Red.
His most recent appearance was in PMHGSS20. He, along with the other professors, were the judges of Clefairy's fight with . After their battle, Professor Birch got into a brawl with the other professors that was started by Clefairy. After watching the fight that was recorded, they worked together and fought Clefairy.
====Pokémon====
=====On hand=====
=====Released=====
=====Given away=====
===Pokémon Ruby & Sapphire Special Walkthrough Comic!===
Professor Birch appeared in the Pokemon Ruby & Sapphire Special Walkthrough Comic!. As with other characters featured in the manga, he was shown highlighting new features and gameplay mechanics introduced in .
===Pokémon Ruby & Sapphire===
Professor Birch appeared in Pokémon Ruby & Sapphire. His role was virtually identical to the games, being rescued from a wild and handing out a first partner Pokémon to a new Trainer. He is the father of Sapphire and a friend of Norman.
==In the TCG==
This listing is of cards mentioning or featuring Professor Birch in the Pokémon Trading Card Game.
==Trivia==
* A cropped artwork of Professor Birch from can be found as unused internal data in .
==Names==
Language 	Name 	Origin
Japanese 	オダマキ博士 Dr. Odamaki 	From 苧環 odamaki ()
English, Italian	Professor Birch 	From
German 	Professor Birk 	From Birke (birch)
Spanish 	Profesor Abedul 	From abedul (birch)
French 	Professeur Seko 	From séquoia ()
Korean 	털보 Dr. Teolbo 	From 털보 teolbo (hairy person)
Chinese () 	小田卷 Dr. Xiǎotiánjuǎn 	From the Japanese name 小田巻 Odamaki
Chinese () 	小田卷 Dr. Síutìhngyún 	From the Japanese name 小田巻 Odamaki
Finnish 	Professori Birch 	From his English name
Polish 	Profesor Birch 	From his English name
Russian 	Профессор Бёрч Professor Byorch	Transcription of his English name
Thai 	ดร.โอดะมากิ Dr. Odamaki 	Transcription of his Japanese name
Vietnamese 	Giáo sư Odamaki 	Transcription of his Japanese name
==References==
==Related articles==
* Images on the Bulbagarden Archives
Category:Professors
Category:Animation characters
Category:Manga characters
Category:Pokémon Adventures characters
Category:Ruby and Sapphire characters
Category:Emerald characters
Category:Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire characters
Category:Fathers
de:Professor Birk
es:Profesor Abedul
fr:Professeur Seko
it:Professor Birch
ja:オダマキ博士
zh:小田卷博士