Pokémon Go Burmy forms and evolutions: how to get Sandy, Plant, and Trash Cloak Burmy plus Wormadam and Mothim
How to get all of Burmy's various forms and evolutions in Pokémon Go.
Burmy is an unusual Pokémon in Pokémon Go, coming with three forms of its own, plus two different evolutions, all of which depend on different conditions.
Like a mixture of Unown, Castform, or Clamperl in Pokémon Go, there are both multiple forms and evolutions to find out in the wild or through other methods.
There are several factors to bear in mind, so below we'll explain how to get all Burmy forms as well as how to get both Burmy evolutions Wormadam and Mothim, too.
What are the Burmy Forms and evolutions Wormadam and Mothim, and how do they work?
There are three Burmy Forms, and two different Pokémon it can evolve into.
Though Burmy as a whole occupies one entry in your Pokedex, like Castform or Unown, selecting it reveals the various forms available to you out of those three, and which ones you've caught.
The three forms - Plant Cloak Burmy, Sandy Cloak Burmy and Trash Cloak Burmy - appear in the wild, and are dictated by the type of location where they're found. In the main games Burmy's form would change according to where you just had a battle - if you battle in a building, say, it would transform into Trash Cloak Burmy after the battle. In Pokémon Go however, Pokémon aren't yet able to change forms, simply appearing as one set form when you catch it and staying that way. More on the forms below!
The two evolutions - Wormadam (which also has the same three forms) and Mothim - depend on gender alone. A Plant, Sandy or Trash Cloak Burmy could all evolve into a Wormadam (and only Wormadam) if it were female, and that Wormadam would be Plant, Sandy or Trash form itself. They could all evolve into Mothim and only Mothim if they were male.
All three Burmy Forms are available to catch in the wild. We haven't seen any reports of Wormadam or Mothim appearing in the wild yet, but we can't rule out the possibility of them appearing in the wild either for now. Check the sections below for more on how to acquire each of them!
How to get the Sandy Cloak, Trash Cloak and Plant Cloak Burmy Forms
The three Burmy forms are based entirely on the current location type of where you are exploring. Though it's not an exact science, broadly here is how you can expect to find each one, according to what we know so far (thanks to the Silph Road reddit for filling in some of the gaps):
| Burmy form | Location type |
|---|---|
| Plant Cloak Burmy | Grassy, green areas such as parks and forests |
| Sandy Cloak Burmy | Beaches and sandy areas |
| Trash Cloak Burmy | Cities, towns and urban areas |
Once a Burmy has spawned, its form won't change, so if you catch a Trash Cloak Burmy in a city, it'll always be a Trash Cloak Burmy. If you want a Sandy one you'll have to go to a beach and catch another one there, and so on.
Are the three Burmy forms in Raids?
Some other good news for collectors: you can now get all three of Burmy's forms from Tier 1 Raids. Plant, Trash, and Sandy form Burmy are all available - separately, of course - and you'll see what form they are in advance, as they're displayed above the gym like any other raid.
Tier 1 Raids are easy to take down on your own and relatively common, so if you're out for catching one of each form and each form of Wormadam too, this is your best bet. Make the most of them while they're live!
The Dual Destiny Season is here! It brings the Holiday Part 1 event with it. You can now catch Dynamax Pokémon through Max Battles. First, however, you need to visit Power Spots to collect Max Particles and complete the To the Max! quest. Don't forget to try out Routes, Gift Exchange and Party Play while you're hunting down rare Pokémon, fighting in the Go Battle League or competing in PokéStop Showcases.
How to evolve Burmy into Wormadam or Mothim
Any form of Burmy can evolve into either Wormadam or Mothim, it's just that which one it evolves into is dictated by its gender.
Evolving a Burmy is done by using candy in the usual way, on the Pokémon's own page when you view it in your storage. It costs 50 Burmy Candy - here's a quick visual to help explain it, thanks to EgaTehPro on the Silph Road reddit.
If your Plant, Sandy or Trash Cloak Burmy is female, it'll evolve into a Plant, Sandy, or Trash form Wormadam respectively.
If your Plant, Sandy or Trash Cloak Burmy is male, it'll evolve into a Mothim instead.
That, thankfully, is it: there's no special method of evolution to bear in mind, just the gender.
Still, you'll still need to do a fair bit of hunting if you're a completionist and want a copy of every form! You'll need to catch seven in total: one for each of the three Burmy forms, plus three females for each of the three forms to evolve into each Wormadam, and finally one male of any form to evolve into Mothim.
Final thing - as of December 2019's Evolution Event, Burmy can be shiny. This means between all the different forms, there are seven shinies to collect, if filling your Pokedex with the standard forms wasn't enough.
Happy hunting!