This article is about the boss in the Good Egg Galaxy. For the mission in the galaxy, see Dino Piranha (mission).
Not to be confused with Peewee Piranha.
Dino Piranha
Dino Piranha
Artwork of the normal Dino Piranha
First appearance Super Mario Galaxy (2007)
Latest appearance Super Mario 3D All-Stars (2020)
Variant of Piranha Plant
Relatives
Notable members

Dino Piranhas are giant Piranha Plants resembling Petey Piranha with a dinosaur-like body that hatch from eggs. They appear as bosses in Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Galaxy 2. Every battle is started after Mario or Luigi crashes into their egg after being shot from a Launch Star, causing them to hatch and chase after him. They are split between a normal purple type and a black, fiery type; the latter are distinguished as Black Dino Piranha[1][2] or Dino Piranha (Black),[3][4] though Fiery Dino Piranha[5][6] (taken from the mission title from the first game and sometimes written with a "the" at the beginning)[7] has also been used. The King Kalientes and Gobbleguts are similarly paired between a normal version and a fire-based blackened version. The Dino Piranhas share their boss theme with Tarantox.

HistoryEdit

Super Mario seriesEdit

Super Mario GalaxyEdit

Dino PiranhaEdit
 
Dino Piranha's only weakness: the large ball on the end of its tail

Dino Piranhas debut in Super Mario Galaxy, where they share a battle theme with each other and Tarantox. The basic one resides in the Good Egg Galaxy. The top of its egg becomes cracked when Mario crashes into it after being shot from a Launch Star on the preceding planet, thereby exposing its tail and legs. Dino Piranha then begins moving slowly around the planetoid from inside the egg, and when Mario Star Spins the large ball on the end of its tail, the shell breaks, revealing Dino Piranha, initiating the battle. Dino Piranha will then start to run around the planet attempting to attack Mario. Mario must run behind the Dino Piranha and spin its tail once again, causing it to hit itself a second time, which will make it angry. Its head will turn bright red like Petey Piranha's head and it will chase Mario even faster than before. To finally defeat it, Mario must get behind it and hit its tail two more times. After being hit a final time, it falls over, screams and disappears in a cloud of purple smoke, releasing a Power Star.

The player must fight this Dino Piranha twice in the Good Egg Galaxy. The second fight will only be available when a Speedy Comet orbits the Good Egg Galaxy. This Dino Piranha also can be seen in the ending celebrating the universe being recreated in the castle gardens.

Black Dino PiranhaEdit
 
The black, fiery Dino Piranha hatches

The black Dino Piranha is fought in the final level of the Melty Molten Galaxy, itself the final standard world. In general, it moves much faster than its normal counterpart. The beginning of the battle is much like that of the previous Dino Piranha fight, with Mario landing on top of the egg, cracking the egg and waking the Dino Piranha. As Dino Piranha trots around, the bulb of the tail ignites and extinguishes in a steady rhythm, forcing Mario to wait until the tail is extinguished to attack and break the egg away.

Once it emerges from the egg, it spots Mario and chases him, as with the previous version. However, the bulb's fire still flickers on and off, still forcing Mario to wait until the tail is not on fire before striking.

After the first strike, Dino Piranha stomps in anger, and it continues chasing Mario, leaving a trail of fire behind its footsteps. After the second strike, it begins shooting fireballs out of its mouth, making it harder to maneuver around the planet to reach its tail, and the bulb's fire also flickers on and off in a faster pace. After Mario hits the tail a final time, it is defeated.

Super Mario Galaxy 2Edit

Both Dino Piranhas, along with King Kaliente, Major Burrows, and Bouldergeist, reappear in Super Mario Galaxy 2 in the Boss Blitz Galaxy in a reenactment of the respective original fight. Due to being located in World S, fighting the Dino Piranhas is completely optional for a normal run of the game. However, in a complete run, the first must be encountered four times (counting Green Star missions) and the second twice. The standard Dino Piranha is the first boss to be encountered in the Boss Blitz Gallery, while the black one is the final one. Both act exactly the same as before, though heat effects have been added to the black one's planet. If Mario loses a life while fighting the Black one, he must fight Bouldergeist again due to the placement of the Checkpoint Flag. A different Dino Piranha called Peewee Piranha appears in the first level of the Sky Station Galaxy, thus acting as a successor to the original Dino Piranha's role in the previous game.

Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic GamesEdit

 
Dino Piranha appears in the Dream Spacewalk event

Dino Piranha appears as an opponent during the Dream Spacewalk event in the Wii version of Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games. It resides on Peewee Piranha's planet from the Sky Station Galaxy. The player's main objective is to pass through the rings provided by the Lumas, then perform a Rolling Attack toward Dino Piranha. After taking several hits, Dino Piranha will spit fireballs at players (similar to the black ones in previous games), who must perform a Spin Attack to send them back at it. The players must execute these methods repeatedly to defeat Dino Piranha and complete the event.

Super Smash Bros. UltimateEdit

In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Dino Piranhas are mentioned briefly by Viridi during the Palutena's Guidance dialogue for Piranha Plant.

Unused appearancesEdit

Dr. Mario WorldEdit

 
Unused artwork of a normal Dino Piranha in Dr. Mario World.

A normal Dino Piranha was originally going to appear in Dr. Mario World as an assistant, but it was removed from the game.[8]

General informationEdit

Physical appearanceEdit

 
The first Dino Piranha shown in profile

The first Dino Piranha's head looks similar to Petey Piranha, despite the fact that the color of its head is purple with white spots when relaxed, as opposed to red with white spots. However, Dino Piranha's body is much different in comparison to Petey Piranha. Dino Piranha's body beneath the giant Piranha Plant head is that of a dinosaur's, (as would be expected given the name) with a green hue. Its tail has a brown club at the end which may be inspired by the club of a real life Ankylosaurus. When it first breaks out of its egg, its head is purple, but when enraged, it turns red with anger.

The second Dino Piranha has a red and black color scheme. It has a dark red body and a head that is black with dark red spots. Its petals are also similar to those of the normal one, but appear more singed, with small cracks along the edges. When on fire, the Dino Piranha's entire body becomes a glowing orange.

Profiles and statisticsEdit

Super Mario GalaxyEdit

Dino Piranha
 
Dome Terrace Galaxy Good Egg Galaxy
Mission Dino Piranha
Dino Piranha Speed Run
Reward   
Black Dino Piranha
 
Dome Garden Galaxy Melty Molten Galaxy
Mission Fiery Dino Piranha Reward  
Trading cards
# Image Name Type Description
Front Backside
28     Dino Piranha Boss To collect the first Power Star, battle Dino Piranha in the Good Egg Galaxy. This boss is awakened when Mario breaks open its egg and forces it into battle. Even though Dino is gigantic, Mario can defeat it by star spinning the ball at the end of its tail. Do this three times in order to win and collect the Power Star!
F11    
29     Fiery Dino Piranha Boss Fiery Dino Piranha is very similar to its counterpart Dino Piranha, but with one scorching difference — it can spit fireballs and its tail becomes burning hot. This presents a new challenge to Mario in the Melty Molten Galaxy where he must battle to collect a Power Star. A few star spins will still defeat the beast, but not when its tail is burning!

Super Mario Galaxy 2Edit

Dino Piranha
 
World World S Galaxy Boss Blitz Galaxy
Mission Throwback Throwdown
Throwback Throwdown Speed Run
Green Star 1
Green Star 2
Reward  
Black Dino Piranha
 
World World S Galaxy Boss Blitz Galaxy
Mission Throwback Throwdown
Throwback Throwdown Speed Run
Reward   

List of appearancesEdit

Title Role Release date System
Super Mario Galaxy Boss 2007 Wii
Super Mario Galaxy 2 Boss 2010 Wii
Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games Boss 2011 Wii
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Mention 2018 Nintendo Switch
Super Mario 3D All-Stars Boss 2020 Nintendo Switch

GalleryEdit

Dino PiranhaEdit

RelativesEdit

NamingEdit

Internal namesEdit

Game File Name Meaning

Super Mario Galaxy
Super Mario Galaxy 2
ObjectData/DinoPackun2.arc DinoPackun2 Dino Piranha 2

Names in other languagesEdit

The contemporaneous name for each language is listed first. Subsequent names are listed in chronological order for each language, from oldest to newest, and have the media with which they are associated in the "notes" column. Names exclusive to localizations of the Super Mario Bros. Encyclopedia are not prioritized due to concerns about circular reporting, and are only listed first for their respective languages if they are the only ones available.

Dino PiranhaEdit

Language Name Meaning Notes
Japanese ディノパックン[9]:29[10][11][12]
Dino Pakkun
Dino Piranha
Chinese (simplified) 恐龙吞食花[13][12]
Kǒnglóng Tūnshíhuā (Mandarin)
Húnglùhng Tānsihkfā (Cantonese)
Dinosaur Piranha Plant
Chinese (traditional) 恐龍吞食花[12]
Kǒnglóng Tūnshímuā (Mandarin)
Húnglùhng Tānsihkfā (Cantonese)
Dinosaur Piranha Plant
Dutch Dino Piranha[12] -
French Dino Piranha[13][14]:45[15][16][12] -
German Dino-Piranha[13][17][18][12] Dino Piranha
Italian Dino Piranha[13][19][20]:260[21]:127, 160[12] -
Korean 디노뻐끔[13][12]
Dino Ppeokkeum
Dino Piranha
Portuguese Dino Piranha[22] -
Russian Пираньязавр[12]
Piran'yazavr
Piranhasaur
Spanish Planta Dinopiraña1[13][23][24]:127, 160[12] Dinopiranha Plant

1 - This name was lowercased as "planta dinopiraña" in Latin American localizations from 2012 to 2019.[12]

Black Dino PiranhaEdit

"Black Dino Piranha," also formatted as "Dino Piranha (Black)" and originally localized as "Fiery Dino Piranha," refers to the fire-breathing Dino Piranha encountered in Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Galaxy 2.

Language Name Meaning Notes
Japanese くろディノパックン[25]
Kuro Dino Pakkun
Black Dino Piranha
ディノパックン(黒)[11]
Dino Pakkun (Kuro)
Dino Piranha (Black)
ディノパックンくろ[9]:209
Dino Pakkun Kuro
Dino Piranha - Black Super Mario Galaxy
French Dino Piranha de feu[26] Fire Dino Piranha
Dino Piranha de magma[15] Magma Dino Piranha Super Mario Galaxy Official Sticker Collection
Pyro Dino Piranha[16] - Super Mario Bros. Encyclopedia
German Dino-Piranha (schwarz)[18] Dino Piranha (black)
Italian Focoso Dino Piranha[20]:262[21]:160 Fiery Dino Piranha
Dino Piranha di Fuoco[21]:127 Fire Dino Piranha Super Mario Bros. Encyclopedia
Spanish Planta Dinopiraña en magma[23][24]:160 Magma Dino Piranha
Planta Dinopiraña negra[24]:127 Black Dino Piranha Super Mario Bros. Encyclopedia

ReferencesEdit

  1. ^ English Super Mario Galaxy entry on the official Mario Portal as of January 2025 update
  2. ^ English Super Mario Galaxy 2 entry on the official Mario Portal as of January 2025 update
  3. ^ Previous revision of English Super Mario Galaxy entry on the official Mario Portal as of August 2022
  4. ^ Previous revision of English Super Mario Galaxy 2 entry on the official Mario Portal as of August 2022
  5. ^ Black, Fletcher (November 9, 2007). Super Mario Galaxy: PRIMA Official Game Guide (Collector's Edition). Roseville: Prima Games (American English). ISBN 978-0-7615-5713-5. Page 262.
  6. ^ Browne, Catherine (May 23, 2010). Super Mario Galaxy 2: PRIMA Official Game Guide. Roseville: Random House Inc. ISBN 978-0-30746-907-6. Page 258, 262.
  7. ^ Black. Super Mario Galaxy: PRIMA Official Game Guide (Collector's Edition). Page 289.
  8. ^ https://drmarioworld.miraheze.org/wiki/Assistants
  9. ^ a b Kashima, Aya, Mitsuhiro Kitamura, Shinji Kutsuzawa, Kushima No, Itaru Nakatani, Hiroshi Hirata, Kimiyasu Hongo, Yoji Watanabe, Ayoka Kojima, and Daisaku Sato (2007). 『スーパーマリオギャラクシー 任天堂ゲーム攻略本』(Super Mario Galaxy Nintendo Game Strategy Guide). Tokyo: ambit (Japanese). ISBN 978-4-8399-2700-4.
  10. ^ Tachibana, Tadashi, Isamu Horie, Shinji Kutsuzawa, Itaru Nakatani, Seishiro Fuwa, Kimihara Hongo, and Toshimune Suzuki (2010). 『スーパーマリオギャラクシー2 任天堂ゲーム攻略本』. Tokyo: ambit (Japanese). ISBN 978-4-8399-3630-3. Page 22.
  11. ^ a b Sakai, Kazuya (ambit), kikai, Akinori Sao, Junko Fukuda, Kunio Takayama, and Ko Nakahara (Shogakukan), editors (2015). 『スーパーマリオブラザーズ百科: 任天堂公式ガイドブック』. Tokyo: Shogakukan (Japanese). ISBN 978-4-09-106569-8. Page 127, 160.
  12. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k In-game name from Palutena's Guidance on Piranha Plant from Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
  13. ^ a b c d e f In-game name for the "Dino Piranha" mission from Super Mario Galaxy.
  14. ^ Black, Fletcher (2007). Super Mario Galaxy Le Guide Officiel (French Edition). Translated by Mathieu Daujam and Calude-Olivier Eliçabe. Roseville: Prima Games (French). ISBN 978-1-906064-02-0.
  15. ^ a b 2010. Super Mario Galaxy Official Sticker Collection (French Edition). Barcelona: E-max, EnterPLAY (French). Page 9.
  16. ^ a b Ardaillon, Joanna, and Victoria Juillard-Huberty, editors (2018). Super Mario Encyclopedia. Translated by Fabien Nabhan. Toulon: Soleil Productions (French). ISBN 978-2-3020-7004-2. Page 127, 160.
  17. ^ Black, Fletcher (2007). Super Mario Galaxy Der offizielle Spieleberater (German Edition). Translated by Klaus-Dieter Hartwig and Babel Media Limited. Roseville: Prima Games (German). ISBN 978-1-906064-01-3. Page 45.
  18. ^ a b Scholz, Sabine, and Benjamin Spinrath, editors (2017). "Super Mario Galaxy" in Super Mario Encyclopedia - Die ersten 30 Jahre : 1985-2015. Translated by Yamada Hirofumi. Hamburg: Tokyopop (German). ISBN 978-3-8420-3653-6. Page 127.
  19. ^ Black, Fletcher (2007). Super Mario Galaxy - la Guida Ufficiale (Premiere Edition). Roseville: Prima Games (Italian). ISBN 978-1-906064-03-7. Page 45.
  20. ^ a b Browne, Catherine (2010). Super Mario Galaxy 2 Guida Strategica Ufficiale (Multiplayer.it Edizioni). Translated by Christian La Via Colli, Francesca Noto, and Virgina Petrarca. Terni: Multiplayer Edizioni, Prima Games (Italian). ISBN 9788863551198.
  21. ^ a b c Sakai, Kazuya (ambit), kikai, Akinori Sao, Junko Fukuda, Kunio Takayama, Ko Nakahara (Shogakukan), and Marco Figini, editors (2018). Super Mario Bros. Enciclopedia. Translated by Marco Amerighi. Milan: Magazzini Salani (Italian). ISBN 889367436X.
  22. ^ Unused name from the files of Dr. Mario World.
  23. ^ a b 2009. Super Mario Galaxy Official Sticker Collection (Spanish Edition). Barcelona: E-max, EnterPLAY (European Spanish). Page 9.
  24. ^ a b c Sakai, Kazuya (ambit), kikai, Akinori Sao, Junko Fukuda, Kunio Takayama, and Ko Nakahara (Shogakukan), editors (2017). Enciclopedia Super Mario Bros. 30ª Aniversario. Translated by Gemma Tarrés. Barcelona: Editorial Planeta, S.A. (European Spanish). ISBN 978-84-9146-223-1.
  25. ^ Nintendo Co., Ltd. (circa Jan. 2025). Super Mario Galaxy. Mario Portal (Japanese). Retrieved 23 Jan. 2025. (Archived via archive.today.)
  26. ^ Browne, Catherine (2010). Super Mario Galaxy 2 Prima le Guide Officiel. Translated by Yellow Media. Ligugé: Prima Games (French). ISBN 978-2-952-67394-5. Page 262.

External linksEdit