Lava Piranha

"WE DON'T LET IT HAPPEN! NO!"

- Lava Piranha

Lava Piranha is an enormous Piranha Plant boss in Paper Mario who, as its name suggests, lives in pools of lava. Only a single Lava Piranha has been seen in any Mario games so far, but according to Goombario and Koopa Koot, there are more than one.

Paper Mario
The Lava Piranha featured in Paper Mario is the ruler of Mt. Lavalava on Lavalava Island. It is found in a small lava pool where the other Piranha Plants report to him. Once Mario defeats it for good, it falls to the ground and sinks back into the lava.

Lava Piranha speaks in shouts and shrieks, blathering out insults at Mario when he confronts him for the fifth Star Spirit, Misstar, whom Bowser ordered the fiery Piranha Plant to guard. Its attacks are rather simple. Most of its attacking is done by his Lava Buds. When it attacks, it spits out an orb of fire at Mario that does five attack damage to Mario.

After Mario defeats Lava Piranha, it suddenly emerges from the lava and gets forty more HP. This, Lava Piranha's head is on fire and its tongue is sticking out. If Sushie is Ultra-rank, her Tidal Wave ability makes this second phase easy, and possible to beat without taking any damage, as water and ice attacks stun it for two full turns.

It has a cameo appearance in the credits of Paper Mario, poking its head out from behind Lavalava Island, alternating with Raphael the Raven.

Appearance
Lava Piranha bears some resemblance to the boss Naval Piranha from Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, except smaller and with fewer Piranha Buds and tentacles. Lava Piranha has a large tongue and white ring markings instead of filled white spots on its head, like typical Piranha Plants.

Trivia

 * Lava Piranha bears a slight resemblence to Audrey II, the monster from the film Little Shop of Horrors.
 * The fact that Lava Piranha is the boss of the 5th chapter in Paper Mario:, encountered in the volcanic Mt. Lavalava of the tropical Lavalava Island, mirrors how Petey Piranha is the boss of the 5th world in Paper Mario: Sticker Star, and is encountered in a volcano in a tropical jungle. As well, both characters are Piranha Plants.
 * As a boss character, Lava Piranha is very similar to Cortez from Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, as they both are fought on remote islands and they both have more than one phase to fight. They are also both fought in Chapter 5 of each game.