Pokemon Go Adds All Four Legendary Birds to Raid Battles Through End of August

Pokemon Go is giving players a second chance to catch all of the Legendary birds.

The developers announced on Monday that Articuno, Zapdos, Moltres, and Lugia will all be available to battle and catch via Raids through August 31st. Previously, Articuno, Moltres, and Zapdos were all available for one week each over the past three weeks.

Articuno was unlocked following Pokemon Go Fest, followed by Moltres. Zapdos was set to leave the game after today, but will now randomly appear with the other Legendary birds for the remainder of the month. Articuno and Moltres started spawning this morning as soon as the announcement was made.

No end date was given for Lugia, but many players were concerned that it would stop appearing on August 14th along with Zapdos. Presumably, Lugia (and the other birds) will no longer be available after August 31st.

The Legendary birds could be the last Legendary Pokemon that can be battled via "normal" Raids. Pokemon Go also announced this morning that they were adding a new "Exclusive Raid" feature which can only be accessed via invitation. Mewtwo will be the first Exclusive Raid Boss, although Pokemon Go confirmed that others would be added to the game in the coming week.

As of this time, it's unknown whether Pokemon Go will tweak the catch rates for any of the Legendary Birds. Game developers increased the base capture rate for Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres after announcing that each Pokemon would be only be catchable for a brief amount of time. Lugia's capture rate is currently at 2%, the lowest in Pokemon Go.

Players can check out our Raid Guides for Articuno, Lugia, Moltres, and Zapdos if they need any help battling and catching these powerful Pokemon. Be sure to get out there and catch one today before they disappear forever -- or at least for a while!