Shortly before the Nature Techni Colour line was taken over by Ikimon, Kitan Club released three sets (volumes) under the title Nature of Japan. Each set features 10 figures representing animals, and in rare cases plants or geological structures, of Japan. Here we visit one of the figures of the first set, the Pacific oyster (Magallana gigas).
Author: bmathison1972
I am Blaine, known by bmathison1972 on the forums and blogs. I am a professional parasitologist specializing in agents of human disease, including medically-important arthropods. I am also an amateur entomologist and study Nearctic click beetles (family Elateridae). Historically, much of my collection was devoted to insects and other arthropods, but in late 2018 I started building a Synoptic Collection of other species, to have one good exemplar of any animal species (my personal ‘Natural History Museum’). Other hobbies include hiking, bird-watching, running, and lifting weights, but my other ‘big’ hobby is visiting sports arenas, especially baseball stadiums. Whenever I travel for work (which I do with some frequency), I always check to see if there is a local college, independent, minor, or major league team to see.All reviews by this author
Smokybrown Cockroach (Capsule Q Museum: Sanitary Insect Pest Exhibition by Kaiyodo)
4 (2 votes)
Today we are reviewing the smokybrown cockroach, Periplaneta fulginosa, by Kaiyodo for the Sanitary Insect Pest Exhibition from 2015. A year later, Kaiyodo would release a nymph of this same species in the Sticky Tack Insect set (see the third image). Like most anthropophilic species, the smokybrown is native to Asia.
Cave Dwellers TOOB (Safari Ltd.)
4.3 (3 votes)
For my next review I thought I would do an overview of the Cave Dwellers TOOB released by Safari Ltd. in 2014. When this set was first released, I was excited because five of the eight figures are arthropods. Unfortunately I have misplaced four of those five, so I recently bought the entire set, which is good because now that I am building a synoptic collection I really wanted the three non-arthropods.
Orange-barred Sulfur (Hidden Kingdom Insects by Safari Ltd.)
4.3 (3 votes)
A lot of my posts for the Blog to date have been to introduce interesting lines or add some new broad taxa. But, it is time for me to go back to my entomological roots! So today I am reviewing the orange-barred sulfur (Phoebis philea) that was released by Safari Ltd.
Pallas Cat (Naturally Adorkable by Naturalism)
5 (2 votes)
I am using today’s review to introduce an unusual set of animals from a series called ‘Naturally Adorkable’, which was released in conjunction with a Chinese natural history magazine called, well, Natural History. I am not sure of the release date, but I believe 2018 based on when the figures started showing up on the forums and eBay.
Red-clawed Crab (Revogeo by Kaiyodo)
5 (2 votes)
This review is one of my walkaround carryovers from the Animal Toy Forum, presenting the red-clawed crab (Chiromantes haematocheir) by Kaiyodo, which was released earlier this year as part of their Revogeo line. I cannot find too much information on the Revogeo line. It appears to be an offshoot from their Revlotech line, which features large articulated sci-fi and anime characters.
Pelican (Wild Animals by Papo)
4.7 (3 votes)
Today I am reviewing the great white pelican, Pelecanus onocrotalus Linnaeus, 1758 by Papo, which was released in 2011 as part of their Wild Animals line. The figure was simply marketed as ‘pelican’ but it most-likely was inteded to represent P. onocrotalus. I decided to review this figure now because I recently replaced it in my Synoptic Collection with the 2016 figure by Schleich.
Life Cycle of a Mosquito (Safariology by Safari Ltd.)
4.3 (3 votes)
Mosquitoes! They have been referred to as the most medically and economically destructive group of insects, due to their role in the transmission of disease-causing agents. They are responsible for the transmission of the agents of malaria, lymphatic filariasis, dirofilariasis, yellow fever, Chikingunya, dengue, West Nile, and many many others. Yet, they also play a very important role in freshwater ecosystems, as they are an important food source for freshwater invertebrates, fish, and birds.
Eastern Grey Squirrel (Wild Safari North American Wildlife by Safari Ltd.)
4.7 (3 votes)
I was thinking for my next review I should do a rodent or lagomorph. I decided to review the eastern grey squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis Gmelin, 1788) by Safari LTD, which was released for their North American Wildlife line in 2006. The figure was marketed simply as ‘squirrel’ but was clearly intended to represent this species.
Blue-winged Goose (Rescue Series by Yowie Group)
5 (3 votes)
Yowies are small plastic figures sold blindly in chocolate-wrapped capsules, similar to Kinder Surprise toys. They originated in Australia in 1995 as a publishing brand by Cadbury and Kidcorp. The first four series consisted of 50 figures each represening species endemic to Australia. The figures had to be assembled and were often quite stylized.
Red River Hog (Wildlife by CollectA)
4.6 (5 votes)
I wanted to introduce the first mammal to the Animal Toy Blog, so I used a Random Number Generator in conjunction with my Excel file database and here we have the red river hog, Potamochoerus porcus (Linnaeus, 1758) by CollectA. The figure was released in 2012 as part of their Wild Life line.
Praying Mantis (Wild Animals by Papo)
4.7 (6 votes)
Mantids are iconic insects. Anyone who has grown up looking at or collecting insects is familiar with them. They have interesting morphologies and biologies, especially with their predaceous and often cannibalistic habits. Mantids are not uncommon in toy form; most ‘bin-style’ sets of insects have one. Many of the more-familiar major companies make them too.
Tawny Owl (Wild Life by Schleich)
4.3 (3 votes)
Welcome to the Animal Toy Blog. Since I have the honor of posting the first review, I thought I would pick a figure that just arrived in the mail today, the tawny owl, Strix aluco Linnaeus, 1758, which was released by Schleich in 1999.
For those of you that know me, you know I am a professional parasitologist and entomologist, and historically my collection has focused on arthropods.