I was debating on whether or not to post before Christmas, but I got a cool new figure in the mail today, so I said, let’s do it! So today I am reviewing another Yowie figure for the Blog. This time it is the golden ghost crab, Ocypode convexa, from the recently-released series, Colors of the Animal Kingdom.
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
Corals in Colour (Yujin)
5 (3 votes)
Review of the complete set of the Corals in Colour produced by Yujin in 2005. The set consists of 16 small figures representing primarily stony corals; however it also includes two species hydrozoans that morphologically similar to hard corals. The figures are quite small, being on average 2.5 cm between their greatest points.
Giant Deep-sea Isopod (Dango Mushi 05 by Bandai)
5 (4 votes)
Review of the giant deep-sea isopod (Bathynomus giganteus) by Bandai, released recently in November, 2019 for the fifth set in the Dango Mushi Line. I am not going to go into too much detail on the animal itself, as this was covered when the species was first introduced to the Blog.
Arctic Hare (Wild Safari North American Wildlife by Safari Ltd.)
5 (6 votes)
Normally I wouldn’t do back-to-back posts, but we had our first real snow this weekend, so I took advantage of the situation to snap up some pics of a figure that in real life would be at home in such an environment: the Arctic hare, Lepus arcticus. This figure was produced by Safari Ltd.
Turkey (Farm Time by CollectA)
4.6 (5 votes)
Today here in the United States it is Thanksgiving (it is celebrated on other days in other parts of the World)! And what better way to celebrate the holiday than a review of the turkey, Meleagris gallopavo. This figure was produced by CollectA in 2016 but is also distributed by Breyer in North America (as my figure was, hence both companies in the Categories).
Australia’s Deadliest Nature Tube (Wild Republic by K&M International)
4 (3 votes)
Review of the Australia’s Deadliest Nature Tube, by K&M International for the Wild Republic line. The set was released in 2018. To be honest, I bought this set specifically for the three arthropods, since I am a completist when it comes to arthropods identifiable to the species level. However, now that I am building a Synoptic Collection, I thought I could use the octopus too.
Horned Lizard (Wild Animals by Papo)
4.3 (3 votes)
Review of the Texas horned lizard, Phrynosoma cornutum, by Papo, new for 2019 (just got it in the mail just today!). The figure is not marketed at the species level but is a good representation of P. cornutum (more on the morphology below). I was hesitant to buy this figure, mainly because I thought it would be too big compared to other small lizards in my Synoptic Collection.
Orange-striped Shrimp Goby (Another Aquarium by For Corporation)
3.7 (3 votes)
I had not planned on another post so soon, but since the blog has been kinda quiet, I thought I would transfer over one of my walkarounds. This time, the orange-striped shrimp goby, Stogonobiops yasha Yoshino et Shimada, 2010 that was released as part of the line called Another Aquarium by the company For Corporation (yes, that is the name of the company).
North American Porcupine (Wild Safari North American Wildlife by Safari Ltd.)
4.1 (7 votes)
Today I am reviewing a figure that I think needs some special attention, the North American porcupine (Erethizon dorsatum), that was released by Safari Ltd in 2018 for their North American Wildlife line. When promo pics first came out for this figure, it got a lot of negative feedback, much of which I think is undeserving given the complex morphology of the actual animal (more on that below).
Yellow-footed Rock-wallaby (Animals of Australia, Small Series by Science & Nature)
4 (4 votes)
Today we are visiting the yellow-footed rock-wallaby, Petrogale xanthopus, by Science & Nature. The figure was released for the ‘small series’ in their Animals of Australia line this year (2019). Science & Nature is an Australian company that focuses on the fauna of Australia, New Zealand, and surrounding areas.
Pacific Oyster (Nature Techni Colour: Nature of Japan Vol. 1 by Kitan Club)
5 (3 votes)
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).
Smokybrown Cockroach (Capsule Q Museum: Sanitary Insect Pest Exhibition by Kaiyodo)
4.3 (3 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.