Sawsharks, which are in the family Pristiophoridae, should not be confused with sawfish of the family Pristidae. Sawsharks, as their name implies, are ‘true’ sharks within the Selachimorpha, whereas sawfish are rays within Batoidea. Sawsharks are squalimorph sharks, and are more closely related to lantern sharks, sleeper sharks, angel sharks, and dogfish than they are to more familiar taxa such as great whites, tiger sharks, whale sharks, and hammerheads.
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
Brown Dog Tick (Merial)
4 (4 votes)
Commonly called the brown dog tick or kennel tick, Rhipicephalus sanguineus is the most widely distributed tick species in the world. It’s primary hosts are dogs and other canids, but it can bite humans as well. However, it doesn’t have a strong predilection for humans, and even in households where dogs are infested, their human owners may never get bitten.
Rabbit Figurines Playset (Toymany)
5 (4 votes)
Before I start this review, I must once again thank @Toymany-kenc and all our friends at Toymany for the donation of these review samples for the Blog. I had a keen interest in purchasing this set, so I was very happy to be able to get one for review!
The domestic rabbit is descended from the European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus).
Mini Crustaceans (Diversity of Life on Earth by Bandai)
5 (3 votes)
In early 2024, Bandai announced a set of seven miniature crustaceans in their ever-growing Diversity of Life on Earth line. I was must admit, I had mixed emotions for this set. Two of the figures I really wanted! For one of them, I go either way. And for the remaining four, I didn’t need or really want any of them.
Crawlers (Pocket Explorers by Phidal Publishing Inc.)
3 (4 votes)
Pocket Explorers is a line of books by put out by Phidal Publishing. They designed for children and are educationally driven. Looking at their website, the themes are Reptiles, Wild Cats, Dinosaurs, Sharks, Polar Animals, Birds of Prey, Bears, and Crawlers, the last of which we will be looking at today.
Eagle Nest with Babies (Wild Life America by Schleich)
3.9 (10 votes)
The bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) and the golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) are not closely related, at least not within the context of the family Accipitridae. The latter is considered a ‘true’ eagle whereas the former is a buteonine hawk. Yet, the two birds have similar breeding and nesting habits.
Mongoose (Miniatureplanet 2023 by Eikoh)
3.6 (7 votes)
In late 2023, Eikoh released another collection in their Miniatureplanet line. Typically, these releases are marked by ‘volumes’, which would make the set Volume 23 if I am doing the math right, although there is no indication on the accompanying paperwork that this is the case. There is a number ’13’ on the paperwork after ‘Miniatureplanet’, but there have clearly been more than 13 sets, and there are more than 13 animals in this particular set (16 to be precise).
Dung Beetle (Jasman)
3.3 (8 votes)
Copris acephalus (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae), an enigmatic new species of dung beetle from the Bolivian Altiplano
keywords: Copris, Scarabaeidae, new species
Abstract. Copris acephalus Mathison, new species is described from the Bolivian Altiplano. The new species possesses a series of bizarre autapomorphies not previously seen in the genus Copris, the family Scarabaeidae, or even the order Coleoptera.
Cute Silkworm (Tarlin)
3.5 (4 votes)
Bombyx mori, the domestic silkworm moth, is a wholly domesticated species of insect. The origin of B. mori is unknown, but is believed to be descended from an extinct moth that shares a common ancestor with the wild silk moth, B. mandarina. Domestication is thought to have originated in China over 5,000 years ago.
Border Collie (Farm Time by CollectA)
4 (4 votes)
The Border Collie is a British breed of herding dog. It is believed to have originated along the border between England and Scotland (hence the term ‘border’ collie). It was originally bred to herd sheep, and today is most common in regions of the world with communities that herd livestock. In addition to sheep, they are also used nowadays to herd cattle, poultry, pigs, and even ostriches!
Mini Garden Birds (Archie McPhee)
4 (7 votes)
Archie McPhee is a store based out of Seattle, Washington known for quirky and unusual novelty toys and kitsch gifts. They also have an online store. Among many of the products sold by Archie McPhee, which can include anything from rubber chickens to bacon-scented air freshener, to finger puppets, are a decent selection of toy animals.
Domestic Muscovy Duck (Farm Life by Papo)
4.2 (12 votes)
The Muscovy duck (Cairina moschata) is a species of duck endemic to the American tropics, from the Rio Grande Valley of Texas and Mexico south to Argentina and Uruguay. The Muscovy duck was first domesticated in Brazil, prior to European discovery in the late 1490s. It was bred primarily for meat and today it is often referred to as a Barbary duck in a culinary context.
Common Wall Lizard (Garden Animals by Papo)
4.4 (7 votes)
The common wall lizard, Podarcis muralis, is familiar lacertid that occurs in Central and Southern Europe, from northwestern Spain to the Black Sea of Turkey. They can be found in a wide variety of habitats, from coastal plains to high-altitude mountains, with a preference for rocky microhabitats. Because of this, they have become well adapted to urban and suburban settings, where they live among rocky structures, rubble, and debris.
Southern Pygmy Spiny-tailed Skink (Animal Kingdom by Shantou Yixinsheng Toys Co., Ltd.)
3.5 (8 votes)
Every now and then an interesting figure comes along of seemingly unknown origin. This is often the case with figures from China and Japan, the former of which are often referred to as ‘Chinamals’. Such appeared to be the case recently when forum member Kikimalou posted an interesting figure of a pygmy spiny-tailed skink on the STS forum.
Scarlet Macaw (Wild Life America by Schleich)
4.5 (11 votes)
When Papo announced their 2024 line-up, I decided I would get the capuchin to replace my National Entertainment Collectibles Association (NECA) version, since the latter is an articulated accessory to an Ace Ventura action figure. It got me thinking, I should probably go ahead then and replace the NECA scarlet macaw as well, as I would much rather have representatives of these animals from ‘traditional’ toy animal manufacturers rather than action figure accessories (besides, while the NECA figure morphologically looks like a scarlet macaw, the animal in the film the toy was based on is actually a green-winged macaw).