I live on Maryland’s eastern shore, part of the Delmarva Peninsula between the Atlantic Ocean and Chesapeake Bay. As such, one of my favorite stomping grounds is Assateague Island, a 37-mile-long barrier island that stretches along the coasts of Maryland and Virginia. Assateague Island is most well known for its herds of feral horses (Equus ferus caballus) known as Assateague horses or Chincoteague ponies.
Brand: CollectA
Chiru (Wildlife by CollectA)
5 (5 votes)
Review and Photos by OkapiBoy
Choosing a figure for my very first review for the blog proved to be difficult. For my first review, I wanted a figure that was both unique, obscure, and reflect my interest. After much deliberation, I decided on this figure, CollectA’s chiru or more commonly knows as the Tibetan antelope (Pantholops hodgsoni).
Clydesdale Stallion (Horse Country by CollectA)
5 (3 votes)
The Clydesdale is a breed of draft horse that originated in the valley of the river Clyde, in the county of Lanarkshire in Scotland. They are the result of breeding imported Flemish stallions with small native draft mares during the 18th century. Later, in the 19th century, Shire horses were also used in the breeding program.
Common Otter (Wildlife by CollectA)
3.7 (7 votes)
Review and images by Suspsy; edited by bmathison1972
Otters belong to the mustelid family, which also includes weasels and their kin, badgers, skunks, and wolverines. There are currently 13 extant species of otter that all range from semiaquatic to marine in their lifestyles. The Eurasian or common otter (Lutra lutra) is probably the most familiar member of the lot, with a range throughout Europe, much of Asia, and parts of Africa and the Middle East.
Common Zebra (Wildlife by CollectA)
4.9 (8 votes)
The common, or plains zebra (Equus quagga), is the most widespread and common of Africa’s three species of zebra. It occurs in south and east Africa, although its range is greatly fragmented. In addition to their native range in Africa the common zebra can also be found in a rather unlikely place, California!
Diana Monkey (Wildlife Collection by CollectA)
5 (6 votes)
The Diana monkey (Cercopithecus diana) is a species of catarrhine (old-world) monkey native to Sierra Leone, Liberia, and Côte d’Ivoire. It’s named after the Roman goddess, Diana, goddess of wild animals and hunting, and the boundary between the wild and civilization, among other things. The Diana monkey gets this name due to its white crescent-shaped browband, which resembles the bow that the goddess is often depicted with.
Dugong (Sealife by CollectA)
4 (8 votes)
Review and images by Suspsy; edited by bmathison1972
The only purely herbivorous marine mammal, the dugong (Dugong dugon) forms the order Sirenia along with the three species of manatee. It is believed to have been the inspiration for the legend of mermaids, although I reckon the sailors who sighted a dugong back in those days had to have been either extremely lonely or extremely inebriated to mistake its visage for that of an alluring woman.
European Hedgehog (Wildlife by CollectA)
4.8 (5 votes)
The European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) also known as the common hedgehog ranges across much of Europe, from Iberia and Italy, north into Scandinavia and northwest Russia, and west into the British Isles. It is a beloved animal throughout its range and a welcome visitor to backyard gardens where it feeds nocturnally on worms, slugs, snails, caterpillars, beetles, and other invertebrates.
European Mouflon (Wildlife by CollectA)
4.8 (8 votes)
Review and images by Suspsy; edited by bmathison1972
Mouflons are wild sheep native to Europe and Western Asia, and are surmised to be the ancestors of all the domestic sheep breeds which have been so valuable to us for millennia. Five subspecies are currently recognized, including the European variety (Ovis gemlini musimon) that will be the subject of this review.
European Stag Beetle (Little Wonders by CollectA)
4.7 (3 votes)
Editor’s note: Time for brontodocus’ next contribution. This time, it is the European stag beetle, Lucanus cervus, by CollectA for their Insects line (which is now called Little Wonders, as it contains several non-arthropods such as reptiles and amphibians). Below is a copy of the original walkaround, which was posted shortly after the figure was released back in 2015.
Ganges River Dolphin (Sealife by CollectA)
5 (5 votes)
Review and photos by OkapiBoy
Before we leave Mainland Asia, I wanted to make one last detour and check out some of the largest and mightiest rivers in India and Asia.The Ganges, Indus, Yangtze, and Mekong are just some of the largest river systems that flows and crisscross the continent.Here, one would encounter one of the unlikeliest animal swimming around: dolphins.
Giant Eland (Wildlife by CollectA)
5 (4 votes)
Grass has been an incredible influence on the world, and resulted in an incredibly diverse number of animals that could eat it: the grazers. Some of the greatest numbers of these animals come from the plains and savanna of Africa, with this review covering the largest of the antelopes, the giant eland (Taurotragus derbianus).
Giant Sable Antelope (Wildlife by CollectA)
5 (5 votes)
Review and photos by OkapiBoy
This review will the be the start of my African themed series that I plan to write in the coming months.
When one thinks of wild places and animals, it is almost certain that vision of Africa and its vast herds of animals comes to mind first.
Goblin Shark (Sealife by CollectA)
4.9 (12 votes)
In 1889 fossils of an unusual Mesozoic shark were described. It was named Scapanorhynchus, Greek for “shovel-snout” due to the elongated blade-like snout that jutted out over its face. Nine years later an unusual 42” (107 cm) immature male shark with similar anatomy was caught in Sagami Bay, Japan and formally described as Mitsukurina owstoni, commonly known as the goblin shark in English and the tenguzami in Japanese.
Great White Shark, 2015 (Sealife by CollectA)
3.4 (5 votes)
Review and images by Suspsy; edited by bmathison1972
The most famous, most popular, and most feared shark of them all is unquestionably the great white (Carcharodon carcharias). It has appeared in more films, documentaries, books, comics, cartoons, games, and toy lines than any other shark, and probably any other sea creature for that matter.