In the vast plains of South Africa, the dry season is in full swing. Animals are in desperate search of food and water as the heat’s mirage play a cruel trick on them.
In the distance, a trio of dark figure move at a steady pace heading towards the edge of the woodland.
The American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) is not only a symbol of the American southeast, but also of American conservation. Due to overhunting and habitat loss during the 1800’s through the mid 1900’s the species was listed as endangered in 1967. Then a mere 20 years later, in 1987, it was pronounced fully recovered.
This walk-around covers the Incredible Creatures (American) Alligator with Babies, Alligator mississippiensis (Daudin, 1802). A huge figure, stretched out it would be approx. 481 mm total length and 242 mm snout-vent length. Considering normal adult lengths between 2.5 and 4.4 m (although larger specimens are known) the scale would be between 1:5 and 1:9.
The American badger (Taxidea taxus) is said to be North America’s only species of badger, but the truth is that badgers are a polyphyletic group, united not by a single common ancestor but by appearance. In the case of the American badger, it is the only member of its sub-family, Taxidiinae.
Another Incredible Creatures walk-around! This time it’s the huge IC American bald eagle, Haliaeetus leucocephalus (Linnaeus, 1766). One of the more rigid IC figures. Its total length is about 21.0 cm, making the scale approx. 1:4 – 1:5. I was very happy to get this one as part of the prize for a photo contest by Safari Ltd.
Review and images by Takama; edited by bmathison1972
Editor’s Note: In honor of Independence Day, we are transferring over a walk-around of an iconic American animal, the bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus).
Ok, in the fall and early winter, bald eagles migrate from the south to make there nests in my area of the Mississippi River.
Review and photos by Suspsy; edited by bmathison1972
At one time, the American bison (Bison bison) might well have been the most numerous large land animal on the entire planet, with an estimated 60 million roaming the grasslands of North America. But thanks to a combination of overhunting, bovine disease contracted from cattle, and sheer slaughter as part of the US government’s campaign to subjugate the Plains Indians, only 541 bison remained by 1889.
The American bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus) is an iconic American animal. A fixture in still, shallow water portions of swamps, rivers, marshes, lakes, and ponds. Anyone out enjoying a summer night within its range is no doubt familiar with its deep, bellowing, “Jug-O-Rum” call.
The American white pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos) is one of the largest birds in North America. Measuring 4-6’ (1.2-1.8 meters) in length, only the trumpeter swan matches it in length. With a wingspan of 8-10’ (2.4- 3 meters), only the California condor has a wider spread. Such a wingspan is required because the white pelican is also a heavy bird, weighing 11-20 lbs.
This past week I took a trip to Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge in Delaware, a vast tidal salt marsh that for this summer has provided a home to four wayward roseate spoonbills. Seeing these birds got me wanting to review a spoonbill, but alas, I don’t have one. Instead, I’ll settle on another water bird from the American deep south, the anhinga (Anhinga anhinga).
During the last Ice Age most of Canada and the northern United States would have been covered in a sheet of ice while the American southwest would have been lush, wet, and cool. A far cry from the comparatively hot, dry, and parched land of the modern southwest. It was the warming climate at the end of the Ice Age that would alter much of the southwest but small islands of temperate climates and rich biodiversity are still present in high elevation mountain ranges and wetlands.
Off we go back to the Arctic to explore another extreme climate inhabitant… the Safari Ltd. Arctic fox for 2023! Released under the item number of #100731, it presents a very special Arctic animal. This will also be the first post for this species on the blog! Unlike the Arctic wolf discussed in another recently released blog post, this animal is a unique species to its mainland cousin.
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.
Review and photos by Saarlooswolfhound; edited by bmathison1972
Editor’s note: It gives me great pleasure to present the first Blog submission by my STS forum friend, Saarlooswolfhound!!! Let’s hope this is the first of many to come 🙂
The Safari Ltd. “White Wolf”, Catalogue #220029, was originally released in 2007 and is still being produced today.
The Atlantic goliath grouper (Epinephelus itajara) is appropriately named, this fish is an absolute brute, a monster, a behemoth. It’s the kind of fish that looks bigger than it rightfully should be. We expect large sizes from sharks, tuna, and billfishes but this fish has a very conventional “fishy” body plan, like you would see in smaller perches, cichlids, or basses, only it is blown up to absurd proportions.
