Lemon sharks (Negaprion brevirostris) are a tough, adaptable, nearshore species, found along the eastern coast of the United States, south to southern Brazil as well as the western shore of the Americas from Baja to Ecuador, in addition to the western coast of Africa. Because of their hardiness and accessibility, they’ve been heavily studied by many prominent shark scientists.
Brand: Safari Ltd.
Leopard Gecko (Incredible Creatures by Safari Ltd.)
5 (20 votes)
The leopard gecko (Eublepharis macularius) is easily among the most popular pet reptiles in the world, and perhaps the most popular pet lizard. Entire industries exist that are dedicated to producing leopard geckos in the hundreds of different selectively bred color morphs they’re now available in and it’s unlikely that you’ll ever walk into a pet shop that doesn’t have them.
Leopard Seal (Wild Safari Sealife by Safari Ltd.)
4.2 (15 votes)
The leopard seal (Hydrurga leptonyx) is the antithesis of what we think of when we think of most pinnipeds: seals, sealions, and walruses. The only member of its genus, the leopard seal is about as far from a chubby harbor seal, or playful California sea lion, as you can get.
Leopard Shark, 2007 (Wild Safari Sealife by Safari Ltd.)
5 (4 votes)
The first species of shark that I ever saw in person was a leopard shark (Triakis semifasciata). It was at The Nature Store in the Pougkeepsie Galleria in New York. This was in the early-mid 90’s and the place is probably shut down by now. The Nature Store was as much a museum as it was a conventional store, it was fun to explore but you could also potentially buy what you were looking at.
Life Cycle of a Monarch Butterfly (Safariology by Safari Ltd.)
3.8 (10 votes)
The monarch, Danaus plexippus, is probably the most commonly made species of butterfly. It’s been made by several major company, including CollectA, Safari Ltd (at least five times), Papo, and K&M International (at least twice), and is a common edition to insect and butterfly tubes, blister packs, and box sets ( couple examples on the Blog, here and here).
Life Cycle of a Mosquito (Safariology by Safari Ltd.)
4.2 (5 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.
Life Cycle of an Earthworm (Safariology by Safari Ltd.)
4.4 (5 votes)
Earthworms! Everyone is familiar with them in some capacity, whether they represent those vermiform creatures that come out onto the sidewalk after a rain storm, to your favorite bait used for fishing, to your garden partners in the compost heap, to the snack you see the robin plucking from the ground!
Loach Minnow (Marsh Education by Safari Ltd.)
5 (5 votes)
I promise I will eventually not write about a fish…but today will not be that day. Instead, I’m going to write about a really interesting fish, and a really unusual–and rare–figure produced to represent it (spoiler, it’s in the title!). I am speaking of course about the Safari Ltd Loach Minnow, produced for Marsh & Associates LLC (as part of their Marsh Education program).
Long-eared Owl (Wings of the World by Safari Ltd.)
4.6 (7 votes)
It’s October again, and that means for the entire month we’ll be featuring spooky creatures and creepy crawlers here on the blog. Halloween is big in my household. Decorations go up in September, apple cider is well stocked in the fridge, pumpkin scented candles burn, and horror movies play every night.
Maine Lobster (Incredible Creatures by Safari Ltd.)
5 (5 votes)
Review and images by Suspsy; edited by bmathison1972
Homarus americanus, better known as the American, Canadian, Atlantic, Maine, or northern lobster, is both the heaviest crustacean and the heaviest of all extant arthropods. Old individuals regularly average around 20 lbs and the record holder, caught off the coast of Nova Scotia in 1977, weighed a staggering 44 lbs, which is heavier than my four year old son!
Manatee, adult and calf (Wild Safari Sealife by Safari Ltd.)
3.5 (4 votes)
Whales typically dominate the discussion of fully aquatic mammals, though Sirenians should be acknowledged for making the transition around the same time. As oppose to ungulates, these creatures are related to proboscids and hyraxes. Amongst the extant species, there are 3 that belong to the manatee genus (Trichechus).
Mandarin Duck (Wings of the World by Safari Ltd.)
5 (3 votes)
Review and images by Takama; additional text by Jetoar and bmathison1972
Mandarin ducks (Aix galericulata) are my favorite ducks. So I am glad Safari Ltd. made one for their Wings of the World collection in 2008.
Mandarin ducks are native to East Asia and Japan, with feral populations established in Great Britain, Germany, and in North Carolina and California in the U.S.
Maned Wolf (Wild Safari Wildlife by Safari Ltd.)
5 (5 votes)
Review and images by Saarlooswolfhound; edited by bmathison1972
The Safari Ltd. maned wolf, listed as #100367, was released in 2021 and is currently in production. This model is included as part of the Wild Safari Wildlife Collection. The model itself measures to around 4 inches long and 3.5 inches tall (10.16 cm x 8.89 cm).
Manta Ray (Monterey Bay Aquarium Collection by Safari Ltd.)
4.7 (9 votes)
Review and images by JimoAi; edited by bmathison1972
Make no surprise there have already been multiple manta ray figures reviewed on this blog, with 3 from the big 4 already being tackled: CollectA, Papo, and Schleich. It is not surprising, as there is no shortage of manta ray figures, with a number of good and incredible figures in many different sizes: from tube-sized to standard-sized figures, across both the reef and oceanic mantas.
Marbled Salamander (Tennessee Aquarium Salamander Collection by Safari Ltd.)
5 (7 votes)
The next figure to discuss from the Safari Tennessee Aquarium is the marbled salamander, Ambystoma opacum, item number 210372. This is pretty much the smallest figure in the series, which is fitting as the marbled salamander is relatively small for it’s genus. Unlike the last few salamander figures we’ve looked at, this species is a member of the Ambystomatidae, the mole and giant salamanders; Ambystoma is the mole salamanders.