Author’s note: Normally in October I follow the ‘spooky’ critters theme. However, I wanted to get this sixth and final Toymany baby African animal up on the blog, which like others I have reviewed recently, was courtesy of @Kenc and our friends at Toymany. My other posts this month will stick to the traditional theme :-).
Classification: Primates
Capybara (Asahiyama Capsule Zoo by Kaiyodo)
Review and images by Sam; edited by bmathison1972
The capybara (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris) is the world’s largest rodent. It is native to South America, in the countries of Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, Argentina, Venezuela, Colombia, and Guyana. It eats grass and fresh fruits including citrus fruits and watermelons. Its ecological niche is to create new habitats for the other animals of its native ecosystem by eating the grass.
Japanese Macaque (Wild Life Asia by Schleich)
Bonobo, female (Wild Life Africa by Schleich)
Review and images by stemturtle; edited by bmathison1972
Schleich released a lovely bonobo, Pan paniscus (Schleich Wild Life #14875), in 2024. This review will compare the figure to the chimpanzee, Pan troglodytes, instead of describing it in great detail. A former name, pygmy chimpanzee, was a mistake, since the bonobo is a separate species from the chimp.
Chimpanzee with baby, 2010 (Wild Safari Wildlife by Safari Ltd.)
This toy (#295929) was released in 2010, the same year Safari Ltd retired an earlier and very similar sculpt of a chimpanzee with baby (#272229, released 1998). So, in effect, this model was a direct replacement, and a notable upgrade.
The young chimp is piggybacking on the adult and convincingly looks like it’s clinging on tightly.
Chimpanzee, 2016 (Wild Safari Wildlife by Safari Ltd.)
Walk-around of the Safari Ltd. Wild Safari Wildlife (male) Common Chimpanzee, Pan troglodytes (Blumenbach, 1776); item No. 224729, produced in 2016. Snout-vent length is approx. 72 mm, so the scale is somewhere between 1:9 and 1:13. The human figure (South American Father by Miniland “Los Amigos del Mundo”) is approx.
Cryptozoology Designer TOOB (Safari Ltd.)
Review and images by Saarlooswolfhound; edited by bmathison1972
This article marks my first multiple model (Safari Ltd. TOOB) production! Presented here are 14 figures, 7 original pieces and 7 later re-released with updated paintwork. The Cryptozoology Designer TOOB by Safari Ltd. #677504 was originally released in 2013 with simplistic paintwork, then re-released a few years after retirement with much improved paint schemes for most of the figures.
Bornean Orangutan (Wild Safari Wildlife by Safari Ltd.)
I had to take a photo of this figure for today’s daily ‘Museum’ post and decided to throw together a quick review of it for the Blog, especially since we don’t have have a this species on the Blog yet! The Bornean orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus) is, as its common name suggests, endemic to the island of Borneo.
Ring-tailed Lemur (Wild Safari Wildlife by Safari Ltd.)
Review and images by Suspsy; edited by bmathison1972
Lemurs are primates endemic to the island of Madagascar. Although superficially similar to monkeys, they have evolved independently from them and can easily be distinguished by their enormous eyes and pointed muzzles. Of the 100 species described, the most famous and popular one of all is probably the ring-tailed lemur (Lemur catta).
Chimpanzee, 2013 male (Wild Life Africa by Schleich)
Walk-around of the Schleich Wild Life 14678 male common chimpanzee, Pan troglodytes (Blumenbach, 1776). Snout-vent length is approx. 67 mm, so the scale is something between 1:10 and 1:14. The human figure (European Father by Miniland “Los Amigos del Mundo”) is approx. 1:13 – 1:14 scale. There are only a few chimpanzee figures I really like and this is actually the first I have in my collection.
Diana Monkey (Wildlife Collection by CollectA)
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.
Mandrill, pair (Noah’s Pals by Caboodle! Toys LLC)
The primate order is an intriguing and diverse group, from monkeys to lemurs, and from great ape to human, they are varied in form. Here, we look at some old world monkeys, one that lacks the long tails and have only short ones. These are Mandrills (Mandrillus sphinx), primates that exist in both the forests and the Savanah of central-west Africa, living in large groups.
Chimpanzee, pair (Noah’s Pals by Caboodle! Toys LLC)
Humans, despite our technology and power, are still just another mammal. Specifically, we are primates, related to many of the ape family. Of all of them, we are most closely related to the Chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes), found in Eastern Africa, they are known for intelligence, tool use and (at least in the UK) adverts for tea.
Snub-Nosed Monkey (Wild Safari Wildlife by Safari Ltd.)
Snub-nosed monkeys are comprised of 5 species that make up the Rhinopithecus genus in the Colobinae subfamily. They live in southern China as well as parts of Myanmar and Vietnam. Snub-nosed monkeys get their name from their flattened noses which are thought to be an adaptation to their cold, high elevation environment.
Bigfoot (Mythical Creatures by Safari Ltd.)
Review and images by Suspsy; edited by bmathison1972
The Sasquatch (Megapodapithecus krantzi), more popularly known as Bigfoot, is one of only two apes (the other being Homo sapiens) known to inhabit the North American continent. It is also one of the world’s largest primates, with adult males regularly growing to well over two metres in height and 227 kg (500 lbs) in weight.