The world’s largest and most visually striking dolphin, one of its most intelligent animals, and undisputedly one of its most accomplished predators, the killer whale (Orcinus orca) needs no introduction from me. Whether they’re attacking boats or wearing dead salmon as hats the orca is constantly generating interest and is one of our most beloved and familiar animals.
Classification: Whales & Dolphins
Pilot Whale (Wild Safari Sealife by Safari Ltd.)
4.3 (12 votes)
Pilot whales are members of the Delphinidae family that get their name from the unproven belief that a single member of the pod leads the rest and that they’ll follow that individual even if it means certain death, which is supposed to explain why pilot whales strand en mass. Indeed, pilot whales are among the most likely cetacean species to become stranded.
Laugh and Grow Fat Sea Animals Series 1 (Animal Heavenly Body)
4 (9 votes)
Review and images by JimoAi; edited by bmathison1972
Happy Shark Week! For a change, instead of reviewing a shark for this year, I will be reviewing a selected group of sea animals with a shark included, of course.
An introduction to Animal Heavenly Body. They are a Chinese company, akin to a mix of PNSO and Haolonggood with a hint of Popmart, which focuses on modern animals with some stylized features with them.
Killer Whale, 2019 (Wild Safari Sealife by Safari Ltd.)
3.7 (11 votes)
Review and images by caipirasuchus; edited by bmathison1972
Orcas (I prefer this term over killer whales), Orcinus orca, don’t need an introduction. One of the most popular marine creatures, it is also a very common species in the toy market. It’s not difficult to see why: big, beautiful, and presenting one of the most unique and striking color patterns in the animal world, orcas are everyone’s favorite.
Amazon River Dolphin (Sealife by Collecta)
5 (13 votes)
My thanks to Happy Hen Toys for providing this figurine for review. Be sure to check out their website down below.
River dolphins might not be as famously charismatic as their oceanic relatives, or as infamously dangerous as some contemporary freshwater predators; but they’re a remarkable and precious sample of the diversity of life which can be found in the planet’s river systems.
Fish Assortment 2 (Wonder World by Kenner)
3.4 (7 votes)
Today I am reviewing a set of four animals I originally bought for just one of the figures. The set, which was being sold on eBay, was alerted to me on the ATF by forum member NSD Bashe. The set is called Fish Assortment 2 and it is one of four components of a larger collection that’s part of the Wonder World line by Kenner, a subsidiary of Hasbro at the time it was released (1995).
Bottlenose Dolphin (AAA)
4.1 (12 votes)
Majestic, intelligent, enigmatic, beautiful, elegant. These are all apt adjectives that describe the common bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus), one of the most popular, wide ranging, and recognizable cetaceans in the world. Toy Animal Wiki catalogs 71 different figures of the species but there are easily many more than that.
Blue Whale, 2018 (Sealife by CollectA)
4.8 (12 votes)
Review and images by Suspsy; edited by bmathison1972
Well, here it is, my review of the final sample animal toy from Happy Hen Toys—for now. Once again I must express my deepest thanks to them for such wonderful generosity. And I’ve saved the very biggest for last: CollectA’s second version of the massive and marvelous blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus).
Sperm Whale, adult and calf (Monterey Bay Aquarium Collection by Safari Ltd.)
4 (10 votes)
For author’s summary of species look here
This will be the last review of a cetacean species from the Monterey Bay Aquarium collection, the sperm whale adult and calf pair.
The adult female measures 29 cm, which corresponds to an 11.6 m whale at the marketed 1:40 scale. Above, you can see it scales well with the Safari Sea Life giant squid (24.5 cm/9.8 m) and the CollectA basking shark (22 cm/ 8.8 m).
Killer Whale, adult and calf (Monterey Bay Aquarium by Safari Ltd.)
3.9 (7 votes)
For the author’s overview of this species, please see this review
Despite many killer whale figures having been produced, it has been about 2 years since I’ve last covered this species. Most of them tend to fall short of my standards, but maybe things will be different for the Monterey Bay Aquarium series that rarely leaves me disappointed.
Atlantic Spotted Dolphin (Wild Safari Sealife by Safari Ltd.)
4.4 (7 votes)
The Atlantic spotted dolphin (Stenella frontalis) is a member of the family Delphinidae that can be found in temperate and tropical waters throughout the Atlantic. Calves are born unspotted, and spots don’t appear until 3-4 years of age, on average. More spots appear as the dolphin ages and physically mature dolphins have the heaviest spotting, although the amount of spotting can still vary between individuals.
Atlantic White-Sided Dolphin (Wild Safari Sealife by Safari Ltd.)
5 (6 votes)
With its distinctive, sharply contrasting mix of gray, black, blue, white, and yellow coloration, the Atlantic white-sided dolphin (Lagenorhynchus acutus) is one of the ocean’s most attractive species of dolphin. And yet, it is not terribly popular with toy manufacturers which tend to focus on the far more popular but somewhat bland bottlenose dolphin.
Minke Whale (Wild Safari Sealife by Safari Ltd.)
4.4 (5 votes)
The minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) belongs to the same genus as the world’s largest animal, the blue whale, but at 26-33’ (8-10.2 meters) is only a fraction of its giant cousin’s size. Indeed, the minke whale is the world’s smallest species of rorqual and the second smallest species of baleen whale (the pygmy right whale is the smallest).
Narwhal (Sealife by CollectA)
4.7 (3 votes)
Review and images by JimoAi; edited by bmathison1972
The narwhal (Monodon monoceros) is a species of toothed whale that lives in the Artic waters of Greenland, Canada, and Russia. Along with the beluga whale (Delphinapterus leucas), they are the only living members of the Monodontidae family of whales and it’s not too hard to see why.
Blainville’s Beaked Whale (Sealife by CollectA)
4.8 (8 votes)
The beaked whales of the family Ziphiidae are collectively among the most elusive and poorly understood of all cetaceans, or mammals in general. Roughly 24 species have been described so far with the Ramari’s beaked whale (Mesoplodon eueu) having been described in 2021. Indeed, new beaked whale species are regularly described, or their taxonomy revised, as our understanding of them increases.