Review and images by Febrogon; edited by bmathison1972
Dogs, cats, and teddy bears tend to be the general preference for people wanting a stuffed animal; but I’m the sort of person who would rather cuddle a giant squid or lizard if given the chance. Naturally, good plush toys of creatures like reptiles are relatively less common, so I couldn’t help my attention being grabbed by a very nice-looking collared lizard on the shelf of the gift shop while visiting the Zion National Park last year.
Aside from large crocodilians and tortoises, one of the most iconic reptiles of the Americas would be the green iguana (Iguana iguana). Green iguanas are native to South and Central America with invasive populations in parts of North America and the Caribbean. Taxonomy within this species has been controversial, with the current convention being the recognition of tentative subspecies.
Walk-around of the Kaiyodo Aquatales Polyresin Aquatic animal figure collection Series 1 No. 005 Indo-Pacific sailfish, Istiophorus platypterus Shaw, 1792. It was one of my most anticipated figure from the series. This small gem has a length of 131 mm FL (= Fork Length) or 118 mm SL (Standard Length, i.e.
Review and images by Harecraft Horses; edited by bmathison1972
CollectA’s new horses for 2022 are being sent out to stockists in two batches, some breeds now and the rest due in December (although of course these timings will vary by country – there’s always a delay while British collectors wait for the new figures to be shipped over, while the US and mainland Europe are buying them already).
When it comes to the predators of the African plains, the “Savanah Summer” always offers a variety, no matter how you rate them. The biggest? The lion. Most numerous? The hyena (ok, not done yet, but one day). But if you were to ask for the most successful, it isn’t a feliform, but a caniform, the African Wild Dog (Lycaon pictus) With their pack hunting, they succeed in near all their hunts.
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.
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).
When I was in high school, I did a report on the top 10 most venomous animals in the world, based on an article in one of the nature magazines I was subscribed to at the time. I don’t remember what the article’s criteria was for determining the ‘most venomous’ (potency?
Walk-around of the Safari Ltd. Wild Safari Wildlife (but also listed in the Safari Farm line) ostrich, Struthio camelus Linnaeus, 1758, originally released in 2010. Height is 88 mm but the figure is not standing fully upright and would be over 100 mm if it did. So the scale would be between approx.
Review and images by JimoAi; edited by bmathison1972
The Kidako moray (Gymnothorax kidako) is a species of moray eel inhabiting coral reefs in subtropical and tropical seas around western to central Ocean Pacific area from Taiwan to Polynesia, including Hawaii, and from south Japan and Korea to New Caledonia.
Another “Savanah Summer” that will see us back into the water, or at least wade through it. After all, though they are known as “water horses”, the Hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius) does not actually swim like it’s cetacean relatives, more hopping along the bottom of the body of water they are in, so don’t venture into deep water.
Review and images by JimoAi; edited by bmathison1972
Happy Shark Week to everyone who loves sharks! This is the time of year where TV programs go out of their way to showcase shark-based programs, most notably Discovery Channel and National Geographic. These programs help open the doors to knowledge on these animals and help the general public understand, instead of fear, these misunderstood creatures, although some programs may over sensationalize rather than give true facts.
The blacktip reef shark (Carcharhinus melanopterus) is one of the most recognizable sharks, a staple in aquariums that frequents shallow coral reefs in the wild, which makes it popular among tourists and SCUBA divers. The blacktip reef shark is a generally timid species with only 11 unprovoked attacks and 21 attacks total to its name, none of them fatal.
Back with another less familiar sharks for Animal Toy Blog Shark Week 2022! Well, a few days ago I introduced an odd little figure that went to the dog(shark)s so today lets balance it it out with a cat(shark). This one is a less familiar figure from a less familiar Japanese company…of a less familiar shark!
Today’s Shark Week review is going to cover the stingray that was produced by Safari Ltd. in 2020 as part of their Incredible Creatures line. I know, I know, stingrays are not technically sharks, but here at the Animal Toy Blog we celebrate all kinds of cartilaginous critters during Shark Week!