Oceania – Page 2 – Animal Toy Blog

Elephant Shark (Art in the Pocket – Sunshine Aquarium by Kitan Club)

Name(s): Australian ghostshark, Callorhinchus, Callorhinchus milii Brand: Kitan Club/Ikimon Classification: Fish, Sharks, Rays & Kin Type: Figurine Range: Oceania

3.3 (6 votes)

Review and images by JimoAi; edited by bmathison1972

Holocephali was once a diverse group of fish, emerging in the Devonian and lasting until the present. They were once more diverse, occupying a lot more niches, including apex predators, but modern members are mostly restricted to the deep sea. Eugeneodontids are one of the more well known group amongst general audiences, as it includes the famous Heliocoprion and related genera like Edestus, which in many depictions are shown to have a shark-like body plan despite only being distantly related.

3D Dangerous Sea Creatures Pictorial Book (The Access)

4.2 (10 votes)

For my next October review I will be giving a brief overview of the entire 3D Dangerous Sea Creatures Pictorial Book collection by The Access (also known as Access Toys), which was released just a couple months ago this past August 2023. I was originally going to just review the jellyfish, but was convinced to review the whole set by forum member JimoAi.

Life Cycle of a Monarch Butterfly (Safariology by Safari Ltd.)

Name(s): Danaus, Danaus plexippus, monarch Brand: Safari Ltd., Safariology Classification: Arthropods, Butterflies & Moths, Insects Type: Baby Animal, Figurine, Life Cycles Range: North America, Oceania, South America

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).

Blue-ringed Octopus (3D Picture Book Poisonous Creatures by Toys Spirits)

Name(s): Hapalochlaena Brand: SO-TA/Toys Spirits Classification: Mollusks Type: Figurine Range: Oceania, Pacific Ocean

4.2 (6 votes)

Review and images by JimoAi; edited by bmathison1972

Octopuses in the genus Hapalochlaena are probably the most striking out of them all, especially with their yellowish bodies and iconic blue rings on their bodies, which become more vibrant when threatened (although one species, Hapalochlaena fasciata, has lines rather than rings on its mantle).

Whitetip Reef Shark (Wild Safari Sealife by Safari Ltd.)

Name(s): Triaenodon, Triaenodon obesus, whitetip reef shark Brand: Safari Ltd., Wild Safari Sealife Classification: Fish, Sharks, Rays & Kin Type: Figurine Range: Africa, Asia, Indian Ocean, North America, Oceania, Pacific Ocean, South America

5 (5 votes)

Quite a few shark species go by the name “reef shark”. Blacktip, Caribbean, grey, and the subject of today’s review, the whitetip. But while all those sharks belong to the Carcharhinus genus, the whitetip reef shark (Triaenodon obesus) does not. But these sharks are not called reef sharks because they’re related.

Great White Shark (Folkmanis)

Name(s): Carcharodon, Carcharodon carcharias, great white shark Brand: Folkmanis Classification: Fish, Sharks, Rays & Kin Type: Plush Range: Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, Oceania, Pacific Ocean

4 (9 votes)

Review and images by Suspsy; edited by bmathison1972

Behold, I give you the biggest shark toy in my possession, the great white (Carcharodon carcharias) from Folkmanis! I came across this magnificent puppet in a local toy store more than fifteen years ago. I was in my mid-twenties at the time, single without any children, and the price tag was a hefty $89.99 Canadian.

Goblin Skark (The Sharks Vol. 2 by Takara Tomy A.R.T.S.)

Name(s): goblin shark, Mitsukurina, Mitsukurina owstoni Brand: Takara Tomy A.R.T.S. Classification: Fish, Sharks, Rays & Kin Type: Figurine Range: Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, Oceania, Pacific Ocean

4 (8 votes)

Review and images by JimoAi; edited by bmathison1972

The goblin shark (Mitsukurina owstoni) is the only living member of the family Mitsukurinidae, with other members dating back to the early Cretaceous, which is in the order Lamniformes which includes such All Stars such as the great white, mako, basking, megamouth, and others.

Penguins of the World (Colorata)

3.9 (12 votes)

Recently, when forum member Suspsy reviewed the Papo emperor penguin, I made a comment that I also had this figure, and it was one of only a couple figures I didn’t initially retain from Colorata’s Penguins of the World box set. After I published that comment it got me thinking, and I revisited the three figures from that set I didn’t retain (the other two were the chinstrap penguin and rockhopper penguin, both of which I went with Safari Ltd.’s versions).

Tasmanian Devil (Wild Safari Wildlife by Safari Ltd.)

Name(s): Sarcophilus, Sarcophilus harrisii, Tasmanian devil Brand: Safari Ltd., Wild Safari Wildlife Classification: Mammals, Marsupials Type: Figurine Range: Oceania

4.9 (8 votes)

Review and images by Kikimalou; edited by bmathison1972

The Tasmanian devil (Sarcophilus harrisii) is the largest carnivorous marsupial still alive. About the length of a Corgi, with a stocky body, a large head full of teeth, and a tail about half the length of its body. The coat is black with, most of the time, white markings on the neck and on the rump at the base of the tail.

Australian Continent TOOB (Safari Ltd.)

Name(s): Apteryx, Chlamydosaurus, Chlamydosaurus kingii, common wombat, Crocodylus, Crocodylus porosus, Deinacrida, frilled lizard, kakapo, Ornithorhynchus, Ornithorhynchus anatinus, Osphanter, Osphranter rufus, platypus, red kangaroo, saltwater crocodile, Sphenodon, Sphenodon punctatus, Strigops, Strigops habroptilus, Tasmanian devil, tuatara, Vombatus, Vombatus ursinus Brand: Safari Ltd. Classification: Alligators & Crocodiles, Arthropods, Birds, Flightless Birds, Insects, Lizards, Mammals, Marsupials, Monotremes, Orthopteroids, Parrots, Reptiles Type: Figurine, Set Range: Asia, Oceania

4.3 (13 votes)

In addition to being a country, Australia is also a continent, but the continent of Australia is not just composed of Australia itself. The Australian continent includes mainland Australia, Tasmania, New Guinea, the Aru Islands, the Ashmore and Cartier Islands, and most of the Coral Sea Islands as well as a smattering of other islands.

Tuatara (Incredible Creatures by Safari Ltd.)

Name(s): Sphenodon, Sphenodon punctatus, tuatara Brand: Incredible Creatures, Safari Ltd. Classification: Reptiles Type: Figurine Range: Oceania

4.7 (23 votes)

Although they look like lizards the tuatara (Sphenodon punctatus) of New Zealand is in fact the last living member of the order Rhynchocephalia and not a lizard at all. This order of reptiles, closely related to squamata (lizards, including snakes), had their heyday during the Mesozoic, getting their start in the mid-Triassic and achieving worldwide distribution during the Jurassic.

Humphead Wrasse (Blue Groper) (Sealife by Mojö Fun)

Name(s): Cheilinus, Cheilinus undulatus, humphead wrasse Brand: Mojo Fun Classification: Fish, Wrasse Type: Figurine Range: Africa, Asia, Indian Ocean, Oceania, Pacific Ocean

3.9 (12 votes)

Since getting into the animal toy hobby, I’ve seen this enigmatic toy fish discussed more than a few times, due to its ambiguous identity. Originally marketed as a blue groper (yes, that’s the actual name, genus Achoerodus) it appears to now be marketed as a blue grouper. A search on Fishbase indicates that the only fish for which that common name applies is the comet grouper (Epinephelus morrhua).

Frogfish (Incredible Creatures by Safari Ltd.)

Name(s): Antennarius, Antennarius pictus, painted frogfish Brand: Incredible Creatures, Safari Ltd. Classification: Anglerfish & frogfish, Fish Type: Figurine Range: Africa, Asia, Indian Ocean, Oceania, Pacific Ocean

5 (13 votes)

With its stout body, limb-like fins, large head, and perpetual frown, it is easy to see how the frogfish got its name. Frogfishes are members of the anglerfish family, Antennariidae. There are about 50 species of them, and they can be found in almost all tropical and subtropical waters around the world where they inhabit coral reefs and rocky habitats.

Killer Whale, adult and calf (Monterey Bay Aquarium by Safari Ltd.)

Name(s): killer whale, Orcinus, Orcinus orca Brand: Monterey Bay Aquarium, Safari Ltd. Classification: Mammals, Whales & Dolphins Type: Baby Animal, Figurine Range: Arctic Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, Oceania, Pacific Ocean, Southern Ocean

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.

ASSASSIN FANG Venomous Snakes (Takara Tomy A.R.T.S.)

Name(s): Acanthophis, Acanthophis pyrrhus, Belcher's Sea snake, Black Mamba, Dendroaspis, Dendroaspis polylepis, Desert Death Adder, Hydrophis, Hydrophis belcheri, inland taipan, Micrurus, Micrurus corallinus, Oxyuranus, Oxyuranus microlepidotus, Painted coral snake, Tsuchinoko Brand: Takara Tomy A.R.T.S. Classification: Reptiles, Snakes Type: Figurine, Set Range: Africa, Asia, Indian Ocean, Oceania, Pacific Ocean, South America

5 (2 votes)

I’m a little late to the Hallowe’en party this year…but better late than never. And in that spirit, here’s a set of animals that, if you mess with them, ‘late’ could be your proper adjective. Animals that as a group tend to create a visceral if generally unnecessary fear and loathing, even though most are harmless.

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