Shark Week might be over but there’s one more elasmobranch I wanted to review before moving away from cartilaginous fishes, the 2019 Incredible Creatures marble ray (Taeniurops meyeni) by Safari Ltd.
The marble ray goes by many names, including blotched fantail ray, round ribbontail ray, giant reef ray, and black-spotted stingray.
Review and images by Alopias superciliosus; edited by bmathison1972
I appreciate Shark Week on the Animal Toy Blog far more than I do the actual shark week programming on Discovery because the reviews on the Blog are more in line with what Shark Week should be and once was: an educational look at a fascinating group of animals, as opposed to over-dramatized, fear-mongering pseudo-science.
Review and images by JimoAi; edited by bmathison1972
It’s Shark Week on the Blog once again and for today’s subject, we’ll be looking at the magnificent and feared great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias), a species that needs no introduction, being prominently featured in many games, movies, books and toys.
Review and images by Alopias superciliosus; edited by bmathison1972
I’m happy to be back for my third Shark Week with the Animal Toy Blog, and this year I will be contributing two reviews! First up, arriving just in time for Shark Week, Papo’s newly released thresher shark.
Thresher sharks are a fascinating family of mackerel sharks easily distinguished by their incredibly long upper caudal fin lobes.
Review and images by Suspsy; edited by bmathison1972
For Shark Week this year, I’m covering this charming plush hammerhead from BJ Toy Company. I acquired it back in 2009 when I visited the Memphis Zoo in Memphis, Tennessee. And it ended up coming in rather handy when my suitcase got lost on the flight back home.
Pufferfishes are a family of fishes scientifically known as Tetraodontidae and although they can also inflate their bodies the porcupinefishes of the Diodontidae family are not generally regarded as pufferfishes. The two families are closely related of course, both belonging to the Tetraodontiformes order. And although any fish in the order that puffs up can colloquially be called a pufferfish it’s important to mention the distinction when reviewing today’s subject, a porcupinefish that Safari marketed as a pufferfish.
In my last review we looked at the 2017 Safari Ltd. Incredible Creatures clown anemonefish (Amphiprion ocellaris) and perhaps not surprisingly, I gave it a good review. Today we’re looking at another clown anemonefish, also by Safari Ltd. and also part of their Incredible Creatures line. I think you’ll find my thoughts on this one to be a bit less positive.
The clown anemonefish (Amphiprion ocellaris) is probably the world’s most recognizable marine fish and is also known as the ocellaris clownfish, false percula clownfish, and common clownfish. The false percula name comes from the fact that it closely resembles the percula or orange clownfish (Amphiprion percula).
Thanks to the species’ inclusion in the Finding Nemo and Finding Dory films, the blue tang is one of the most recognizable species of tropical marine fishes. It also has many figures to its name including ones by Papo, Schleich, and Mojo. Today we’re looking at the 2017 Safari Ltd.
Last week we looked at the Safari Ltd. queen triggerfish, so it makes sense to look at the companies’ other triggerfish that was released alongside it, the clown triggerfish (Balistoides conspicillum). Like its companion, the clown triggerfish was produced between 2008-2016. Unlike the queen triggerfish however, this species is more popular in the toy hobby, with a TOOB figure by Safari as well as figures from Play Visions, Yujin, Colorata, and K&M.
The mahi-mahi (Coryphaena hippurus) is a highly sought after species of sportfish belonging to the Coryphaenidae family along with one other species. They’re prized recreationally and commercially for their size, beauty, and mild sweet flavor. They’re also abundant within their range and listed as least concern by the IUCN.
Review and images by Sam; edited by bmathison1972
The bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) is arguably the most iconic marine mammal. Known for their playful, friendly personalities and their amazing intelligence, they have appeared in many TV shows and movies, and are a popular attraction at aquariums and marine parks, so it is no surprise that there are quite a few toys based on them, and today’s review covers just one of these toys.
