Mathison Museum of Natural History

[bmathison1972]

Species: Xantusia arizonae Klauber, 1931
Common name(s): Arizona night lizard

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Wing Mau
Series: Lizards
Year of Production: unknown
Size/Scale: Total figure length as displayed 12.5 cm. Snout-to-vent length approx. 5.7 cm, within scale 1:1
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Unique (as a sculpt, see below)
Miscellaneous Notes: There are two color versions of this sculpt. Both are marked 'Arizona night lizard' but today's is painted like typical X. arizonae while the other, which was seen in the Museum in August 2021 is painted like Bezy's night lizard (X. bezyi), a species that was undescribed at the time these figures were produced (see below). The sculpt was also used for Club Earth's Lizards to Go collection.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: West-central Arizona, USA
Habitat: Upland Sonoran Desert and Interior Chaparral; usually among granite rock outcrops, packrat nests, and dead yucca
Diet: Small insects and arachnids
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Least Concern
Miscellaneous Notes: Prior to 2001, described species of Xantusia from Arizona included the desert night lizard (X. vigilis) and the Arizona night lizard (X. arizonae), the latter of which is sometimes considered a subspecies of the former. In 2001, X. bezyi was described from central Arizona based on molecular, morphologic, and ecological data. Among the morphologic features that helps distinguish X. bezyi are the larger maculae on a frequently orangish background. Typical X. arizonae and X. vigilis have smaller maculae that are arranged in somewhat irregular and disorganized rows, as seen in today's figure.

[bmathison1972]

Species: Oncorhynchus masou masou (Brevoort, 1856)
Common name(s): cherry salmon; cherry trout; masu salmon

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Yujin
Series: Freshwater Fish Pictorial Book 1
Year of Production: unknown
Size/Scale: Body length approx. 6.0 cm for a scale of 1:6-1:13.2
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Rare
Miscellaneous Notes: The fish is removable from its base. Yujin produced at least two other versions of this sculpt; I believe mine is from the original release. They also produced a special chase figure that was a different sculpt and represented the full breeding phase of the fish. Colorata also produced the masu and Kaiyodo produced a different subspecies (O. m. macrostomus) for the Birdtales line.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Northwest Pacific, from the Russian Far East to Taiwan; introductions to other parts of the world deemed unsuccessful
Habitat: Anadromous. Young fish under three years live in freshwater rivers; adults are marine, benthopelagic, at depths of 0-200 meters.
Diet: Crustaceans, small fish
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Least Concern
Miscellaneous Notes: Eating undercooked marine fish is a risk for anisakiasis, a zoonotic nematode infection caused by members of the genera Anisakis, Pseudoterranova, and Contracaecum. The disease is commonly seem in communities that regularly eat raw or undercooked marine and brackish water fish. Sampling of several fish, including O. masou masou, in the East Sea, South Sea, and Yellow Sea around the Korean Peninsula have shown relatively high infection rates with anisakids, especially Type 1 Anisakis species, which includes the A. simplex-complex.

[bmathison1972]

Species: Delias fasciata Rothschild, 1894

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Ikimon
Series: Science Techni Colour - Private Specimen of a Lepidopterist Acrylic Mascot 3
Year of Production: 2022
Size/Scale: Wingspan approx. 4.8 cm for a scale of 1:1.3
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Unique
Miscellaneous Notes: The figures in this series are essentially photographs of butterflies and moths embedded in acrylic. Flip the figure over and the underside reveals an image of the ventral side of the animal, too. They are also sold as keychains (hence the hole in the acrylic above the head).

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Indonesia (Sumba)
Habitat: Tropical deciduous rainforest
Diet: Larval host plants unknown; adults take nectar from flowers
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: Delias fasciata is endemic to the Indonesian island Sumba. I couldn't find any information on the biology of this species and its host plant is unknown (or at least has not been published).

[bmathison1972]

Species: Mycalesis gotama fulgina Fruhstorfer, 1911
Common name(s): Chinese brushbrown

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Kaiyodo
Series: Capsule Q Museum - Caterpillars Vol. 4
Year of Production: 2020
Size/Scale: Body length approx. 6.8 cm for a scale of 2:1
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Unique
Miscellaneous Notes: This figure was specifically marketed as the subspecies M. g. fulgina, which is endemic to Japan. The information below is based on the species as a whole, since it was more challenging to find biological information for individual subspecies.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: East and Southeast Asia, Japan
Habitat: Tropical and subtropical broadleaf forest margins, grasslands, agricultural fields, riparian areas
Diet: Larvae feed on several species of grasses, including members of the genera Miscanthus (silvergrass), Setaria (pitpit), Isachne (bloodgrasses), Oryza (rice), Bambusa (clumping bamboos); adults primarily feed on nectar from flowers, but also aphid honeydew, overripe fruit, and nutrients derived from damp soil and mudpuddles.
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: There are four subspecies of M. gotama. Mycalesis g. charaka occurs in India (Assam) to southern China and northern Vietnam. Mycalesis g. nanda is endemic to Taiwan while M. g. fulgina (today's figure) is endemic to Japan. I had trouble finding the full range of the type subspecies, M. g. gotama, but the type specimen is online at the Museum of Comparative Zoology's database, and the specimen's label says 'Central China'.

[bmathison1972]

Species: Enteroctopus dofleini (Wülker, 1910)
Common name(s): giant Pacific octopus; North Pacific giant octopus

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Safari Ltd.
Series: Incredible Creatures
Year of Production: 2006
Size/Scale: Figure approx. 19.5 cm across its widest points. Mantle length approx. 6.8 cm for a scale of 1:7.4-1:8.8.
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Uncommon to rare (see below)
Miscellaneous Notes: My figure is an updated sculpt of the original 2006 model that incorrectly had two hyponomes (siphons), one on each side of the mantle. I am not sure what year the update occurred. The frequency of this species in our hobby is hard to determine, as very few figures have been specifically marketed as E. dofleini. Most generic octopus figures are generally assumed to represent the common octopus (Octopus vulgaris). The smaller Wild Safari Sealife figures, both the original orange from 1997 and the updated blue/green version for 2016, were also marketed as the giant Pacific octopus, I believe.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: North Pacific, south to the Yellow Sea in the West Pacific and Baja California in the East Pacific
Habitat: Intertidal zone, including tidal pools and kelp beds; at depths of 0-1,500 meters
Diet: Crustaceans, shelled mollusks, cephalopods (including other octopuses), small fish (including young sharks)
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Least Concern
Miscellaneous Notes: Like other species of octopus, E. dofleini is considered highly intelligent. Its brain has folded lobes, which is considered an element of complexity, as well as visual and tactile memory centers. The giant Pacific octopus can solve simple puzzles, open 'child-proof' containers, and use tools. Individual octopi keep in aquariums have demonstrated the ability to recognize individual humans they come in regular contact with and exhibit specific behaviors for each person they interact with.

[bmathison1972]

Species: Gorilla gorilla gorilla (Savage, 1847)
Common name(s): western lowland gorilla

About the Figure:
Manufacturers: Schleich; Toymany
Series: Wild Life Africa; Baby Wildlife
Years of Production: 2017; 2024
Size/Scale: Scale of adult difficult to calculate but using body length as a metric (n=6.0 cm), scale comes to approximately 1:14.2-1:16.2. The infant gorilla stands 5.0 cm tall (see below).
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Indeterminant (see below)
Miscellaneous Notes: This is the second time we've seen G. g. gorilla in the Museum. The last time was this Schleich adult, but now I am showing it again alongside the recently-acquired Toymany infant. Determining the frequency of this species/subspecies in our hobby is a challenge, since most gorilla figures are not marketed at the species/subspecies level and features separating them are 'soft' and hard to interpret in a small plastic rendition. I found it very difficult to find metrics to calculate scale for the adult, as most online references use armspan or height when standing on two legs. The scale above was calculated using a reference that does not include the head when measuring body length. I also cannot calculate an accurate scale of the infant without knowing its precise age, but if truly intended to be an infant, it scales too big in comparison with this adult.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Equatorial West Africa
Habitat: Montane primary and secondary rainforest, lowland swamp forest, riparian areas, forest edges, abandoned agricultural land
Diet: Roots, shoots, fruit, foliage, tree bark and pulp; diet varies based on seasonal availability
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Critically Endangered
Miscellaneous Notes: Gorilla g. gorilla has a gestation period of about 9 months and mothers typically give birth to a single offspring at a time. Baby gorillas are born helpless and are completely dependent on their mothers for care and protection. Infant gorillas are quite tiny compared to their parents, weighing on average 1.8 kg. They are adapted for clinging onto their mothers' fur and ride on their mothers' backs starting at about four months until they are 2-3 years old. Gorillas live in troops led by one or more males, females, and their offspring with those females. Infanticide sometimes occurs in gorilla troops, whereby males will kill infants that are not theirs, thus making the mother available for mating earlier than she would be had she had to care for an offspring.

[bmathison1972]

Species: Metacarcinus magister (Dana, 1852)
Common name(s): Dungeness crab

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: AAA
Series: Sea World
Year of Production: Unknown
Size/Scale: Carapace width approx. 5.8 cm for a scale of 1:2.7-1:4
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Very rare
Miscellaneous Notes: This is the second time we've seen M. magister in the Museum. Like many of their crustaceans and mollusks, AAA released at least two sizes of this species. This is a small version of M. magister; I also have a larger version which was already showcased in the early days of this thread back in December 2020.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: West Coast of North America, from the Aleutian Islands to Baja California Sur
Habitat: Sandy or muddy-sand bottoms in subtidal areas of bays and estuaries, often in eelgrass beds
Diet: Marine invertebrates, fish eggs; cannibalism not uncommon
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: Metacarcinus magister is a very important commercial shellfish. The annual catch varies by state and year, but averages between 35-55 million pounds annually, valuing at $77-216 million USD. In 2019, Seafood Watch gave the Dungeness crab a sustainability record of 'Good Alternative', meaning it was safe to use them for food, but remaining alert to possible risks. Some fisheries of the Dungeness have closed in the last few decades due to population decreases of the crab. The reason for some of the population decline is unknown, but in some cases it is from a resurgence of sea otter populations.