The Curious Compendium 2023: Great danes!

[sbell]

That's a lovely assortment of spotted hyenas! Possibly more than I have.

Still not enough!

[Saarlooswolfhound]

I agree sbell! EpicRaptorMan, I think both the Safari and Mojo are the best on the market hands down. And even better, they fit well together size wise but are a bit different in stylization, so you can suit your preference.

A couple of adjustments for previous presentations.

Asian Bats


And Asian pangolins

[BlueKrono]

I do, but only the most readily available ones so far. I have the Papo and Safari, recently just got the TNG elasmotherium. If you'd still like to see them I am happy to oblige, but no worries if not.

That's okay. I'd be excited to see the old AAA green ones. In that case could I request Brontotheres? Those are always cool.

[Saarlooswolfhound]

I also only have 2 brontotheres... my recently acquired TNG and Safari. I am sorry to disappoint! My prehistoric collection has been on hiatus for years, and it wasn't until the last 2ish(?) years that I got back into it. I would love to have some of those old weird AAA prehistoric models!

Oryxes are next in line! Several species here.



Let's talk about the fringe-eared oryx in the room... it is a customized model done by myself. This subspecies was first announced as its own species, later demoted to subspecies status, and talks have began to return its original status to it. These guys' bodies can get up to 115 degrees F (46.1 C) before they suffer any consequences of overheating! They also spar with their lance like horns when competing for females, and with these formidable weapons they do not seriously nor intentionally gore each other! Although, lions are fair game and have been recorded as fatally gored by them.

[EpicRaptorMan]

Oh how I wished that Arabian oryx had straight horns..

[Saarlooswolfhound]

Chimpanzees and bonobos!





The most iconic species are hard to find unique facts on... here goes: Chimpanzees cannot swim! They often have to cross rivers but their muscle density and proportions prevent them from effective swimming. There are 4 subspecies; Central, Western, Eastern, and the Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzees. There may be a 5th but it hasn't been officially set apart just yet; the Southeastern chimpanzee.

[BlueKrono]

I realize I should probably be asking more on extant species, lol. I'd love to see ospreys, vipers or axolotls/neotenic salamanders. At your leisure!

[Saarlooswolfhound]

You are free to request whatever you like! I was just explaining that those 2 requests probably aren't too exciting in my collection at the moment... I do have (what I think is anyway) a pretty good sized prehistoric collection. It will be shown here and on the DTF when I get to it!  Its just nothing compared to other members' on the DTF is all. As it stands now I have catching up to do on that category in my curation but its coming on. I will try to acquiesce your requests. I did show the neotenic salamanders I have so far already (and they will be presented again somewhat soon. But I am happy to do the other two soonish.

I have a few more addenda. I will try a brief explanation for anyone curious to read it... Since my big move, I have been terrible about keeping up on my collection cataloging. I am generally much better visually than just remembering these days, so with my huge collection stored in boxes now due to space constraints rather than the good ol' days of bookcase displays I have had an ever worse time. I still remember something like 95% of my models and what they are, but this presentation has been a case in point... I have made a few mistakes in this thread. I am really surprised no one pointed them out to me! (Feel free to in the future, I welcome kindly placed corrections). Anyway, these are models I either mistook the continent of origin OR  completely misplaced them in the wrong "family portrait" and these are the corrections for them. I am SURE there will be more as I continue.

Sun bears


moon bears


miscellaneous Asian animals


miscellaneous Asian rodents


Clouded leopards


And a few other Asian cat species

[Saarlooswolfhound]

Wildebeest!



Fun facts: there are 2 species of wildebeest; the blue and black wildebeest. Blue wildebeest are known for their migration while the black wildebeest usually do not migrate. Also, the blue wildebeest has 2 intriguing color variations worth looking up... the king's and the golden wildebeests!

[Saarlooswolfhound]

Sorry for the delay, I have had a lot going on.

Mandrills!



These guys are the largest monkeys on earth! Their unique skin colors are from blood vessels and collagen fibers. They have cheek pouches, like hamsters, to store food for later. Some troops have been known to get as large as over 1,000 members!

[EpicRaptorMan]

Everytime I tell someone that mandrills are the largest monkeys I always get a response of "what about gorillas!?"   

[Saarlooswolfhound]

Oh dear... an opportunity for education I suppose!

[Saarlooswolfhound]

Next set is my last big herd of antelope; kudu!



Fun fact; you can tell their age from their horns. Horns  begin growing at 6-12 months. By their second year they get their first twist. By age 6 they have 2.5 full turns!

[EpicRaptorMan]

Which one is the one on the very top?

[NSD Bashe]

yes, who do that kudu?

Looks like Papo maybe?

[Saarlooswolfhound]

Top center? That is the Papo. Old Schleich is to the right, small PV right in front of the Papo.

[Saarlooswolfhound]

Next are my mountain gorillas!



Facts: there are only about 1,063 left in the wild. There are only 2 regional population groups left. They live to be 40 years old in the wild! They have unique fingerprints AND noseprints; this is how researchers usually identify individuals without disturbing them.

[Gwangi]

Everytime I tell someone that mandrills are the largest monkeys I always get a response of "what about gorillas!?"   

At the risk of starting a debate (of which there is none), apes are monkeys. They're a subset of old world monkeys (catarrhine monkeys). Gorillas (and you) are more closely related to a baboon than a baboon is to a New World monkey (platyrrhines), like a spider or capuchin monkey. So yes, gorillas are the largest species of monkey. 

[Isidro]

Finally some common sense over that old cliche

[bmathison1972]

at the risk of getting pedantic, any given animal is just a modified form of whatever group it is descended. Humans are just bipedal, hairy, air-breathing, milk-producing fish