The Curious Compendium 2023: First of the cats!

[Saarlooswolfhound]

You are right Blaine, its not a giant armadillo (I think its a TM model?). I will get that adjusted...

Next are capybaras! Then I think there are only 2 photos left to share for this continent.



These animals are autocoprophagous (meaning they eat their own feces); this practice is to repopulate their gut with beneficial bacteria for digestion and to give their gut a second chance to take more nutrients from their very fibrous diet! They also may take naps submerged in water with only their nostrils above the surface.

[NSD Bashe]

Makes sense they're related to guinea pigs, my guinea pig did that first thing

[bmathison1972]

I have the CollectA capybara as the Safari was became hard to find when I was looking for one. I like the CollectA's body better but Safari's head better.

[Saarlooswolfhound]

I would like to get the CollectA and maybe the Mojo, but I am fond of the Safari and don't have an urgency to get them...

Guanaco and giant river otter!


Giant river otters are known as "river wolves" because of the strong similarities to actual wolves (social structure, behavior, niche role, etc.). They can swim 330 feet (100 meters) in 30 seconds! They are very accomplished hunters on their own or in social groups!

[Saarlooswolfhound]

As a quick aside before our last South American mammal presentation... Would you believe the bushdog was this first?

Ok, ok, and now the very last update for South American fauna!



Tayras are often used for pest control in rural villages. These animals are very adept and fast travelers over land, in water, or through the canopy. Lastly while they are often classified as carnivores they are actually omnivores; they enioy fruits as well as prey or carrion.

[EpicRaptorMan]

If that coatimundi was larger it would be a fine candidate for a repaint.

[sbell]

As a quick aside before our last South American mammal presentation... Would you believe the bushdog was this first?

Ok, ok, and now the very last update for South American fauna!



Tayras are often used for pest control in rural villages. These animals are very adept and fast travelers over land, in water, or through the canopy. Lastly while they are often classified as carnivores they are actually omnivores; they enioy fruits as well as prey or carrion.

Tayra are classed as order Carnivora, but that order contains lots of omnivorous, and even herbivorous, members (like the pictured kinkajou and most other procyonids)

[Saarlooswolfhound]

Thanks Sbell! I only brought that up as it was something that surprised me as I was thinking more along the lines of their cousins (like wolverines). But even animals you'd think were largely meat eating truly are omnivores. Wolves are a great example! Not only do they naturally eat berries/fruit, grasses, etc. but they also eat the stomach contents of their kills. For bears, the diet changes with the season (they are herbivores largely in spring and swap to  carnivory once summer comes. In general, the rule for "carnivore/herbivore" has to do with percentages. If the majority of their diet is X then they are considered X. If there is a huge difference (2/3 or more) then you can add an adjective such as "hyper-carnivore".

[Saarlooswolfhound]

And the South American mammal page is now live on the TCC!

[Saarlooswolfhound]

Alrighty, the next section requires a bit more explanation. More or less it is the last mammal category for my wildlife and contains fauna from North America and Europe. These are species that live in more temperate regions of the world. As a canine enthusiast and since this category has the most well represented canine species... there is a lot. Of wolves in particular. I have decided to space them out a bit rather than present them all at once. Anyhow... here we go!

First up are a North American species and 2 European. My Mexican gray wolves, Iberian, and European gray wolves.



My Mexican wolves are customized. This species has been endangered since the 70s. Conservation efforts have developed a new method to boost numbers and genetic diversity in the wild; "fostering" is taking captive bred pups and transplanting them into a litter, covering them in feces and nesting material of the existing litter to cover strange scents, and then they are accepted and raised as wild pups. It has proven as very successful to aid one of the most endangered canine types.

[bmathison1972]

As you've jumped continents it dawned on me we've only seen your mammals  . Lots more to go! Which is good, as it means lots of nice pics to look at  .
You haven't showcased the wolf(ves) I have in my collection (yet), but I know they are coming so I'll wait and comment more then  .

[Saarlooswolfhound]

Haha yup! Only mammals so far. We have amphibians, birds, reptiles, domestic animals, marine animals, and prehistorics (maybe some of my miscellaneous stuff for fun). Lots more to go!

[Saarlooswolfhound]

American Bison






This is the country mammal for the US. These animals have continuously roamed the land in Yellowstone National Park for thousands of years since prehistory! Their tails are a good way to identify moods; hanging down and flicking back and forth it is relaxed, the more the tail might be raised upwards indicates stress and aggression for these animals. Their calves are nicknamed "red dogs" because of their color and playful nature.

As a side note, I love bison and this is an animal I know quite well as I grew up just a few hours from YNP.

[Gwangi]

I have the newest CollectA bison but there are so many great options out there. Makes it hard to be a one-figure-per-species collector. I really like that Papo bison!

[bmathison1972]

It's amazing there are so many good bison figures and so many of them scale well with one another. I stuck with the original CollectA as it has a rougher look I'd expect with a true wild specimen.

[Saarlooswolfhound]

We really do have some nice examples of this incredible creature. Having grown up only a few hours away from the park I have always admired the bison and have to chuckle a little over the news stories of people being reminded that they are NOT cows. I even bought a shirt once that said "don't pet the fluffy cows". The bison don't mess around with their personal space!

Anyway, @Blaine, you could get the new CollectA (or another example) if you wished also. The old CollectA represents a wood bison in my opinion. The lack of a defining "cape" differentiates it I think from the others, as does the floppy head hair and beard and chaps (the Battat is a wood bison too I think). Plains bison have a definite thick woolly cape of hair on their front ends and much shorter hair on the back end, thick wooly chaps and a rounded beard and curly head. The humps can differ slightly on each but I find that less identiable to my eye.

[Gwangi]

We really do have some nice examples of this incredible creature. Having grown up only a few hours away from the park I have always admired the bison and have to chuckle a little over the news stories of people being reminded that they are NOT cows. I even bought a shirt once that said "don't pet the fluffy cows". The bison don't mess around with their personal space!

Anyway, @Blaine, you could get the new CollectA (or another example) if you wished also. The old CollectA represents a wood bison in my opinion. The lack of a defining "cape" differentiates it I think from the others, as does the floppy head hair and beard and chaps (the Battat is a wood bison too I think). Plains bison have a definite thick woolly cape of hair on their front ends and much shorter hair on the back end, thick wooly chaps and a rounded beard and curly head. The humps can differ slightly on each but I find that less identiable to my eye.

He did buy the new CollectA bison. Then I bought it from him! 

[Saarlooswolfhound]

Ah! I see. I wasn't convinced by the new one myself until I had it in hand. My favorites are still the generation 1 Safari and new bull (the WW one is fanatastic as well!) and the second generation Schleich.

[bmathison1972]

I bought the newer one but in going back and forth, I decided to keep the older one, so I messaged Gwangi and offered to sell it to him since I know it was on his wish list LOL

BTW I think both CollectA bison are plains bison. To me she slope of the cape isn't sharp enough for a wood bison.

[Saarlooswolfhound]

Red wolves



This is a very unique but sadly severely threatened species. There are less than 20 known individuals in the wild (in North Carolina) and around 240 in captivity. There has been discoveries of what was hoped to be new populations but sadly they had already interbred with coyotes significantly. There is a renewed hope that wild numbers may be bolstered by the previously discussed tactic of fostering and transplanting pups into wild litters. It would be shame to lose such a unique wild canine, but politics play an enormous role in its conservation status and real world outlook.