The Curious Compendium 2023-2024: Shih-tzu, maltese, pekingese!

[Gwangi]

@Gwangi Kaiyodo's is pretty good:
https://toyanimalwiki.mywikis.wiki/wiki/Kaiyodo_ChocoQ_Animatales_7_Common_Snapping_Turtle

@Saarlooswolfhound Do you know what that redhead is? Snapping turtles are my favorite animals but I've never seen that one before.

I know about it but would prefer a proper toy from a western manufacturer. 

[Saarlooswolfhound]

@Gwangi, you are welcome to talk about your pets in my topics. I just recently have been getting into herps (with the help of a YT channel I came across a few weeks ago) and would love to know what you have been able to keep in your personal collection. Someday I'd like to get a lizard or two, maybe a snake. Have always wanted a turtle!

@BlueKrono, that came in a set of 6 large "chinamal" type models in a bag. The brand was listed as Banks School Supply Inc. Material is similar to something like Nayab (hollow plastic). The set included a Galapagos tortoise, the matamata, 2 softshells, this guy, and one unidentified turtle to be shown later. I can show photos of them/the packaging if you need.

[BlueKrono]

@Saarlooswolfhound Thank you so much! I was able to track one down just from that. 

[Gwangi]

@Gwangi, you are welcome to talk about your pets in my topics. I just recently have been getting into herps (with the help of a YT channel I came across a few weeks ago) and would love to know what you have been able to keep in your personal collection. Someday I'd like to get a lizard or two, maybe a snake. Have always wanted a turtle!

@BlueKrono, that came in a set of 6 large "chinamal" type models in a bag. The brand was listed as Banks School Supply Inc. Material is similar to something like Nayab (hollow plastic). The set included a Galapagos tortoise, the matamata, 2 softshells, this guy, and one unidentified turtle to be shown later. I can show photos of them/the packaging if you need.

Well I'll keep it at just the turtles to stay relevant. I have a red-eared slider named Raphael who I've had for 32 years, a loggerhead musk turtle named Rooter, an elongated tortoise named Iroh, and a red-footed tortoise named Burt. Tortoises demand a lot of space and turtles need space AND water so they aren't my favorite animals to keep and I have no interest in getting more. Some day if I'm feeling ambitious I'll post a thread here with pictures of them all. I posted some of them on the DTF once upon a time and I like to feature them in reviews when it is relevant. I keep lizards also. If you're still researching what to keep I highly recommend Clint's Reptiles on Youtube, he has the best care videos around. 

[Saarlooswolfhound]

Glad you found one BlueKrono!

Gwangi, those turtles sound pretty neat but you do bring up fair points with their upkeep. I do watch Clint's Reptiles! Though Snake Discovery has been my most recent obsession... I just love to learn and such topics have become my most recent focus.

Mixed turtles!

Red eared sliders are one of the world's most common pets in the trade because they are cheap and typically easy to handle. However, they have become highly invasive as well. They pose a salmonella risk to humans if their tank isn't properly cleaned or filtered (owners should also make sure to wash their hands well after handling the animal or its aquatic habitat).

[BlueKrono]

@Saarlooswolfhound Snake Discovery? I thought that sounded familiar. It's here in Minnesota and I just went a few months ago. It's a high quality little zoo and the animals are very well cared for. Emily and I were in the Herp Society together. If you (or any other ATF member) ever come to Minnesota this is an open invite to join me on a Snake Discovery visit!

[bmathison1972]

@Saarlooswolfhound Snake Discovery? I thought that sounded familiar. It's here in Minnesota and I just went a few months ago. It's a high quality little zoo and the animals are very well cared for. Emily and I were in the Herp Society together. If you (or any other ATF member) ever come to Minnesota this is an open invite to join me on a Snake Discovery visit!

@BlueKrono - where in MN? I will be there in Minneapolis in May and Rochester in August

[BlueKrono]

@Saarlooswolfhound Snake Discovery? I thought that sounded familiar. It's here in Minnesota and I just went a few months ago. It's a high quality little zoo and the animals are very well cared for. Emily and I were in the Herp Society together. If you (or any other ATF member) ever come to Minnesota this is an open invite to join me on a Snake Discovery visit!

@BlueKrono - where in MN? I will be there in Minneapolis in May and Rochester in August

Around Blaine, MN, named after your good self of course. 😉 I travel around the Twin Cities a fair bit during the week since I'm a stay at home dad to an animal-obsessed toddler. I'd love to make your acquaintance.

[bmathison1972]

@Saarlooswolfhound Snake Discovery? I thought that sounded familiar. It's here in Minnesota and I just went a few months ago. It's a high quality little zoo and the animals are very well cared for. Emily and I were in the Herp Society together. If you (or any other ATF member) ever come to Minnesota this is an open invite to join me on a Snake Discovery visit!

@BlueKrono - where in MN? I will be there in Minneapolis in May and Rochester in August

Around Blaine, MN, named after your good self of course. 😉 I travel around the Twin Cities a fair bit during the week since I'm a stay at home dad to an animal-obsessed toddler. I'd love to make your acquaintance.

haha that's hilarious about the town's name

Me too! I'll send you a PM when plans are finalized. I am teaching at the UofM's medical school 5/13-5/14

[Saarlooswolfhound]

I LOVE their channel and would LOVE to visit someday! That is amazing that you know Emily and have been there! I just like their approach to breeding and care for their animals. They try to make their hatching etc. as natural as possible even being in a captive environment, and I find their personalities to be infectious. Love Ed and Emily both and think they are doing great work; I learned so much from them just binge-ing their YT videos for the last 3 months or so!

If you and Blaine do go visit there please let them know I say hi and am a huge fan of their practices.

[Saarlooswolfhound]

More mixed turtles! In fact, this is the end of all my chelonians. I am doing a double post as I have gotten sick again and have found it hard to look screens for any length of time.





Despite the golden coin turtle being a sign of good fortune and prosperity, they are also viewed as an animal whose parts can cure cancer... thus this turtle has suffered a lot of misfortune due to these unsubstantiated claims.

And for a generic turtle fact, the group of softshelled turtles are the first known of the modern chelonians found in the fossil record!

[Saarlooswolfhound]

And now chelonians are live! I have updated group photos as well for other categories (any of the mammal wildlife) for new additions also. I will update this presentation thread later today or tomorrow with those.

https://thecuriouscompendium.wixsite.com/curiouscompendium

[BlueKrono]

Seeing all those turtle toys brings me such joy.    I just got the 6 pack last night, and I would ID the green "softshell" as a pig-nosed turtle, Carettochelys, due to its flipper-like feet, tubular nose, and the presence of a more obvious softshell in the same pack.

[Saarlooswolfhound]

Me too BlueKrono! And thank you, I will get my website updated accordingly sometime. That is an exciting ID for me!

[BlueKrono]

I would lean more toward Sternotherus for the redhead as well based on the shell. Probably why it never came up on my snapping turtle radar before. I might guess odoratus if we wanted to get species specific just cuz it's the most well known, but as you can see it is pretty fanciful. The tortoise stumps me though. Regardless, this is really a fun set! There's 4 more available on eBay and they accepted my offer of $10.

[Saarlooswolfhound]

I just guessed a snapper based on the beak (as stated previously, I am truly a rookie in these topics! Canines are my real comfy spot). But I am very glad the set has brought you so much joy and fun. I bought it mostly for the mata and various softshelled looking models rather than the tortoise per say.

[BlueKrono]

I think the answer was staring me in the face the whole time. The flaring around the nuchal scutes leads me to believe this is meant to be a Galapagos tortoise. The head looks nothing like it, but with a lot of these sculpts you really have to squint your eyes and use your imagination to attach an ID to them. The brown pond turtle still baffles me though.

[Saarlooswolfhound]

Here are some updates. These ARE up on the website, but I did not get a chance to update them within this thread. That is the project for this week.

[Saarlooswolfhound]

And now we begin our reptile adventure!

American alligators!




These guys have proven smarter than they may look. Wild gators have been observed balancing bracken and sticks on their heads to entice nesting birds to approach. They then make a strike attempt! Pretty ingenious to outsmart the birds preoccupied with nest building.

[Saarlooswolfhound]

Caiman!



There are 6 species of caiman! The largest (black) can get to be 18+ feet long while the smallest (Cuvier's dwarf) averages about 4 feet long.