Mathison Museum of Natural History

Species: Acherontia lachesis (Fabricius, 1798) (greater death's-head hawkmoth)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Ikimon
Series: Science Techni Colour - Private Specimen of a Lepidopterist Acrylic Mascot 2
Year of Production: 2019
Size/Scale: Wingspan 6.0 cm for a scale of 1:1.6-1:2
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Very rare
Miscellaneous Notes: The figures in this set 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). Kaiyodo made the larva of this species for their Capsule Q Museum line.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, East Russia, Japan; introduced to Hawaii
Habitat: Forests, open woodlands, hilltops, agricultural fields
Diet: Larvae feed on a wide variety of plants in several families, including Solanaceae, Verbenaceae, Fabaceae, Oleaceae, and Bigoniaceae; adults feed on honey
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: Adult A. lachesis can mimic the scent of honey bees so they can enter hives unharmed and feed on honey.

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it looks a lot our "grand sphynx tête de mort" (Acherontia atropos)!

Species: Phoca largha Pallas, 1811 (spotted seal)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Papo
Series: Marine Life
Year of Production: 2017
Size/Scale: Body length 10.7 cm for a scale of 1:14-1:19.6
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Uncommon
Miscellaneous Notes: A year earlier (2016) Papo made a pup of this species. CollectA also made an adult and pup (both in 2014). Several small figures have been made by the Japanese companies as well, including Kaiyodo, Colorata, Eikoh, Qualia, and Access Toys.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: North Pacific, along the continental shelf of the Beaufort, Chukchi, East Siberian, Bering, Okhotsk, Yellow Seas, and the Sea of Japan
Habitat: In the winter (breeding season), on ice floes; in the summer, within the open ocean and nearby coasts
Diet: Fish, crustaceans, mollusks
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Least Concern
Miscellaneous Notes: The breeding season for P. largha is January to mid-April and pups are born and nursed from January to May depending on the location (generally, later farther north). It is believed that P. largha is annually monogamous and the male-female-pup family unit stays together during the breeding season. Pups are weaned after about 6 weeks.

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Nice

Papo didn't give the main focus to the playability and decided to make a very beautiful figure. I am taking too long to gain enthusiasm with seal figures. My collection is minimalistic in this regard.

I have this guy!

Species: Vespula austriaca (Panzer, 1799) (cuckoo yellowjacket)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Bandai
Series: Diversity of Life on Earth - Wasps Vol. 2
Year of Production: 2020
Size/Scale: As displayed in this image, model stands 12.5 cm tall with a 15 cm wingspan. Body length approximately 10.0 cm for a scale of 6:1-5:1
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Unique
Miscellaneous Notes: Like other figures in the Diversity of Life line, this figure is large, requires assembly, is heavily articulated, and may be expensive. It is a model for serious collectors and not a toy to be played with. They may be displayed on or off of the base and with the wings open or folded along the body.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Palearctic (North American populations historically referred to as V. austriaca are now treated as a separate species, V. infernalis)
Habitat: Open woodlands, moorland, hedge banks, parks
Diet: Larvae are feed invertebrate prey provided by the host; adults feed on pollen
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: Vespula austriaca is an obligate labor parasite of other vespid wasps, especially the red wasp, Vespula rufa. Vespula austriaca lacks a worker caste and is incapable of building their own nests. Instead, females invade the colony of a host wasp and kill its queens. They then force the worker caste of the host to tend to their offspring.

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  What a monument!!

Stunning model!

Species: Osphranter rufus (Desmarest, 1822) (red kangaroo)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Southlands Replicas
Series: Australian Animals
Year of Production: 2017
Size/Scale: Figure stands 14.5 cm tall. Head-and-body length (excluding tail) about 9.0 cm for a scale of 1:14.4-1:17.8
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Very common
Miscellaneous Notes: There have been several very good O. rufus figures in recent years, including those by CollectA (2021, both male and female), Mojö Fun (2021), Schleich (2017), and Safari Ltd. (2018). I have contemplated getting a female with a joey to compliment this male, but haven't spent much time researching which of the females from the aforementioned companies would scale best with today's Southlands figure.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Australia
Habitat: Scrubland, grassland, deserts
Diet: Grasses, forbs
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Least Concern
Miscellaneous Notes: In 2019, the subgenera Osphranter and Notamacropus were elevated to genus level from Macropus based on morphometric analysis of the skulls and analysis of both nuclear and mitochondrial DNA. The data suggest that these three groups are paraphyletic without inclusion of Wallabia (swamp wallaby) and that they diverged about 5-6 mya around the Miocine-Pliocene boundry, coinciding with the Pliocene expansion of grasslands in Australia. In addition to the red kangaroo, other extant species of Osphranter include the antilopine kangaroo (O. antilopinus), black wallaroo (O. bernardus), and the common wallaroo (O. robustus).

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One of the best figures

I agree, lately brands are being very competent with red kangaroos. I think the 2016 Papo female belongs to the good ones.
For a female, probably a Schleich, I think others are the same size of the Southlands model.

Beautiful model and display!  [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]  [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Species: Papilio bianor Cramer, 1777 (Chinese peacock; common peacock)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Yujin
Series: Insects of Japan Vol. 3
Year of Production: 2007
Size/Scale: If spread flat, wingspan would come to approximately 9.5 cm, within scale 1:1
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Very rare
Miscellaneous Notes: This is the sixth species of Papilio we've seen in the Museum; the first genus to reach that milestone. Assembly is required. Yujin would go on to use this same sculpt for their red Helen (P. helenus) in the fourth volume of the Insects of Japan series.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: East Asia, Japan
Habitat: Forests, woodlands, parks, gardens
Diet: Larvae feed on a variety of plants, including Citrus, Zanthoxylum (prickly ash), Phellodendron (cork-tree), Ruta (rue), Skimmia, Tetradium, Clausena, Rhus (sumac); adults feed on pollen and nectar
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: Papilio bianor can be incredibly variable in size. Adults that emerge earlier in the season, in the spring, are typically smaller with 4-8 cm wingspans. Adults that emerge in the summer are larger, with wingspans typically 9-10 cm but occasionally reaching 12 cm.

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Beautiful species, model and picture!

Species: Crotaphytus collaris (Say, 1823) (common collared lizard)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Wing Mau
Series: Lizards
Year of Production: unknown
Size/Scale: Total body length (including tail) 17.0 cm for a scale of 1:1.2-1:2.2
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Rare
Miscellaneous Notes: This figure was also sold by Club Earth in their Lizards to Go collection. There are a couple variations on the color scheme.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Central and Southwestern North America
Habitat: Deserts, rocky outcroppings, boulder-strewn hillsides, grasslands; generally in arid and rocky areas
Diet: Arthropods, small lizards and snakes
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Least Concern
Miscellaneous Notes: When escaping predators, C. collaris can run in a bipedal motion at speeds upwards to 24 kph.

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Species: †Anomalocaris canadensis Whiteaves, 1892

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Favorite Co. Ltd.
Series: Prehistoric Life - Soft Model
Year of Production: 2014
Size/Scale: Body length (exclusive of appendages) 14.0 cm for a scale of 1:2.7
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Uncommon
Miscellaneous Notes: The model is removable from its base. In 2021, it was re-released with a new paint job (green). Favorite made at least two other sizes of this species, a 'mini' model in their Cambrian Creatures collection (2016) and a larger vinyl model (2014). This figure is structurally accurate for the time it was made, hence it lacks head sclerites. The the oral cone is generic and indistinguishable from other anomalocaridids. A related species from China, A. saron has been described with a pair of long caudal filaments, but it is currently unknown if A. canadensis possessed these structures as well.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Early to mid-Cambrian of present-day Canada
Habitat: Marine, demersal
Diet: Presumably marine invertebrates
IUCN Status (at time of posting): N/A [prehistoric]
Miscellaneous Notes: Anomalocaris canadensis was first described in 1892 based on its anterior appendage, which was perceived to be the body of a phyllopod crustacean! Various other partial anomalocaridid structures have been described as jellyfish, sea cucumbers, and polychaete worms. It wasn't until 1979 that the original structure the animal was described from was recognized as the feeding appendage of a larger arthropod.

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so strange this latter!  

Beautiful model of common collared lizard and beautiful picture!

Species: Mesotopus tarandus (Swederus, 1787)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Sega
Series: Mushi King - Beetle Magnet
Year of Production: unknown
Size/Scale: Body length (including mandibles) 3.5 cm for a scale of 1:2 for a major male
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Common
Miscellaneous Notes: This is our fifth look at M. tarandus in the Museum (and the third by Sega). As the name of the set suggests, the figure has a small magnet on its ventral side. I don't know how many figures are in this set; the 10 I have I received over time from forum member Beetle guy.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Equatorial West Africa (Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone, Guinea, Ghana)
Habitat: Rainforests
Diet: Larvae breed in rotting logs colonized by very specific fungi; adult feeding habits not well-documented but probably attracted to sap flows.
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: Commonly called the 'African Demon', M. tarandus is one of the largest stag beetles in Africa. That is probably why it is the only African species routinely made by Japanese companies. It is also cultivated in terraria, but can be difficult to rear because it requires a substrate supplemented with specific fungi.

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An old acquaintance now!

Species: Dorcus rectus (Motschulsky, 1857) (little stag beetle)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Sega
Series: Mush King - Flying Beetles
Year of Production: 2005
Size/Scale: Wingspan 10.0 cm. Body length (including mandibles 5.7 cm). Body length (excluding mandibles) 4.2 cm for a scale of 1.3:1 for a major male
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Rare
Miscellaneous Notes: This is the third species of Dorcus we've seen in the Museum (and honestly, I am surprised we've only seen three by now, as I have over 60 specimens representing 11 species). The beetle is removable from its base.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: East Asia (Taiwan, Korea, Japan)
Habitat: Hardwood forests
Diet: Larvae feed in dead hardwood infected with white rot fungus; adults are attracted to sap
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: Dorcus rectus is one of the few lucanid species with documented mandible trimorphism, meaning there are three different mandible types in the males. Males can have long mandibles with two pairs of teeth, long mandibles with one pair of teeth, and intermediate mandibles with no teeth. These three mandible types appear to be proportional to the body size of the beetle, from largest to smallest, respectively.

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beautiful display!