Blaine's Bug of the Day

OK, I am either feeling creative or crazy, but here I am presenting the March of the Ants. These are my non-winged/non-flying adult ants (although it looks like I may have missed one or two...).

Clockwise, from largest to smallest; they are listed by the manufacturer and the scientific name, if known, is in brackets:

Heller [Formica rufa]
Becker & Meyer - Amazing Ant
K&M International - Insects Polybag [Camponotus species]
Safari LTD - Kidden Kingdom Insects [Solenopsis invicta]
unknown manufacturer
4D Master [Myrmecia species]
4D Master
Rubie's Costume Company - Night Creatures: Giant Insects
Learning Resources - Jumbo Insects
unknown manufacturer
K&M International - Insect Bucket [large]
Toy Major
unknown manufacturer
Takara Tomy A.R.T.S. [Camponotus japonicus]
Safari LTD - life cycle
unknown manufacturer
Insect Lore - life cycle
Club Earth [Caponotus texanus]
Club Earth [Acromyrmex species]
Club Earth [Crematogaster lineolata]
Club Earth [Pheidole megacephala]
unknown manufacturer
unknown manufacturer
unknown manufacturer
Epoch [Camponotus japonicus - queen]
Safari LTD - Insects TOOB
Kaiyodo - Capsule Q Animatales - Foreign Organisms & New Friends [Linepithema humile]
unknown manufacturer
unknown manufacturer
unknown manufacturer
K&M International - Insects Nature Tube
Battat Terra - Insect World
unknown manufacturer
unknown manufacturer
Epoch [Camponotus japonicus - worker 1]
Epoch [Camponotus japonicus - worker 2]
Epoch [Camponotus japonicus - worker 3]
K&M International - Insect Bucket [small]
Groovy Tube Books - Bug Blast
unknown manufacturer
Toy Major
Funrise Toys - World of Nature Insect Collection [Pheidole megacephala]
Toy Major - Animal Planet Head Animal Tube - Insects
K&M International - Itsy Bitsies
unknown manufacturer
Funrise Toys - World of Nature Insect Collection [Dinoponera species]
unknown manufacturer [Dinoponera species]
DVS
Bullyland [mini]
Safari LTD - Good Luck Minis

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So many ants :)

Time to revisit the western Hercules beetle, Dynastes granti Horn, 1870. This beetle is special to me as I would collect it in my home state of Arizona! They were common about this time of the year too!

1. DeAgostini (World Insect Data Book)
2. Access Toys
3. 4D Master (Beetle Collection)
4. Sega (Mushi King)
5. Sega
6. Sega
7. F-toys (Insect Hunter)
8. Epoch (Flying Beetles)

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Getting more figures of species already in my museum allows me to revisit more taxa. Today, it's the box crab Calappa lophos (Herbst, 1782). When Kaiyodo first released this species I thought it was a brilliant choice. Now they have three and they are all based on the same design. It is my understanding that Ikimon Nature Techni Colour will be releasing one later this year or next as well.

From left to right, all by Kaiyodo:
-Aquatales 2018
-Capsule Q Japanese Crabs Collection
-Aquatales (Kurioso Komekko Series 2)

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Phantastic, from which serie is the left one?

Very impressive new pictures! The Hercules beetles look so realistic.

widukind wrote:

Phantastic, from which serie is the left one?

The crabs? That is the 2018 Aquatales series. I think they were expo figures for an aquarium in Japan. Contact Brett if you want one, he helped secure it for me. But until they start showing up on eBay, individuals might be hard to come by.

Since I first treated the genus Vespa on BOTD I have acquired a few more figures (and species). Today we revisit the commonly-made giant Asian hornet, Vespa mandarinia Smith, 1852 (and with the species epithet spelled right this time!). This species is no stranger to the Japanese companies, and at the time of this writing I have 9 figures, 8 adults and one larva:

Clockwise, from top left:
1. Mushibuchi
2. Subarudo [this is the same sculpt in the Takara Tomy A.R.T.S. series]
3. Kaiyodo (Sanitary Insect Pest Exhibition)
4. BREAK Co., LTD (Super Realistic Hornet Strap)
5. Aico (Insect Set to the Party Box)
6. Kaiyodo (Choco Q Animatales)
7. Shineg (Larvae Moei) [the only known hornet larva figure I am aware of!]
8. Yujin (Insects of Japan Series 1)
9. Rement

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Never have seen only one before :)

Since I just did a walk-around of the migratory locust, Locusta migratoria (Linnaeus, 1758), time to revisit this figure on BOTD! Interestingly most figures of this species depict the stationary phase (notable exception, number 6 below).

Clockwise from top:
1. 4D Master (Insect Collection)
2. Furuta (Insect Science)
3. Rement
4. Hayakwa Toys (Insects Collection - Special)*
5. Funrise Toys (World of Nature Insect Collection)*
6. Kaiyodo (Natural Monuments)
7. Yujin (Insects of Japan Series 2)
8. Takara TOMY A.R.T.S. (B.I.G. Insects - 2018)
9. Furuta (10 Year Anniversary Collection) [this was a re-release of the original Kaiyodo Choco Q Animales figure]

*these two figures are essentially generic green grasshoppers, but they were specifically marketed as L. migratoria.

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WOW, unbelievable :)

Wonderful Asian hornets and migratory locusts! The variety is absolutely amazing.

I have 67 species of Lucanidae (stag beetles) in my collection, but today I review one of the most interesting, Homoderus mellyi Parry, 1862, as I just added my fourth specimen of this species to my collection.

Clockwise from top left:
1. DeAgostini (World Insect Data Book)
2. Wing Mau
3. Sega
4. Access Toys

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bmathison1972 wrote:

I have 67 species of Lucanidae (stag beetles) in my collection, but today I review one of the most interesting, Homoderus mellyi Parry, 1862, as I just added my fourth specimen of this species to my collection.

Clockwise from top left:
1. DeAgostini (World Insect Data Book)
2. Wing Mau
3. Sega
4. Access Toys

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It is interesting how many speciey as figures exists.

Golly ! I somehow have missed this topic for a while

It is simply incredible all the bugs you have, and how well they are identified

Thankyou very much for this beautyful and interesting topic

You often own more than twice of what we have displayed on TAI. I like particularly these migratory locusts, the Yujin piece looks very beautiful to me. I wished you had posted individual pictures of your Funrise insects once most are still missing on TAI. :)

Thanks Susanne, Roger, and Andreas,

Been busy tonight with my real entomology work, so had to do a quick-and-dirty update for BOTD. Here, another lucanid beetle that I recently acquired additional figures of, Cyclommatus elaphus Gestro, 1881. Cyclommatus species are not commonly made; I have five species in the genus but no more than one to a few of each.

Left to right, top to bottom:
1. DeAgostini (World Insect Data Book) [sorry for the glare on the box]
2. Access Toys
3. Kabaya (Insect Directory)
4. Sega

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Great again

A double dose today, to make up for not having an update yesterday. Continuing with lucanids I have added more specimens of to my collection.

First up, Lucanus gamunus Sawada & Watanabe, 1960. When most people think of Lucanus, they think of L. elaphus in the U.S. or L. cervus in Europe. Among figures, the dominant choice is the Asian L. maculifemoratus. But here we get the less-familiar L. gamunus.

Left to right:
1. Kaiyodo (Choco Q Animatales)
2. Kaiyodo (Choco Q Animatales Be-Pal Special Edition)
3. Kaiyodo (Choco Q Animatales Be-Pal Special Edition)
4. Sega

[figures 1-3 are the same sculpt]

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Next the rainbow stag beetle, Phalacrognathus muelleri (MacLeay, 1885). This figure has received a little more attention, and from more manufacturers:

Left to right, top to bottom:
1. DeAgostini (World Insect Data Book) [this is the female which was a 'secret' figure]
2. DeAgostini (World Insect Data Book)
3. Colorata (Tropical Rain Forest Stag Beetles)
4. Cadbury (Yowies Series 3)
5. XX
6. Access Toys
7. F-toys (Encyclopedia of Insects Vol. 3)

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Each time a highlight

Thanks, Andreas,

Tonight another lucanid I have added to in the last year (as you can probably tell I am using the recent Access Toys sets to review several species...), Allotopus rosenbergi (Snellen von Vollenhoven et Parry, 1872). While this species is commonly made, there is a second species in the genus which is much less-commonly made in toy/figure form.

Left to right, top to bottom:

1. Sega [large series, standard]
2. F-toys (Encyclopedia of Insects Vol. 3]
3. Colorata (Tropical Rain Forest Stag Beetles)
4. unknown (Japanese/Asian) manufacturer
5. Sega (Mushi King)
6. Sega [DX, small]
7. Epoch (Beetle Battle 2)
8. Access Toys
9. Sega
10. Hayakwa Toys (Insects Collection - Special)
11. Sega [standard series, small]
12. Sega [magnet set]
13. Sega

[note: not shown here is the boxed DeAgostini figure, which I do possess]

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Nice again

Has anyone suggested yet that, with your inordinate fondness for beetles, you must be the creator?

halichoeres wrote:

Has anyone suggested yet that, with your inordinate fondness for beetles, you must be the creator?

I have a fondness for arthropods; I thank the Japanese manufacturers for their fondness in beetles :-)

And now, the graceful, Eupatorus gracilicornis Arrow, 1908. A regular, albeit not common-made, figure! These figures all seem to represent the nominate subspecies (see the third image for another).

From left to right, top to bottom:
1. Takara Tomy A.R.T.S.
2. 4D Master (Beetle Collection)
3. Colorata (Tropical Rain Forest Rhinoceros Beetles)
4. Access Toys
5. Kabaya (World Insect Series 1)
6. Sega (Mushi King, fighting beetles)
7. Sega (small series, standard)
8. Sega (mini)
9. Hayakwa Toys (Insects Collection - Special).

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And a couple interesting presentations, a boxed figure by DeAgostini (World Insect Data Book) and Epoch (Flying Beetles):

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Lastly, three other members of the genus, all by Sega in their small standard series. From left to right:

1. Eupatorus hardwickei (Hope, 1831)
2. Eupatorus gracilicornis edai Hirasawa, 1991
3. Eupatorus siamensis (Laporte de Castelnau, 1867)

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Lots of brands and figures that i never have seen before :)