Mathison Museum of Natural History

pop figure!

Very unusual one and very beautiful picture.

You have figures of brands that i never heard before :)

Beautiful and a clever packing

Species: Danaus plexippus (Linnaeus, 1758) (monarch)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Safari Ltd.
Series: Authentics Insects
Year of Release: 1995
Size/Scale: Figure width 6.5 cm. Spread normally, wingspan would come to 5.5 cm for a scale of approximately 1.5:1-2:1.
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Common
Miscellaneous Notes: This is probably the most commonly-made butterfly at the species level; Safari Ltd. has made it at least five times! At the time of this writing, I have 19 specimens. This figure suffers from what so many nymphalid figures do: too many legs (generally, Authentics figures are a bit stylized).

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: North, Central, and South America, the Caribbean, the Azores, Canary Islands, North Africa, Australia, the Philippines, and South Pacific islands; rare stray to the United Kingdom
Habitat: Fields, forests, gardens, disturbed areas
Diet: Larvae feed on milkweeds in the family Apocynaceae, most commonly members of the genus Asclepias; adults take nectar from a variety of flowers
NatureServe Status (at time of posting): Apparently Secure
Miscellaneous Notes: Adult monarchs are toxic due to cardenolides in their bodies they acquire from eating milkweeds as larvae. As such, they are aposematically colored, with contrasting black and bright orange markings. This has resulting in mimicry rings with other species, including the viceroy (Limenitis archippus). Because the monarch and viceroy are both considered distasteful, this is an example of Müllerian mimicry, whereby two toxic/distasteful species mimic each other.

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I don't have any doubts that Monarch is the most common butterfly in toy shape. Curious that the most common penguin is an Emperor, the wild animal is the king lion and the dinosaur is a rex. All of them could use a crown.

Roger wrote:

I don't have any doubts that Monarch is the most common butterfly in toy shape. Curious that the most common penguin is an Emperor, the wild animal is the king lion and the dinosaur is a rex. All of them could use a crown.  

Oooo, very nice observation!

Nice again

So beautiful because toxic?

Caracal wrote:

So beautiful because toxic?

yup! In nature, bright colors usually mean you taste bad :)

.. a warn for birds! :)

Species: Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris (Linnaeus, 1766) (capybara)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: CollectA
Series: Wildlife
Year of Release: 2011
Size/Scale: Total figure length 7.0 cm. Height at shoulder 3.1 cm for a scale of 1:16-1:20
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Uncommon
Miscellaneous Notes: Figures of capybara are not common, but usually readily available. This CollectA figure is probably the best standard-sized figure readily available at the moment. The retired Safari figure is my favorite, but hard to come by these days. There are a few by the Japanese companies that are smaller and might scale better with other standard-sized wildlife.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Much of South America, east of the Andes and south to the Argentinian pampas
Habitat: Flooded grasslands, marshes, rivers, lakes, lowland forests, agricultural fields, scrubland; habitats where water is readily available year-round
Diet: Grasses, aquatic plants, occasionally fruit and bark
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Least Concern
Miscellaneous Notes: Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris is the largest extant rodent. They are a major food source of anacondas, caimans, jaguars, and indigenous peoples. They are always on guard for possible predators, often hiding in the water with just their dorsally-located nostrils and eyes exposed to the air (a clear adaptation for a semi-aquatic mammal).

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Beautiful figure, and an amazing sculpt!

I have this model as wel as I have the Safari. Honestly, i can't tell with certainty which one is better. If the Safari gets more competently the traditional capy look, this model is a more pleasant design. Both are surely better than the Mojo Fun model but I may get that one someday too. Wonderful picture, the result would not be so beautiful if it was the Safari model instead.

I agree with Rogério. Cool realistic photo!

I had to take several photos in different positions. I don't have a decent diorama for large freshwater animals. But the more I look at this one, the happier I am with it. Thanks all!

A nice version of the capybara

great model and picture!

That is a great diorama photo. And great collection so far! Its fun to see so many species.

I've just sold mine because of lack of place and I let the Safari Ltd with me... Beautiful pic ... poor Kiki

Species: Eupatorus gracilicornis Arrow, 1908 (five-horned rhinoceros beetle)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Epoch
Series: Flying Beetles
Year of Release: 2004
Size/Scale: Wingspan 11.5 cm. Body length (including horns) 6.0 cm, within scale 1:1 for a smaller specimen.
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Uncommon
Miscellaneous Notes: Not one of the more commonly-made species, but still a standard among some Japanese companies. There is some assembly required for this figure. It attaches to a habitat-style base with a black plastic rod, from which it is removable.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Southeast Asia
Habitat: Rainforests
Diet: Larvae feed on rotting wood; adults feed on nectar, plant sap, and overripe fruit
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: There are currently five described subspecies of E. gracilicornis: E. g. edai (Dwana Range, border of Myanmar and Thailand), E. g. kimioi (southern Thailand), E. g. davidgohi (western Malaysia), E. g. prandii (southern Vietnam), and the nominate E. g. gracilicornis (India to China, south to northern Vietnam and Thailand).

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Such a beautiful and realistic model, and very interesting information!

very realistic model on a beautiful picture!

Blaine, I don't know if you check the trade forum often, but NMR_Okapi has just put up a bunch of arthropods, many PVs. Don't know that you'd need any, but...