Mathison Museum of Natural History

I don't know if I still have the Schleich figure, that is a very beautiful one. It was an interesting idea from Safari to introduce a macrauchenia in their range although it got quite far from the popularity achieved by the German model.

Very beautiful model and display!

Interesting lession about macrauchenia´s nose or trunk. I think the animal got popular as it always was displayed with the trunk-like snout. So I hope, that the authorities are not right

Species: Diploderma polygonatum donan (Ota, 2003) (Okinawa tree lizard)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Kaiyodo
Series: Choco Q Animatales - Yaeyama
Year of Release: 2014
Size/Scale: Figure 5.5 cm across its longest points. Snout to vent length 4.0 cm for a scale of 1:1.37-1:1.75 for a female (which, based on the color, it appears to be).
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Very rare
Miscellaneous Notes: This figure was marketed as Japalura polygonata donan. Assembly is required. Kaiyodo had previously produced D. polygonatum in the original Chocoegg Animatales line (but as that figure was produced in 1999, it must represent a different subspecies).

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Yonagunijima Island in the Yaeyama island group of the Ryukyu Archipelago, Japan
Habitat: Evergreen broad-leaf forests; arboreal
Diet: Insects and arachnids
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: Diploderma polygonatum exhibits marked sexual dimorphism. Females, as demonstrated in this figure, are more brightly colored than males.

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A wonderful lizard, and so realistic!

Do you have also any problems with that figure?

widukind wrote:

Do you have also any problems with that figure?

assembly? yeah, it was tough to get all the parts together (a couple in that set were the same). But the final product has stayed together nicely for me so far.

bmathison1972 wrote:

widukind wrote:

Do you have also any problems with that figure?

assembly? yeah, it was tough to get all the parts together (a couple in that set were the same). But the final product has stayed together nicely for me so far.

That is what i mean. Especially with the tail.

Beautiful figurine and picture!

It is a beautiful one, even better on your pic , I missed it in 2014 and so it is still on my whishlist

Species: Lucanus maculifemoratus Motschulsky, 1861 (Miyama stag beetle)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Bandai
Series: Bugs Museum
Year of Release: 2000
Size/Scale: Base of box 4.5 cm x 4.0 cm. Body length (including mandibles) 3.2 cm for a scale of 1:1.3-1:2.25 (roughly 1:2 for a major male)
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Common
Miscellaneous Notes: The species has become a standard among Japanese companies that regularly produce insects. The Bugs Museum collection is a set of 6 insects that are displayed in little boxes, as if they were museum specimens (see inset). The insects, the base, and cover are all separate and removeable, so the insects can be displayed on or off the bases, with or without the plastic covers. Each has a small sticker with the Japanese name, gender, and (for the beetles) size. The stickers do not hold well and are best reinforced with glue.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Northeast Asia, including China, Taiwan, Korean Peninsula, eastern Russia, and Japan
Habitat: Forests
Diet: Larvae feed in rotting wood and detritus; adults feed on tree sap.
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: Like with several stag beetles, males of L. maculifemoratus have intrasexually selected large mandibles. It is believed those with larger mandibles will have more success at securing mates and feeding sites. However, large mandibles could come at a cost of flight and other mobility.

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Very interesting and a wonderful model!

Species: Nerodia erythrogaster (Forster, 1771) (plain-bellied water snake)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Wing Mau
Series: Snakes
Year of Release: unknown
Size/Scale: Figure 14.0 cm long. Measured along midline 25.7 cm for a scale of 1:3-1:4.75.
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Very rare [unique as a sculpt]
Miscellaneous Notes: This figure was marketed as a yellow-bellied water snake, which historically refers to the subspecies N. e. flavigaster; however, today subspecies are generally not recognized for this species. This same sculpt was used by Club Earth in their snakes collection, and there are two paint variants available (although the other variant appears to be painted after a juvenile, while the one shown here today represents an adult).

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Southeastern United States and adjacent Mexico
Habitat: Areas of permanent water, including rivers, lakes, ponds, coastal wetlands
Diet: Amphibians, fish, freshwater crustaceans
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Least Concern
Miscellaneous Notes: Nerodia erythrogaster is ovoviviparous, meaning embryos develop inside eggs that remain in the mother's body until they are ready to hatch, and females give birth to live young rather than laying the eggs. This species is also not venomous.

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Wonderful photo of this interesting model!

Your photo makes it look much better than it is in real, I guess.
These taxonomy flutuations are a headhache for TAW. We don't have a page to the species but to the subspecies as it was marketed as you mentioned. However, since the subspecies is not accepted anymore, is it more sensate we put the page into species level? It is hard to decide because TAW is a guide for collectors and not for scientists.

Nice Wing Mau snake.

Very nice picture of a snake I didn't know!

Species: Lamypris noctiluca (Linnaeus, 1767) (common glowworm)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Paleo-Creatures
Series: N/A
Year of Release: 2016
Size/Scale: Figure length 5.8 cm. Body length 6.0 cm for a scale of 2.4:1
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Very rare
Miscellaneous Notes: This figure was a personal commission by forum member Jetoar, founder of Paleo-Creatures. It compliments the male from Bullyland (but not to scale). One day he asked me what I would like for him to make. I said 'surprise me' and this is one of the things he came up with :).

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Eurasia, North Africa
Habitat: Old-growth grasslands, verges, hedgebanks, and heaths; often in areas of chalk and limestone soils
Diet: Terrestrial mollusks
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: Lamypris noctiluca exhibits extreme sexual dimorphism. The male has the typical beetle body plan, but the female (as shown in this figure) is larviform. It can be distinguished from larvae by the color and presence of compound eyes and developed sexual structures.

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Since it has been made by " Paleo-Creatures", I suppose it's now extinct..

That tree lizard is adorable. And the glowworm information is great!

Caracal wrote:

Since it has bee made by " Paleo-Creatures", I suppose it's now extinct..

Not at all, in French it is a ver luisant (lampyre).

Great model Blaine, she is beautiful

Caracal wrote:

Since it has bee made by " Paleo-Creatures", I suppose it's now extinct..

Paleo-Creatures was a line of mostly prehistoric animals, but Jetoar also made extant animals, especially those from his home country (Spain)