Mathison Museum of Natural History

Very interesting! This giant hornet is a true scourge here in France because of its destructions of bees colonies!

Caracal wrote:

Very interesting! This giant hornet is a true scourge here in France because of its destructions of bees colonies!

It's a different species, though. The Asian hornet causing problems in and around France is, I believe, Vespa velutina (which I have figures of and will review some day...)

You're right Blaine, it's Vespa velutina and I hope this mandarinia will never come!

Amongst other differences, Vespa velutina is a bit smaller than the native hornet, while Vespa mandarinia is the double larger than the native hornet. And it's much more aggresive, both against bees as against humans.

I didnt's knew that it estabilished recently in North America. I hope and suppose that they are trying to fight the invasion of this species.

Species: Mantis religiosa (Linnaeus, 1758) (praying mantis; European mantis)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: K&M International
Series: Wild Republic - Insects Polyvinyl Bag
Year of Production: unknown
Size/Scale: Body length 13.5 cm for a scale of 2.7:1-2:1
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Common
Miscellaneous Notes: Like many toy mantids, this one was not identified at the species level. However, unless otherwise indicated, M religiosa appears to be the go-to species outside of Japan.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Southern Europe, Asia, North Africa; introduced to Australia and North America
Habitat: Forests, grasslands, agricultural fields, disturbed areas, parks, gardens; usually in areas with shrubby vegetation
Diet: Insects
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Least Concern
Miscellaneous Notes: Native to the Palearctic, the introduction of M. religiosa to North America was initially an accident, the insect having hitchhiked on nursery stock from southern Europe. However, it was quickly recognized as a beneficial predator of another introduced species, the gypsy moth (Lymantria dispar). For years now, egg cases (oothecae) have been sold commercially to aid in garden pest insect control.

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I prefer the Papo model but this one is not so bad and the picture is very good!

Caracal wrote:

I prefer the Papo model but this one is not so bad and the picture is very good!

Papo and CollectA are probably the best, and at a better size.

I enjoy the eclectism of this collection and it is also interesting to check which choices Blaine's makes. There's no supreme brands and CollectA is a good example.
For example, Blaine's Tasmanian devil is the Southlands that is hard to find, the best alternative is clearly the CollectA model.
Okapi's choice is CollectA, defintely a great one among many other possible choices of good quality.
Though, mountain goat is the oposite, even the new model from Schleich is hard to find already, the one of the Mountain set and for a long time the easiest were CollectA and they are by far the least interesting.

Species: Lissemys punctata andersoni Webb, 1980 (spotted Northern Indian flapshell turtle)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Kaiyodo
Series: Capsule Q Museum - Turtle Good Luck Charms Vol. 2
Year of Production: 2021
Size/Scale: Figure length 3.3 cm. Carapace length 2.7 cm for a scale of 1:8.8-1:13.7
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Very rare
Miscellaneous Notes: Kaiyodo specifically marketed this figure as the subspecies L. p. andersoni, but the acceptance of multiple subspecies is debatable (see below). Yujin also made this species, at least twice.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Central Asia (Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Myanmar)
Habitat: Lakes, ponds, marshes, and shallow, quiet waters of rivers, streams, irrigation canals
Diet: Freshwater invertebrates, amphibians, aquatic plants
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Vulnerable (as a species)
Miscellaneous Notes: The subspecies status of L. punctata is a matter of debate. While some authorities do not recognize subspecies, others recognize three: L. p. punctata, L. p. andersoni, and L. p. vittata. The first two are widespread throughout much of the species' distribution in Central Asia, while L. p. vittata is restricted to central India.

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Very beautiful little species and model!

Species: †Protolindenia sp. (pedaltail dragonfly)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Rebor
Series: Standard Collection - 1:6 Compsognathus longipes Sentry
Year of Production: 2016
Size/Scale: Wingspan 8.0 cm; scale species-dependent, but within scale 1:1 for at least some species.
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Unique
Miscellaneous Notes: This figure was sold as an accessory to a Compsognathus longipes figure (which, interestingly, was advertised at a 1:6 scale, so not in scale with this Protolindenia). I was lucky to get it from a collector who only wanted the dinosaur. The figure came with a tall wire base (not shown) from which it is removable.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Upper Jurassic of present-day Europe
Habitat: Streams, marshes, lakes
Diet: Presumably, nymphs were predators on aquatic invertebrates, small fish, and amphibians; adults predaceous on flying insects
IUCN Status (at time of posting): N/A [prehistoric]
Miscellaneous Notes: Protolindenia belongs to the family Petaluridae, which is represented today by five extant genera, including Petalura (Australia), Phenes (South America), Tachopteryx (eastern North America), Tanypteryx (Pacific Northwest), and Uropelata (New Zealand). In keeping with their ancient roots, petalurids are large dragonflies; the Australian Petalura ingentissima is usually regarded as the largest extant odonate with a wingspan of 16 cm.

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Very beautiful  and realistic model!

I would feel tempted to think it was a Meganeura but those huge eagle sized dragonflies are twice older!

Species: Formica rufa Linnaeus, 1761 (red wood ant)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Bullyland
Series: Large Insects and Spiders Collection
Year of Production: 1994
Size/Scale: Body length (excluding wings and appendages) 7.5 cm for a scale of 16.7:1
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Rare
Miscellaneous Notes: Bullyland released four caste stages of F. rufa in 1994, this winged male, a queen, a soldier, and a worker. I only have this one of the four (otherwise I would have reviewed more of them together).

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Europe and Central Asia
Habitat: Forests, parks, gardens
Diet: Primarily aphid honeydew; also predaceous on other arthropods
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Near Threatened
Miscellaneous Notes: Like other eusocial insects, F. rufa has a complex caste system. Monogynous colonies will have a single queen while polygynous colonies will have multiple queens. Diploid males occur and mate with newly-emerged young queens during nuptial flights. There are no specialized soldiers (despite Bullyland making one to accompany today's figure), but there are different kinds of workers that perform different tasks. Arboreal workers harvest honeydew from aphids on plants. Ground-hunting workers search for arthropod prey on the ground. Foraging workers search for building material for the ant hill.

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Species: Mergellus albellus (Linnaeus, 1758) (smew)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Kaiyodo
Series: Choco Q Animatales Series 6
Year of Production: 2002
Size/Scale: Figure 4.5 cm long. Scale difficult to calculate but body length approximately 6.8 cm for a scale of 1:5.5-1:6.5.
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Unique
Miscellaneous Notes: Being one of the original Choco Q Animatales figures, some assembly is required. Mergellus albellus is sexually dimorphic and this figure is painted as a male.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Northern Palearctic, wintering in Central and Northern Europe, Japan, the Middle East; rare vagrants in North America
Habitat: Lakes, reservoirs, sheltered coasts of seas, slow rivers; breeding grounds are on taiga, nesting in tree holes.
Diet: During the breeding season, diet consists mainly of aquatic insects, crustaceans, and amphibians; in the winter the diet focuses to primarily fish
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Least Concern
Miscellaneous Notes: Like many northern birds, M. albellus migrates away from its breeding sites in the winter. The bird breeds throughout much of the northern Palearctic on the taiga. It requires trees to nest, often in abandonded woodpecker nests in tree holes. Breeding occurs in May and about 7-11 eggs are laid. The eggs are incubated by the female for about a month. Soon after hatching, ducklings leave the nest; they learn to fly in about 10 weeks. In September, M. albellus starts its winter migration. Common sites are Germany, Great Britain, Netherlands, Belgium, Japan, and some areas of the Middle East, with rare vagrants to North America.

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Very beautiful model and display!

Species: Chromatopelma cyaneopubescens (Strand, 1907) (greenbottle blue tarantula)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Tarlin
Series: Action Creature Series - Tarantulas Vol. 2
Year of Production: 2021
Size/Scale: Legspan 11.0 cm. Body length (excluding appendages) 4.5 cm, within scale 1:1
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Very rare
Miscellaneous Notes: There are three figures in this set, all using the same sculpt but painted as different species; the figures were not marketed at the species level but all are painted after familiar species. The same sculpt was used for Volume 1 of this series by Epoch (Tarlin is a subsidiary of Epoch), although the Epoch figures are painted more generically. There is substantial assembly required (17 pieces) and the final product is articulated.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Paraguaná Peninsula, Venezuela
Habitat: Xeric scrub; burrows usually constructed under shrubs and tree roots
Diet: Invertebrates
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: Chromatopelma cyaneopubescens is popular in terraria as it a very beautiful species that is relatively easy to care for, has a docile temperament, possesses a mild toxin, makes elaborate webs, and doesn't spend most of its time hidden away (i.e., it's a good 'display' spider).

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A kind pop spider!

Never heard of Tarlin