Mathison Museum of Natural History

Species: Nanger dama (Pallas, 1766)
Common name(s): dama gazelle; addra gazelle; mhorr gazelle

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: CollectA
Series: Wildlife
Year of Production: 2019
Size/Scale: Height at shoulder approximately 6.0 cm for a scale of 1:15-1:15.8
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Unique (see below)
Miscellaneous Notes: To the best of my knowledge, this figure is currently unique for this species, although CollectA is slated to release a 'tube' version of this model in 2024.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: North Africa (Sahel and Sahara Desert)
Habitat: Arid stony plains, semi-desert, grassland, open savanna, open bushland, plateaus
Diet: Herbs, grasses, Acacia leaves, shoots, fruit
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Critically Endangered
Miscellaneous Notes: Nanger dama once occurred throughout much of the Sahel and Sahara, from Morocco to Egypt. It's population has dropped by nearly 80% over recent decades, due primarily to hunting and habitat destruction. Today natural populations occur only in Chad, Mali, and Niger, and the gazelle has been reintroduced to Senegal, Tunisia, and Morocco.

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One more unusual species competently replicated by CollectA. The last of the antelope figures which started in 2012 with the black wildebeest in a remarkable sequence until 2019. I suspect we won't see it anymore but I hope some antelope figures are gradually replaced by differente even if similar species.

Roger wrote:

One more unusual species competently replicated by CollectA. The last of the antelope figures which started in 2012 with the black wildebeest in a remarkable sequence until 2019. I suspect we won't see it anymore but I hope some antelope figures are gradually replaced by differente even if similar species.

I am hoping the elk and ibex in 2024 means CollectA might be getting back to wild ungulates!

A very nice and unique specie

Great model photographed in its natural habitat. I am looking forward to the toob version. Who knows, it might, it might be 1/32.

Species: †Cladoselache sp.

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Safari Ltd.
Series: Prehistoric Sharks TOOB
Year of Production: 2010
Size/Scale: Body length approximately 10.0 cm for a scale of 1:10-1:20
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Very rare
Miscellaneous Notes: Kaiyodo also produced this genus (in two color forms) for their Dinotales line.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Late Devonian (Famennian) of present-day North America
Habitat: Marine, pelagic
Diet: Fish, marine invertebrates
IUCN Status (at time of posting): N/A [prehistoric]
Miscellaneous Notes: Fossils of Cladoselache include stomach contents, so we know a little about its feeding habits. Among the animals hunted by the primitive chondrichthyian were the bony fish Kentuckia, hagfish-like proto-vertebrates, and shrimp-like crustaceans. Cladoselache shared its waters with other predatory fish such as the chondrichthyians Ctenacanthus and Stethacanthus and the large placoderm Dunkleosteus.

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I'm surprised you chose Safari Ltd and not Kaiyodo.

Kikimalou wrote:

I'm surprised you chose Safari Ltd and not Kaiyodo.

I bought the entire Safari TOOB for several species, so I retained this one. It's also a little bigger which I prefer.

Beautiful display!

Species: Cepaea nemoralis (Linnaeus, 1758)
Common name(s): brown-lipped snail; grove snail; lemon snail

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Papo
Series: Wild Animals/Garden Animals
Year of Production: 2022
Size/Scale: Figure approximately 6.0 across its widest points. Shell is 2.5 cm wide and 1.7 cm high, within scale 1:1
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Unique
Miscellaneous Notes: This figure is a repaint of Papo's 2020 edible snail model. In 2023, Papo transferred several of their figures from their Wild Animals line to a new Garden Animals line, including both this grove snail and the edible snail.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Europe; introduced to North America (Northeast and Pacific Northwest) and Venezuela
Habitat: Woodlands, plains, highlands, agricultural fields, coasts, dunes, parks, gardens
Diet: Scavenger on dead and senescent vegetation, occasionally dead invertebrates
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Least Concern
Miscellaneous Notes: Cepaea nemoralis is a hermaphrodite, but mating between two individuals must occur to produce fertile eggs. Female snails can store sperm from males they mate with and some broods can have mixed paternity. Egg clutches average 30-50 eggs in number and juveniles hatch after 15-20 days. Cepaea nemoralis is slow-growing, taking on average 1-3 to years become a sexually-mature adult.

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Realistic unique model and picture!

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

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Sega
Series: Mushi King - standard series, small
Year of Production: unknown
Size/Scale: Body length (excluding mandibles) approximately 3.0 cm, within scale 1:1
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Rare
Miscellaneous Notes: This is the third time we've seen D. rectus in the Museum. The Sega 'small standard series' were 10 sets of 10 figures each, for a total of 100 figures representing 65-75 species of Lucanidae and dynastine Scarabaeidae. The dates of release are currently unknown to me (c. 2008). The figures were produced in conjunction with Bandai and came with Pokemon-style playing cards. At the time of this writing, I think I have all but two of the species. For a review of the sets, please see the overview by forum member Beetle guy here.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: East Asia (eastern China, eastern Russia, 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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Nowadays, it's not common to use the same mold to represent different species, but when it comes to snails, perhaps it's not such a serious issue. On the contrary, against all my predictions, both the Papo African fish eagle and the great tit use unique molds. These were two announced figures that I thought would be repainted versions of existing models. Fortunately, I was wrong. It's also good news to know that the snail figure is life-sized. It's a figure I want to acquire, and I haven't done so only because the local Papo sells these figures at unacceptable prices.

Species: Hypselodoris bennetti (Angas, 1864)
Common name(s): Bennett's nudibranch

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Cadbury
Series: Yowies Series 3
Year of Production: 1999
Size/Scale: Body length approximately 5.5 cm for a scale of 2.1:1-1.1:1 (slightly larger than 1:1 for a maximum-sized specimen)
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Very rare
Miscellaneous Notes: Being one of the original Australian Yowies, some assembly is required. Cadbury released a white version of this species (albeit a different sculpt) in the fourth Yowies series, also in 1999.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Southeastern Australia
Habitat: Coral reefs, at depths of 0-20 meters
Diet: Predator on sponges in the genus Psammocinia
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: Like many related nudibranchs, the bright color of H. bennetti is an example of aposematic coloration, to warn would-be predators that the sea slug is toxic or distasteful. Members of the genus Hypselodoris acquire furanosesquiterpenes from the sponges they eat, which get concentrated in their mantle glands. These toxins make the sea slugs distasteful to fish.

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