Mathison Museum of Natural History

Species: Papilio troilus Linnaeus, 1758
Common name(s): spicebush swallowtail

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Toys Spirits
Series: Caterpillar Mascot Vol. 2
Year of Production: 2020
Size/Scale: Body length 4.8 cm for a scale of 1.1:1 for a maximum-sized mature larva; could easily fit into 1:1 scale
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Unique
Miscellaneous Notes: Figures in Toys Spirits' Caterpillar Mascot sets are somewhat stylized and soft and 'squishy'. They are not something I would normally collect, even at the time I got them, but the set included two unique species, including today's.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Eastern North America
Habitat: Deciduous woodlands, pine barrens, wooded swamps, fields, roadsides, parks, gardens
Diet: Larvae feed on a variety of plants, including Lindera (spicebush), Cinnamomum (camphor), Sassafras (sassafras), Litsea (pondspice), Persea (bays), and Magnolia (magnolias); adults take nectar from a wide variey of flowers.
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated [NatureServe status is Secure]
Miscellaneous Notes: Papilio troilus lays eggs 1-2 at a time on an appropriate host plant. Young larvae chew through the leaf from the edge to the midrib, about 19 mm from the tip of the leaf. The larva lies on the midrib and produces silk. Upon drying, the silk contracts and causes the leaf to fold up around the larva to form a shelter. The larvae stay in these shelters during the day, coming out at night to feed.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

It looks like for a swimming pool. But a unique figure

I had no idea silk worms were considered domesticated. I didn't know there were any domestic invertebrates, except maybe feeder crickets. Learning new stuff all the time!

Species: Geothelphusa dehaani (White, 1847)
Common name(s): Japanese freshwater crab

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Kaiyodo
Series: Choco Q Animatales Series 9
Year of Production: 2004
Size/Scale: Carapace width approximately 2.0 cm, within scale 1:1
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Uncommon
Miscellaneous Notes: This is the second time we've seen Geothelphusa dehaani in the Museum. These three figures represent the same sculpt. Being original Choco Q Animatales figures, some assembly is required. If I remember correctly, the white version was a secret/chase figure.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Japan
Habitat: Montane forests, usually in riparian areas including clear streams and surrounding terrestrial habitats (under rocks and logs, in forest litter, etc.)
Diet: General omnivore; primarily terrestrial and aquatic invertebrates and carrion, but occasionally plant material and detritus. Cannibalism not uncommon.
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Least Concern
Miscellaneous Notes: Geothelphusa dehaani exhibits extreme color variation throughout its range, although in a given area only one or a couple color morphs may be present. Researchers have classified the various colors using two-letter codes, including DA (dark), BL (blue), RE (red), TC (two-toned), PB (purple-brown), and GP (green-brown), for example. Some of these colors have subgroups (e.g. BL1, BL2) and some considered 'contaminated' (sharing colors of more than one morph) are designated as DA', BL', etc. The color variation in G. dehanni is due to intraspecific genetic differentiation and is believed to be due to genetic isolation on different islands, as freshwater crabs are unlikely to cross marine waters.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Species: Cyclops sp.

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Epoch
Series: Ecology of Plankton
Year of Production: 2004
Size/Scale: Body length (excluding appendages) approximately 2.0 cm for a scale of 40:1-4:1 depending on the species
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Very rare
Miscellaneous Notes: The figures in the Ecology of Plankton collection come in little jars suspended in a goo (see inset, minus the goo), as if to simulate biological specimens in a lab. I bought my set from forum member sbell, who had already removed the goo (which I probably would have done as well). The jars measure 3.7 cm tall and are 3.0 cm in diameter.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Cosmopolitan
Habitat: Still and slow-moving freshwater, including lakes, ponds, canals, ditches, neglected swimming pools
Diet: Aquatic vegetation, free-living nematodes, carrion
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: There are over 400 described species of Cyclops. They are an important part of a freshwater ecosystem, serving as food for aquatic insects, fish, amphibians, and reptiles.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Species: Temognatha murrayi (Gemminger & Harold, 1869)
Common name(s): black-banded jewel beetle

About the Figures:
Manufacturer: Cadbury
Series: Yowies Series 1; Yowies UK Series 1
Year of Production: 1997
Size/Scale: Body length of Australian Yowie approximately 4.7 cm for a scale of 1.6:1-1.2:1. Body length of UK Yowie approximately 3.3 cm, within scale 1:1.
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Very rare (unique as a pair)
Miscellaneous Notes: The figure on the upper right is the Australian release; it requires assembly and is more stylized (the head and prothorax appear as one homogenized structure). The figure on the lower left is the UK release; it is a single piece of plastic and the beetle is permanently affixed to its flower base. Both were produced in 1997. Neither figure is a particularly good likeness for the species, but they are a unique pair and buprestid beetles in general are very rarely made.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Australia (southwestern Western Australia)
Habitat: Mallee woodlands and shrublands
Diet: Larval host plants unknown (presumably Eucalyptus or Casuarina); adults feed on the flowers of Eucalyptus, especially E. foecunda and E. uncinata.
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: Like many other buprestid beetles that live in arid and semi-arid environments, T. murrayi tends to be active at the hottest time of the day during the hottest time of the year, making field observations and collection challenging. Their population also fluctuates annually, being present in large numbers in some years, and absent, or apparently so, in others.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Species: Architeuthis dux Steenstrup, 1857
Common name(s): giant squid

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Safari Ltd.
Series: Wild Safari Sealife
Year of Production: 2004
Size/Scale: Total figure length approximately 24.5 cm. Mantle length approximately 5.5 cm for a scale of 1:17.1-1:40.9
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Uncommon
Miscellaneous Notes: This figure is essentially a smaller version of the Monterey Bay Aquarium model that was produced in 1998.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Worldwide
Habitat: Bathypelagic; at depths of 200-1000 meters
Diet: Fish, other squid
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Least Concern
Miscellaneous Notes: At least 19 species of Architeuthis have been described in the scientific literature. Analysis of mitochondrial DNA from specimens from all around the world show little variation and suggests there is only a single species in the genus, A. dux.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Species: Gorilla gorilla gorilla (Savage, 1847)
Common name(s): western lowland gorilla

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Schleich
Series: Wild Life Africa
Year of Production: 2017
Size/Scale: Scale difficult to calculate but using body length as a metric (n=6.0 cm) per Breuer et al. (see below) scale comes to approximately 1:14.2-1:16.2.
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Indeterminant (see below)
Miscellaneous Notes: At the time I bought this figure, Schleich has specifically marketed it as Gorilla gorilla. I chose it to represent this subspecies because of its familiarity. Because morphologic features separating gorillas are 'soft' and difficult to capture and interpret in a toy or figure, it is often not possible to determine the species or subspecies unless specified by the manufacturer. I found it very difficult to find metrics to calculate scale, as most online references used armspan or height when standing on two legs. The scale above was calculated using the following reference that does not include the head when measuring body length:

Breuer T, Robbins MM, Boesch C. Using photogrammetry and color scoring to assess sexual dimorphism in wild western gorillas (Gorilla gorilla). Am J Physical Anthropology. 2007;134:369-382.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Equatorial West Africa
Habitat: Montane primary and secondary rainforest, lowland swamp forest, riparian areas, forest edges, abandoned agricultural land
Diet: Roots, shoots, fruit, foliage, tree bark and pulp; diet varies based on seasonal availability
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Critically Endangered
Miscellaneous Notes: Gorilla gorilla gorilla lives in some of the smallest family groups among gorilla species and subspecies. A family unit typically consists of a silverback male, about three females, and their offspring. If more than one mature male is present in the group, they usually represent father and son, with the father being the leader. Most males leave their natal group shortly before reaching sexual maturity and do through a 'bachelor stage' that can last several years. In this bachelor state, they are either solitary or live in nonbreeding groups. Gorillas do not keep defined territories and neighboring groups often overlap in their ranges.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

I was recently also looking for information about Gorilla size. Breuer and colleagues have published several articles using the same data. For Western gorillas, I also found:

Caillaud et al. (2008)
Shea et al. (1979)

Their data are consistent with the Breuer et al. data. Caillaud et al. (2008) report only a very slightly wider size range.

Mountain gorillas seem to have a similar size. I found this article quite interesting:

Galbany et al. (2017)

The Schleich looks great!

Species: Trigonognathus kabeyai Mochizuki & Ohe, 1990
Common name(s): viper dogfish; viper shark; triangular-jaw lantern-shark

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Bandai
Series: Diversity of Life on Earth - Mini Sharks
Year of Production: 2023
Size/Scale: Body length approximately 8.7 cm for a scale of 1:5.4-1:6.2
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Unique
Miscellaneous Notes: The fish is removable from its base, and the attachment peg is on the base, not the fish. And for the fish enthusiasts, there is a lanternfish prey (see below) on the base.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Northwest Pacific (Japan) to Hawaii
Habitat: Bathydemersal; at depths of 150-360 meters
Diet: Fish (especially lanternfish), crustaceans
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Least Concern
Miscellaneous Notes: Like many deep sea predatory fish, T. kabeyai exhibits vertical migration, living in deeper waters during the day (approx. 270-360 m) and then coming up to shallower waters (approx. 150 m) at night to feed. Vertical migration is also for the safety of the dogfish, keeping in hidden in deeper, darker waters during the day and away from its predators. Predators of T. kabeyai include bigeye tuna (Thunnus obesus) and the sickle pomfret (Taractichthys steindachneri).

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Precious unique model and beautiful picture!

Species: Musca domestica Linnaeus, 1758
Common name(s): house fly

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Bullyland
Series: Large Insects and Spiders
Year of Production: 1994
Size/Scale: Body length (excluding wings and appendages approximately 7.0 cm for a scale of 11.7:1-10:1
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Rare
Miscellaneous Notes: Bullyland released two color versions of this fly; the other on Toy Animal Wiki is classified as 'colored' although I have never seen it to know what color it is. I have also seen, and previously owned for a period of time, a knock-off of this model from a dollar store. Early in my collecting days I found a couple sets of insects in a dollar store that, unbeknownst to me at the time, were mostly Bullyland knock-offs.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Cosmopolitan
Habitat: Highly variable throughout urban and rural areas; a synanthropic species, usually associated with human activity
Diet: Larvae feed in carrion, dung, rotting vegetation, detritus, human refuse; adults feed on moist material rich in organic matter, often where larvae are developing
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: Musca domestica is believed to have originated on the steppes of Central Asia, and now occurs nearly worldwide wherever humans live.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

I did not know this Bully fly! Very terrific picture  because of distorsion scale!

Another common species that isn't often made in model form. I like the transparent wings.

I am sorry this monster spoiled your dinner!

Species: Remora remora (Linnaeus, 1758)
Common name(s): common remora; shark sucker

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Takara Tomy A.R.T.S.
Series: World of the Blue Sea: The Shark
Year of Production: 2023
Size/Scale: Base 4.2 cm wide. Individual fish approximately 2.4 cm for a scale of 1:16.7-1:36
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Rare
Miscellaneous Notes: These three remoras were essentially accessories in the set for a sand tiger shark. The rear dorsal fin of the remoras would fit into slits on the bottom of the shark, as if they were attached to it via their specialized dorsal fin (below).

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Nearly worldwide in tropical, subtropical, and temperate waters
Habitat: Coral reefs; at depths of 0-200 meters
Diet: Scraps from its host, parasitic crustaceans, plankton
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Least Concern
Miscellaneous Notes: Remora remora has a modified dorsal fin which allows it to suction onto the bottom of sharks, sea turtles, and other large marine animals. The relationship is considered symbiotic. The remora gets fast-moving water to bathe its gills, a steady food supply, protection, and transportation, while its host gets cleaned of parasitic crustaceans. The remoras do increase the hydrodymanic drag of the host, however.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Where has your sand tiger shark gone?

rogerpgvg wrote:

Where has your sand tiger shark gone?

I didn't buy it; the remoras were actually a separate component of the set (but they fit into the shark).

Interesting, i believe i dont know the serie. What are the other figures?

widukind wrote:

Interesting, i believe i dont know the serie. What are the other figures?

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.], this is the set:

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]





Next up:

Species: Hasarius adansoni (Audouin, 1826)
Common name(s): Adanson's house jumper

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Toys Spirits
Series: 3D Picture Book Spiders of the World
Year of Production: 2022
Size/Scale: Body length (excluding appendages) approximately 3.2 cm for a scale of 8:1-4.2:1 for a male specimen (see below)
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Very rare
Miscellaneous Notes: This is the second time we've seen H. adansoni in the Museum. Figures in this collection come in small paper boxes designed to look like books. Each book itself is a 'strap' figure that can be worn as a keychain. Within each book is biological information on the species. The background page for the figure can be cut out and attached to a plastic base that serves as a diorama on which to display the figure (see inset). I did a step-by-step reveal of the entire presentation when I reviewed the set on the Animal Toy Blog. Hasarius adansoni is sexually dimorphic and this figure was modeled after a male specimen.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Believed to be native to Middle East and/or or Africa, now occurs over much of the world in warmer climates
Habitat: Woodlands, fields, orchards, parks, gardens, greenhouses, human habitations
Diet: Small insects and spiders
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Least Concern
Miscellaneous Notes: Being an synanthropic species, H. adansoni has been introduced to much of the world via human activity. It is believed to be native to the Middle East and/or Africa but now occurs throughout the Americas, in Western, Central, and Mediterranean Europe, India, Laos, Vietnam, China, Japan, Taiwan, Australia, and several Pacific Islands, among other places. Where temperatures are cooler, the house jumper is often found in artificial climates, such as in greenhouses or homes.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]