Mathison Museum of Natural History

Species: Allotopus moellenkampi (Fruhstorfer, 1894)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Subarudo
Series: Forest Insects EX
Year of Production: 2006
Size/Scale: Body length (incl. mandibles) approx. 10.7 cm for a scale of 1.5:1 for a large major male
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Rare
Miscellaneous Notes: Some assembly is required and the final product is articulated. It was one of four 'standard' figures in the set, each of which came with a piece of the 'chase' figure, a large Dynastes hercules. One must collect all four to assemble the D. hercules. Allotopus moellenkampi is not nearly as commonly made is the related A. rosenbergi.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Southeast Asia (Myanmar, peninsular Malaysia, Borneo, Sumatra)
Habitat: Rainforests
Diet: Larvae breed in decaying wood; adults presumably feed on tree sap
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: As with A. rosenbergi, I had trouble researching information on this species. Allotopus moellenkampi is also popular with collectors but not as common in terraria with breeders as larvae require wood infected with particular fungi.

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Species: Sphaenognathus feisthamelii (Guérin-Méneville, 1838)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Sega
Series: Mushi King - small series, standard
Year of Production: unknown
Size/Scale: Body length (incl. mandibles) approx. 5.0 cm for a scale of 1:1.6 for a large major male
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Unique
Miscellaneous Notes: 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: Northern Andes (Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela)
Habitat: Montane tropical grasslands, agricultural fields
Diet: Larvae live in soil and feed on detritus and small plant roots; adult diet unknown (may not feed)
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: Sphaenognathus feisthamelii has an unusual morphologic feature, not entirely rare with some groups of scarabaeoid beetles. A canthus completely divides each eye to the degree that the beetle essentially has four eyes, two dorsal and two ventral. I am not sure what role that plays since the adults since most of the time in soil, only emerging for mating and a brief dispersal.

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Species: Dynastes hercules (Linnaeus, 1758)
Common name(s): Hercules beetle

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Kaiyodo
Series: Capsule Q Museum - Beetles of the World
Year of Production: 2020
Size/Scale: Body length (including pronotal horn) approx. 8.5 cm for a scale of 1:2-1:2.2 for a large major male
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Very common
Miscellaneous Notes: This is our thirteenth time seeing D. hercules in the Museum. These two figures have the same sculpt and only differ in color; according to the accompanying paperwork, they both represent the nominate subspecies. Some assembly is required.

About the Organism:
Geographic distribution: Central and South America, Caribbean
Habitat: Rainforests
Diet: Larvae feed in rotting wood; adults are attracted to fresh and overripe fruit
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: Like other large, horned dynastine scarabs, male D. hercules use their pronotal and cephalic horns for battling rival males for mating rights to females and securing feeding and breeding sites.

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Species: †Shringasaurus indicus Sengupta et al., 2017

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Safari Ltd.
Series: Wild Safari Prehistoric World
Year of Production: 2020
Size/Scale: Body length approx. 17.5 cm for a scale of 1:17-1:23. Using femur as a metric (n=1.2 cm), scale comes to approx. 1:22.5.
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Rare
Miscellaneous Notes: This is the second commercially-available figure of this species; the first was actually by forum member Jetoar for his Paleo-Creatures line. It has since been made, at least twice I believe, by Mattel for the Jurassic World line.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Middle Triassic (Anisian) of present-day India
Habitat: Semi-arid anabranching fluvial floodplains and adjacent open woodlands
Diet: Browser of vegetation, probably with a focus on leaves rather than stems or shoots
IUCN Status (at time of posting): N/A [prehistoric]
Miscellaneous Notes: Shringasaurus indicus is believed to have lived in large, multigenerational groups consisting of both sexes. The reptile is thought to have been sexually dimorphic and the supraorbital horns are believed to have belonged to only to one sex, presumably the male but we really don't know.

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Species: Allomyrina dichotoma (Linnaeus, 1771)
Common name(s): Japanese rhinoceros beetle; kabutomushi

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: F-toys
Series: Insect Hunter Beetle and Stag Beetle
Year of Production: 2014
Size/Scale: Body length (including cephalic horn) approx. 7.0 cm, within scale 1:1
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Very common
Miscellaneous Notes: This is the fourteenth time we have seen A. dichotoma in the Museum. These two figures represent the same sculpt. This sculpt was introduced to the line in 2014 and has been reissued nearly every year since. I know the same sculpt was reused through at least 2019, but based on promotional photos, I think it's the same sculpt still used today. Also, F-toys continues to release two every year, one blackish and one reddish-brown. I stopped collecting F-toys beetles a few years back pending new species, which of course they haven't produced in a while, so if the sculpt has changed I have not seen figures in-hand to confirm.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: East Asia, including China, Korean Peninsula, Taiwan, and Japan
Habitat: Tropical and subtropical hardwood forests
Diet: Larvae feed on organic detritus in soil; adults are attracted to sap and overripe fruit
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: Like other large dynastines, A. dichotoma is sexually dimorphic and only males have cephalic and pronotal horns. Males use their horns for fighting rival males over females and feeding and breeding sites.

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Species: Odontolabis alces (Fabricius, 1775)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Sega
Series: Mushi King - small series, standard
Year of Production: unknown
Size/Scale: Body length including mandibles approx. 5.0 cm for a scale of 1:1.8-1:2 for a large major male
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Unique
Miscellaneous Notes: This is the fifth species of Odontolabis seen 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: Philippines
Habitat: Tropical broadleaf forests
Diet: Larvae feed in rotting wood; adults feed on tree sap
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: Apparently, O. alces is quite common throughout much of the Philippines in suitable habitats. It occurs sympatrically with the similar O. intermedius. The two can be separated by color; O. alces tends to be a duller brown-black while O. intermedius has a shiny, almost reflective black luster.

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Species: Vulpes vulpes (Linnaeus, 1758)
Common name(s): red fox

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Safari Ltd.
Series: Wild Safari North American Wildlife
Year of Production: 2008
Size/Scale: Height at shoulder approx. 3.5 cm for a scale of 1:10-1:14.3
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Very common
Miscellaneous Notes: This is Safari's second standard-sized red fox, following the original that ran from 1998-2008. Later this year (or maybe early 2025), they are expected to release a red fox kit. Being in the North American Wildlife line, it can be presumed that this figure represents the North American subspecies V. v. fulva; however, the scale above is calculated for the species as a whole.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Holarctic; introduced to Australia and the Falkland Islands
Habitat: Highly variable, including deciduous, coniferous, and mixed forests, tundra, prairie, mountains, farmlands, and urban and suburban areas
Diet: Non-discriminant omnivore, including small animals (especially rodents, lagomorphs, insects), eggs, fruit, carrion
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Least Concern
Miscellaneous Notes: Vulpes vulpes is believed to have originated in Eurasia and may have evolved from V. alopecoides or V. chikushanensis, both of which lived during the Middle Villafranchian of the Pleistocene. It is thought that the red fox colonized North America twice, once before and during the Illinoian Glaciation and a second time during the Wisconsin Glaciation. North American red foxes are believed to have been genetically separated from their Eurasian kin for over 400,000 years, indicating speciation may have occurred! Although European red foxes have been introduced to North America, 2012 genetic analyses did not show evidence of hybridization between North American and European foxes.

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Nice fox figure

Species: Nipponluciola cruciata (Motschulsky, 1854)
Common name(s): Genji firefly; gengi-botaru

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Jám
Series: Miracle of Earth - The Brilliance of Fireflies
Year of Production: 2005
Size/Scale: Base 6.5 cm long by 5.0 cm wide. Body length (excluding appendages) approx. 2.7 cm for a scale of 2.6:1-1.6:1 for a male or 1.8:1-1.5:1 for a female.
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Rare
Miscellaneous Notes: Since this figure is essentially its own diorama, I did not photograph it in one. The firefly is not removable from its base. This figure was marketed as Luciola cruciata, before the description of Nipponluciola in 2022.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Japan
Habitat: Riparian habitats, especially around small streams and ditches
Diet: Larvae are predaceous on the freshwater snail Semisulcospira libertina; adults do not feed
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: Nipponoluciola cruciata has aquatic larvae; these larvae cannot swim but rather crawl along the bottom of creeks, streams, and ditches where they prey on the freshwater snail Semisulcospira libertina. The larvae pupate on land and emerge in June. Adults live for less than three weeks and do not feed.

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Species: Cheirotonus jansoni (Jordan, 1898)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Bandai
Series: Diversity of Life on Earth - Beetles Vol. 4
Year of Production: 2023
Size/Scale: Body length (excluding appendages) approx. 7.0 cm for a scale of 1.3:1-1:1 (slightly over 1:1 for a maximum sized specimen)
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Very rare
Miscellaneous Notes: This is the second time we've C. jansoni we've seen in the Museum. The last time was in July 2022 and the figure was by DeAgostini which, at the time, was unique for the species. Like other Diversity of Life on Earth figures, today's C. jansoni is large, requires assembly, and has a few articulations.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Southeast Asia (China, Myanmar, Vietnam)
Habitat: Subtropical highland broadleaf forests
Diet: Larvae feed on rotting wood in treeholes; adults feed on sap flows.
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: I had trouble researching information on the biology of this species; however, they are not uncommon with skilled breeder hobbyists.

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Species: Closterium sp.

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Ikimon
Series: Science Techni Colour - Microorganism Acrylic Mascot
Year of Production: 2018
Size/Scale: Length approx. 5.5 cm for a scale of 220:1-70:1
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Rare
Miscellaneous Notes: Figures in this set are essentially illustrations of microorganisms encased in acrylic. They were also sold as keychains (hence the hole in the clear part of the acrylic).

About the Organism:
Geographic distribution: Cosmopolitan
Habitat: Freshwater lakes and ponds, rivers, ditches, sewage ponds, wet soil
Diet: Energy derived from photosynthesis
IUCN (at the time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: Closterium can reproduce both sexually and asexually; sexual reproduction usually takes place in stressful environments, such as the drying of a water habitat or nitrogen shortage. Sexual reproduction consists of conjugation resulting in the formation of zygospores. Some populations form zygospores from single clones of the same parent alga (homothallism) while others form zygospores from clones from different parent algae (heterothallic). A mature zygospore will eventually produce two vegetative individuals of the alga. Asexual reproduction results from binary fission from a partitioned parent cell.

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Species: †Malawisaurus dixeyi (Haughton, 1928)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Safari Ltd.
Series: Wild Safari Prehistoric World
Year of Production: 2018
Size/Scale: Body length approx. 37.0 cm for a scale of 1:29.7-1:40.5
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Unique
Miscellaneous Notes: Not much to say about a relatively recent figure that's well done and unique for its species. This is one of my favorite color schemes on a Safari dinosaur figure. The scale above is based on a body length of 11-15 meters.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Early Cretaceous (Aptian) of present-day East Africa
Habitat: Dense wetlands
Diet: Plants, primarily cycads and ferns
IUCN Status (at time of posting): N/A [prehistoric]
Miscellaneous Notes: To date, confirmed fossils of Malawisaurus are known only from Africa. However, a single tooth from the Cenomanian (Late Cretaceous) in Brazil might also belong to this genus. For now it's considered as Titanosauria indet., possibly Malawisaurus.

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Species: Papilio blumei de Boisduval, 1836
Common name(s): green swallowtail; green peacock

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Safari Ltd.
Series: Butterflies of the World Collectors Case
Year of Production: 2001
Size/Scale: Wingspan approx. 6.0 cm for a scale of 1:2-1:2.3
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Rare
Miscellaneous Notes: For a time, Papilio blumei was a go-to for Safari Ltd., having also been made for their Authentics (1997), Hidden Kingdom (2005), and Butterflies TOOB (2011) collections. This is by far the most peculiar of them as the colors appear to be reversed (should be green banding on a black/dark background)!

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Sulawesi
Habitat: Forest edges, riparian areas, suburban gardens
Diet: Larvae feed on Tetradium celebicum; adults feed on nectar from flowers
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Least Concern
Miscellaneous Notes: The structure of the surface of the wings of P. blumei have been extensively studied. Most of the color on its wings is produced by light reflecting off of the microstructure of the wings, rather than pigments. It is hoped that replicating the microstructure of the wings, the technology can be used in the security printing industry to make paper money and credit cards harder to forge.

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Species: Ganoderma applanatum (Persoon) Patouillard, 1887
Common name(s): artist's bracket; artist's conk; bear bread

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: Rainbow
Series: Tree Mushrooms Collection Vol. 1
Year of Production: 2023
Size/Scale: Total figure heigh approx. 2.7 cm. Cap approx. 1.8 cm across for a scale of 1:5.5-16.7.
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Unique
Miscellaneous Notes: This set consisted of four species of bracket fungus on stumps. While I formally added fungi to my collection in 2023, these fungus-inhabiting stumps can also make nice accessories for dioramas. I hope that 'Volume 1' means there will be another set in the near future.

About the Organism:
Geographic distribution: Cosmopolitan
Habitat: Hardwood, coniferous, and mixed forests and woodlands
Diet: Nutrients derived from host trees
IUCN Status (at time of posting): Not Evaluated
Miscellaneous Notes: Ganoderma applanatum is primarily saprophytic on dead and decaying logs and stumps, but may also be parasitic on trees that are still living. On living hardwood trees, it can cause a white to straw-colored rot.

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Species: †Olenoides serratus (Röminger, 1887)

About the Figure:
Manufacturer: CollectA
Series: Prehistoric Marine Tube
Year of Production: 2017
Size/Scale: Body length (exclusive of appendages) approx. 4.0 cm for a scale of 1:1.8-1:2.5
Frequency of species in toy/figure form (at time of posting): Uncommon
Miscellaneous Notes: This is the second time we've seen O. serratus in the Museum. There was a brief burst of figures of this species between 2016 and 2020 with others by Favorite Co. (2016), Colorata (2017), and Takara Tomy A.R.T.S. (2020). The Takara figure was reissued in 2022 and possibly at least once more since.

About the Animal:
Geographic distribution: Middle to Upper Cambrian of present-day North America
Habitat: Marine, nektobenthic
Diet: Benthic invertebrates
IUCN Status (at time of posting): N/A [prehistoric]
Miscellaneous Notes: Some fossils of O serratus bear w-shaped wounds, some of which appear to be healing. It had been previously suggested that the wounds may have been caused by Anomalocaris; however, Anomalocaris is now believed to have been a predator of soft-bodied prey in the water column and not that of hard-bodied benthic invertebrates.

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