Fishy encounter (of the prehistoric kind)

[Bokisaurus]

Ah, so I don't think we had a thread specifically just for prehistoric fish, here or in the old forum. Looking at my collection, I think the group deserves their own, too.
Fish have been around for a very long time, far longer than the famous dinosaurs. In fact, they reached such high diversity during the Devonian period that it is often dubbed the "Age of Fish".
Sadly, the same cannot be said about their diversity in the age of plastic toys. When it comes to prehistoric fish, three groups dominate the toy figure market: the sharks, the placoderms, and the lobe- fins. I'm sure there are random others, but these trio are the most commonly produced.
During the Ordovician and Silurian period, the Jawless (Heterostaci) fish dominated the planet's watery environment. The –"aspis" group had body armor, often sporting outrageous ornamentations. At the end of the Silurian and beginning of Devonian, the group went extinct.
At the start of the Devonian period, fish evolved into three groups. The first, the placoderms,  turned out to be an evolutionary dead end (they left no descendants); the second, Chonodrichtians (fish with cartilaginous skeleton),  became  one of the most successful  and oldest of all ocean predators( sharks and rays) then and now, and the third osteichthyans (fish with bony skeletons) split into two groups-  one  which gave rise to all tetrapod (the lobed-finned), and the other  went on to become the most diverse and  successful vertebrate of all ( ray-finned).
* Disclaimer  - feel free to make corrections

The Placoderm and Heterostaci – Armored and jawless fish of the Silurian and Devonian periods. Their body armor is unlike any other fish. Some became the top predators of their time, while others a more quite life feeding on the bottom sea beds. The largest of the placoderms was dunkleosteus, a true monster. It is the most famous of the group, and is well represented as a toy figure.








The Sharks –They have shown great resilience and superb adaptation, surviving major extinctions, and are still with us today. Despite some odd ornamentations experiment, the shark general body design has changed very little. They continue to be the dominant top predators of the seas, some growing to truly gigantic size.
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The lobe-finned fish -   This is the group that gave rise to all tetrapod. It is a shame that they are not well represented in the toy market. A toob set mapping the evolution of tetrapod would be a cool idea and a perfect way to market these fascinating animals. The living fossil Coelacanth is the most well know of the group, and is also the most represented in toy form (often included as prey for Spinosaurs and plesiosaurs).
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Prehistoric Ray-finned fish – perhaps the most under-represented group, which is a shame since there are some truly impressive species that would make good toy figure subject such as the ferocious looking Xiphactinus and gigantic filter-feeder Leedsichthys.


Modern and other ancient/living fossils (lobed-finned and ray-finned)– In addition to the Coelacanth, there are also other fish group that shares the title of living fossil. The lungfish have changed very little since they made their first appearance in the late Devonian (?).  The Arowana and Arapaima have fossils that can be traced back to as early as the cretaceous period.
The Bowfins, sturgeons, paddlefish, gars, rays, surgeonfish, herrings, snakeheads, are just a few more living fossils whose history can be traced back millions of years in the fossil record.
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And just for fun

I had to substitute one figure
So there you have it, some prehistoric fish to admire Feel free to add your collection, I'm sure there are more out there. Till next time

[SBell]

Well, my first comment is that the placoderms don't belong with the heterostraci at all...

Second, I have a lot to add (though I'm surprised they were left out).

Especially a couple acanthodiians, some 'aganthans', a few other shark-types, etc. But I'll get to them later...

[ZoPteryx]

Nice presentation of paleo fish Boki!  Given their general rarity in toy form, I'd consider each every one a gem!

Who makes those two little Coelacanths in the second to last photo in that section?

[brontodocus]

Awww, once again I'm blinded by shere awesomeness... Your collection of prehistoric fish is awesome, Boki, although I already knew that...

I may have not too much else to grab out of my albums (I tried to avoid any doubles), but here we go...



Kaiyodo Dinotales series 7 No. 118.a+b Dunkleosteus skull.



Colorata Nature's Library - Deep Sea Fish No. 6 and Kaiyodo Deep Sea Odyssey part 2 model No. 09 Silver Chimera, Chimaera phantasma.


Kaiyodo Dinotales Series 4 No. 077 Xenacanthus.



Kaiyodo Dinotales series 1 No. 006a+b Cladoselache.


Colorata Sharks of the World - Sharks DX No. 7 Frilled Shark, Chlamydoselachus anguineus.


Kaiyodo Dinotales Series 6 No. 103a Eusthenopteron.


Kaiyodo Dinotales series 1 No. 015b Axelrodichthys.


Colorata Endangered Species - Fossil Fish No. 3 (old version) Queensland Lungfish, Neoceratodus forsteri.


Replica Toy Fish Shovelnose Sturgeon, Scaphirhynchus platorhynchus.


Colorata Endangered Species - Fossil Fish No. 2 (old version) Chinese Sturgeon, Acipenser sinensis.


Epson Aqua Stadium/Kei Craft paper model by Goto Kei Scleropages legendrei (formerly included in S. formosus). It's a free paper model available here.

Aaah, there are still more figures around. So, who's next?

[Bokisaurus]

Thanks for adding your beautiful collection pics, Brontodocus.
@ Zopteryx - I believe those are Yujin figures.

@Sbell - Well, I combined the Placos and the heterostraci since there are not that many figures out there that I have.
Again, this was all based on the figures I have in my collection, which is really not that big. I am looking forward to seeing what you will add, I'm sure there will be a lot of interesting ones

[SBell]

I'll get to it Boki--I do have several more, but overall it is not a common group among figures.

[stemturtle]

Boki, this fishy thread is a great idea.  Here are three photos: two placoderms, and an acanthodian.


Mcnamaraspis (Yowie)


Rolfosteus (Yowie)


Climatius (Unknown maker)

[Paleo & Fish Collector]

Hey Boki I'm interested in your Devonian Yowies (Fish) I am wondering if you are up to sell them it's ok if you don't want to part from them I just love Cambrian and Devonian Fuana of all prehistoric geological eras.

[Bokisaurus]

Hey Boki I'm interested in your Devonian Yowies (Fish) I am wondering if you are up to sell them it's ok if you don't want to part from them I just love Cambrian and Devonian Fuana of all prehistoric geological eras.

HI and thanks for your interest. Unfortunately I am not parting with this guys. It took me a while to acquire them, and they are not easy to come by. Keep searching ebay, once in a while they do show up.

[Bokisaurus]

Boki, this fishy thread is a great idea.  Here are three photos: two placoderms, and an acanthodian.


Mcnamaraspis (Yowie)


Rolfosteus (Yowie)


Climatius (Unknown maker)

I want those! Wahhhh!

[deanm]

A few fishy photos from my collection.







Sorry none of them are for sale.

[SBell]

Boki, this fishy thread is a great idea.  Here are three photos: two placoderms, and an acanthodian.


Climatius (Unknown maker)

I want those! Wahhhh!

Well, I have a spare grey Climatius from Jersey Pets supply, but it wouldn't be cheap (seriously...not really in a rush to let it go!). Sadly, even the recent US Toys one (the green that deanm has, I have a pink version) is discontinued.



And since I never got around to this thread again, I'll also post the APII I Dig Sharks figures. Long gone as well--had them at the T.rex Centre one year, and then API pretty much folded. Not up to the standards of Kaiyodo or Safari toob figures, but interesting (having come up before the Safari toob). Sort of Yowies-ish.

Scapanorhynchus:


Megalodon:


Helicoprion (like the Yowies, using an outdated model for the whorl):


Orthacanthus:


And the neatest one of all, never seen before (and probably again...despite my attempts to get Safari to include this or Iniopteryx in the Sharks toob)--Echinochimaera!

[deanm]

Those APII I Dig Sharks figures are pretty neat and they have a couple of interesting species too. You're right about their quality but a nice to have. Congrats on having them.

[SBell]

Those APII I Dig Sharks figures are pretty neat and they have a couple of interesting species too. You're right about their quality but a nice to have. Congrats on having them.

Basically, I ordered them in because I wanted them! I think the biggest problem was that they retailed for $20--even with metal tools, that's a steep price for what amounts to a single plastic toy shark, plus a couple generic toy teeth.

I eventually learned how to knock a bit of the sandy matrix waway to see what was inside; even then, I almost didn't get a Scapanorhynchus!  Of course wound up with a few boring Megalodon, and 2 Echinochimaera (which, after the fact, may have been the best find after all!).

[Splonkadumpocus]

I only have the Wild Safari Dunkleosteus and the Prehistoric Sharks Toob.

[SBell]

Question--has anyone else ever tried converting a sailfish figure into a Xiphactinus (or something similar)? I came across a cheap one in a bin at home and after a few quick cuts, it came out kind of convincing:




To compare:


It was already broken (missing the pelvic fins) and is a poor material, so I wouldn't bother painting it ot working further, but it was just an idea--I'm guessing someone here is probably able to whip a sailfish figure into a great Xiphactinus in no time, and they shouldn't be hard to find--K&M has/had a decent one with their ocean toob, and if someone is really brave/confident/overwhelmed with spares the Colorata one could probably be transformed really nicely!

Just a thought, I had to give it a try. Of course, Malcolm's version is always going to be far better!

[Jetoar]

You could sculp a Xiphactinus. I am thinkig to do a poseable Xiphactinus with cly as my other figures  .

[SBell]

You could sculp a Xiphactinus. I am thinkig to do a poseable Xiphactinus with cly as my other figures  .

I don't sculpt, I leave that to people far more talented than me:



It was more just to see how customizable a sailfish could be.

[ZoPteryx]

Nice work Sbell!  I've considered turning some random little sailfish into Protosphyraena, but never Xiphactinus.

[SBell]

Nice work Sbell!  I've considered turning some random little sailfish into Protosphyraena, but never Xiphactinus.

That would probably work as well--the long, trailing fins might make it trickier though.