I have already reviewed the queen of the tundra, the Schleich woolly mammoth adult. Now it is time to look at the complementary baby calf. Its nice to see that many toy makers depict, not just the full grown menacing adults with large curving tusks, but make cute playful babies as well. It makes sense to have mammoth toys of all ages, since in real life they herded together in family groups. You can imagine a herd of woolly mammoths marching through the tundra eating grasses, and low shrubs. In the front, leading the way is the matriarch, while the rest follow single file behind her. The calves are holding to the tails of their mothers with their trunks. When the herd stops for a drink, or to munch on vegetation, they surround the younglings as much as possible to keep them protected. Through the young mammoth eyes, they see many interesting animals that are no longer around today. Gazing in wonder past the woolly legs of the adults, they may see a woolly rhinoceroses or long-horned bison. Of course sometimes it the predators that are seen, saber toothed cats, cave hyenas, or maybe even a short faced bear.
About the toy: The Schleich toy of the woolly mammoth (Mammuth primigenius) baby could be considered a standalone sculpt, but it is styled to go along with the adult version. Along with the adult it is now retired. At 2 ½ in high and 3 ¾ in long it scales really nicely to the adult. The paint job is your standard black and dark brown. Its fur color is darker than the larger adult. The tusks are white, and inside the mouth is a dot of white where the tongue would be.
The first thing that jumps out at me about this figure is the rather static pose of the animal. The legs are staggered with some bending at the knees, but it appears to just be standing in one place. There is no turning of the neck as the head is held straight ahead. They did add a slight quizzical head tilt to one side which gives it some but not much personality. The trunk is almost the same as the adult, as it looks like the letter J. The mouth is held open with two little tusks sprouting on either side. The small ears are down turned with small tufts of fur falling on them from the top of its dome.
The rest of the body is rather plain. There is some muscle bulges or fur bulges on the legs, your choice on what you want to call it. The flanks bulge outwards where the ribs would be. The tail is short as it should be. The entire figure is covered in long but not to shaggy fur. There is some longer fur on top of its back and on the dome of its head. The feet are just like the adults with five toes on the front feet and five on the back.
Playability: As a toy it is ok, and there is nothing wrong with that. It is a really safe toy that has no sharp edges. I have observed both my children playing with this mammoth and they usually have it follow mommy mammoth around, asking for food, making friends, or being saved from predator animals. It has it place in kids imaginary adventures. Unfortunately, when compared to the Safari, CollectA, or Papo it just doesn’t have the playfulness or charm of the other brands.
Overall: I like it for what it is, a companion to the adult. It is an acceptable but underwhelming figure. As a standalone figure, there are better woolly mammoth calves that are better. In my opinion, that is due to the pose and relative lack of energy the figure expresses. There just is no youthful vigor in the sculpt. There just not enough personality and that is what I would want to see from a young animal toy. If you like this toy, you can get it alone or in a box set with an adult.
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[…] 2003, Schleich released six prehistoric mammals, two Woolly Mammoths (adult and calf), Megatherium, Machruchania, Cave Bear, Glyptodon, and Smilodon. Some of these figures appear to […]