Before we begin the review, I would like to thank Happy Hen Toys for sending this figure along as a review sample. Check out their large selection of animal and dinosaur figures by clicking on the banner below. Birds of the Phorusrhacidae family, commonly known as terror birds, are some of the most impressive dinosaurs to evolve in the post-Mesozoic...
Purussaurus, like Deinosuchus and Sarcosuchus, is a top contender for the title of the biggest crocodyliforme of all time. Unlike those other two, it was a proper member of the order Crocodilia, a commodious caiman that dwelled in the rivers and lakes of South America during the Miocene epoch between 16 and 5.3 million years ago. And Mattel, with their penchant for producing...
Otodus megalodon is a difficult shark for me to get excited about, despite my love of cartilaginous fishes. Although captivating in concept (a gigantic whale-hunting shark with 7” teeth) there aren’t enough remains of it to really…well…sink your teeth into. Just teeth and vertebrae. We don’t really know what it looked like, despite the best efforts of paleontologists. Thanks to...
Most prehistoric proboscideans followed the same basic body plan: a big body on big legs and a big head with big ears and a big nose. Even ones with comparatively small ears and noses like Deinotherium still had them bigger than any other group of mammals. Teeth are always a surefire means of distinguishing mammoths from mastodons or gomphotheres from...
Now here’s something unprecedented from Mattel. No, not a prehistoric pseudosuchian most people have never heard of. Mattel likes those, and this is that too. What makes this one unique is that it represents an animal that lived during the Cenozoic. The era immediately following the Mesozoic and the one in which we’re currently living. Gryposuchus specifically lived in the...
Review and images by bmathison1972; edited by Suspsy Prehistoric and primitive hominids are not rare in the animal toy market, but evolutionary sets of them are. The first, and probably the most popular, was called Evolution of Man, produced by Bullyland in 1999. The set featured Dryopithecus, Australopithecus, and four species of Homo: H. erectus, H. habilis, H. neanderthalensis, and...
“If MPC Ran the Zoo”… Macrauchenia looked like it could have inspired some of the creatures in a Dr. Seuss book, if its history of paleoart is anything to go by. First described in 1838, the “long-necked llama” hasn’t achieved the same level of fame as some of its mammalian contemporaries from the Miocene and Pleistocene; however, its lanky legs,...
A truly rare genus in the hobby to this day, MPC’s vintage figurine marks a bold move from a company most famous for its imitations – although the toy is perhaps showing its age with some design choices. MPC (Multiple Products Corporation) is a well-known brand among experienced dinosaur collectors; their prehistoric line from 1961 and 1962 was widely sold...
Review and images by bmathison1972; edited by Suspsy Signatustudio is a line of animal replicas made by artist J. Miguel Aparicio out of Spain. Most of his models are in the 1:20 scale and represent the fauna of Eurasia, including the Iberian Peninsula, the Mediterranean, Tibetan Plateau, and Euro-Siberian regions. He also has produced several prehistoric birds and mammals from...
I love picking up rare species on the toy market, especially where they are part of groups that are rarely made. As mentioned previously, snakes are incredibly rare on the toy shelves, likely because they don’t vary too much so don’t sell well. Thankfully, Yowie comes in to the rescue, giving us the Giant Wonambi, a constrictor from the Pleistocene...
Eofauna only came onto the scene in 2017, and after five years, their wares can still be counted on just two hands. But darned if they haven’t shown themselves to be the very best company of all when it comes to prehistoric proboscideans. They started out with the steppe mammoth, then the straight-tusked elephant Palaeoloxodon, then Deinotherium, and for 2022,...
In a last bid for survival, the smaller whale wrenches itself free from Requena’s grip and darts away, its mangled tail gushing thick clouds of red with each stroke. Requena immediately gives chase and in no time is closing in on her waning victim. Her jaws open. Her weapons are at the ready. She can taste the warm blood. But...
