Ancient horses really don’t get much love in the toy market. Aside from Starlux and Bullyland, no one has added to the herd of prehistoric equinids. That is until Geoworld brought out their rendition of Hipparion, one of the most successful horses ever, lasting 22 million years and covering almost every continent, before dying off in the Mid-Pleistocene, possibly being out competed by the modern horse.
Classification: Mammal
Review: Hyaenodon (AAA)
Existing for approximately 26 million years, Hyaenodonts were some of the largest predators of the Late Eocene and Early Miocene epochs. Their name comes from the sharp hyena-like teeth used to tear apart possible prey. The skulls of these animals were huge and well equipped for hunting, but their brains were quite small, something typical in primitive carnivorous mammals.
Review: Hyaenodon (Mojö Fun)
Hyaenodon was an interesting predatory animal that first evolved 42 million years ago and lived from the Late Eocene through to Early Miocene. The first thing to know about them is that they are not related to hyenas. In fact, they were a creodont, a long extinct group of mammals that did not survive the Miocene.
Review: Hyaenodon gigas(Wild Safari Prehistoric World by, Safari Ltd)
For over 25 million years Hyaenodons hunted across Africa, Asia, North America and Europe. They were formidable predators that had oversized jaws. When hunting they would have probably ambush their prey with a quick rush, grab on to the head or neck with that impressive maw, and secure the kill.
Review: Indricotherium (Malcolm Mlodoch for Fauna Casts)
Review: Konobelodon (Eofauna)
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, they’ve bestowed on us the amebelodont known as Konobelodon in addition to their terrific Diplodocus.
Review: Leaps in Evolution (Kaiyodo)
From July-October 2015, the National Museum of Nature and Science in Tokyo hosted an exhibit called “Leaps in Evolution: Tracing the Path of Vertebrate Evolution.” To commemorate the exhibit, Kaiyodo made a set of five vending machine capsule figures, most representing a stage in the evolution of vertebrates.
Review: Livyatan (Mega Abissi by Diramix)
If you’ve ever wanted to build a diorama with your megalodon toys, you’ve probably noticed that there aren’t many other Miocene sea monster toys to pair them up with, although luckily plenty of the fish, turtles, and invertebrates alive then were very similar to modern ones. Today’s review concerns a contemporary of the famous shark, but it’s a rendition that’s unlikely to do much to enhance your diorama.
Review: Livyatan (PNSO)
Review: Machairodus (Bullyland)
Review: Macrauchenia (Jurassic Hunters by Geoworld)
Review: Macrauchenia (MPC)
“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, long neck, and peculiar trunk make for a very distinct image, and have earned the genus at least a few toys over the decades.