The best figure of every species, according to Halichoeres

[Halichoeres]

Spiralians of the Cambrian! (Although all of the scale references are ecdysozoans.) These are all from Oumcraft and several are based on the Palaeopedia Tumblr blog.


Orthrozanclus
Scale: about 2× life size
Early - Middle Cambrian
Etymology: Gr. "dawn scythe"
A probable mollusc, with a snail-like foot to crawl around on the seafloor. The spines for which it is named were stiff but not mineralized, probably enough to deter at least some predators.  


Orthrozanclus and Wiwaxia, the punk rockers of the Cambrian.


Halkieria
Scale: 1:3
Early - Middle Cambrian
Etymology: After a Mr. C. Halkier, a Danish man who took photographs for the 1967 description of this and several other Cambrian fossils
A relative of Orthrozanclus, with all of the scale mail, but none of the extravagant spines. This genus has many putative species, found all over the world, from Greenland to Australia to China, although only the Greenlandic ones are complete and articulated.


Redlichia trying to figure out which end is which.


Heliomedusa
Scale: 1:2
Early Cambrian
Etymology: Gr. literally "sun guardian," but "medusa" in this context refers to the fact that the original authors thought it was a jellyfish, and I sort of suspect that "sun" is a reference to the surname (Sun) of one of the authors, a sneaky end-run around the taboo against naming things after oneself. But don't quote me on that; I haven't been able to get a copy of the original.
The only brachiopod in my collection. I briefly owned Starlux's Spinifer, but since it's a fossil replica it doesn't really fit into my collection. Maybe one day CollectA will make one of the crazy spiny productid brachiopods.


Canadia
Scale: 1:1
Middle Cambrian
Etymology: "of Canada"
One of the earliest of the polychaetes, a now-informal term for any annelid that has bristles on each segment. It includes animals like ragworms and the infamous eunicids, the terror of marine aquarists. This one had very long, branched setae; no doubt it looked very graceful swimming through the water after its prey, much like a modern nudibranch.


Look at all those different incipient phyla, the Cambrian was so great.


Burgessochaeta
Scale: 1:1
Middle Cambrian
Etymology: Gr. literally "long hair of Burgess [Shale]," but in reference to its being a polychaete worm
Another annelid worm, bringing the total number in my collection from this enormous phylum to two! When I was in college I had a disagreement with an instructor who, upon presenting a slide with one of these used as an image for annelids, concluded that it must be a centipede and that therefore centipedes are annelids. Not coincidentally, that instructor was a creationist. That's Texas for you.


Dwarfed by its trilobite contemporary.


Odontogriphus
Scale: 1:7
Middle Cambrian
Etymology: Gr. "tooth riddle"
There's been a lot of controversy surrounding the interpretation of its mysterious mouth, which has been interpreted as a nearly complete molluscan radula, or as similar structures found in annelid worms. I don't pretend to have the expertise to adjudicate, but it does seem like more researchers support a molluscan affinity than otherwise. Anyway, a probably tough-skinned tongue-like denizen of the seafloor, scraping up whatever it could find.


Anomalocaris: "That's not a mouth. This is a mouth." [In a Crocodile Dundee accent, obviously.]

@Halichoeres Well, as @Sim said, the Albertosaurus and the Majungasaurus could probably be selling that well because they're newer figures. The other 3 are older. I imagine some non-theropods like Stegosaurus and Triceratops sell pretty well too. Hopefully those kids buying Coelophysis figures aren't the same that ask for Indominus and Indoraptor figures... (or maybe they are??  )

About the HLG Dilophosaurus one solution cold be displaying one individual and store/sell the other. That's what I would do in case I get it, display one and store the other (technically getting a pair already breaks the 1 figure/genus rule  ). I would sell one of the two, if it wasn't because that would hinder me when it comes to reselling the figure afterwards if needed. I'd also they'd rather just released one figure. There seems to be a tradition for releasing Dilophosaurus figures in pairs (Carnegie, Sideshow...). Same as Maiasaura/Protoceratops with a nest.

In any case, if the standing version starts having stability issues one could display the resting version instead. If PNSO releases a Dilophosaurus it would probably be the same price as the HLG pair (if not more expensive), since the HLG Dilophosaurus is currently 30 € on AliExpress and PNSO figures around that size (Pachycephalosaurus, Megalosaurus, subadult Yangchuanosaurus...) are ~ 37 €.

Also, it's probably time to say goodbye to your CollectA Alamosaurus I guess... and maybe Megaraptor too (Haolonggood)?

The perils of collecting toys include being in the same audience as the demographic that would eat nothing but chicken nuggets and French fries if given the option. It's hard to escape the conclusion that every time I buy a theropod, I make the market a little bit worse, a little more chicken-nuggety.

The tradition of pairs of Dilophosaurus seems to mostly involve lines that try to keep a consistent scale--it's a good way to make it seem like the smaller figures are worth the asking price. The HLG Megaraptor is a definite yes, despite being a theropod, so the Mattel one is out as you suggest.

I'm really surprised to see the Coelophysis selling so well. Kind of a good thing since I'm so behind on ordering one. In fact the only one of those I do have is the Deinonychus so far.

The Coelophysis is important, being one of very few Triassic animals in Safari's lineup, so it is encouraging to see it holding its own. I wonder what the stats are actually from--is it all Safari sales, or just sales on their web site?

[Faelrin]

Great to see yet more of these fantastic little Paleozoic figures. 

"...infamous eunicids, the terror of marine aquarists." Did you ever read the bobbit worm chronicles? It's uh, quite the read.

By the way when did you get the F-Toys Anomalocaris? I can't recall if you showed that one here before or not.

[DefinitelyNOTDilo]

I'm surprised people are so against the double figure setup for dilophosaurus. Personally I love it as it's just much more dynamic and offers so many possibilities for storytelling.

[Halichoeres]

Great to see yet more of these fantastic little Paleozoic figures.

"...infamous eunicids, the terror of marine aquarists." Did you ever read the bobbit worm chronicles? It's uh, quite the read.

By the way when did you get the F-Toys Anomalocaris? I can't recall if you showed that one here before or not.

Ha ha, no, I wasn't aware of that book! I have heard similar stories from other aquarists. I might have to check that out.

I showed the F-Toys Anomalocaris here back in February, so I've had it at least that long. I like it, although not as much as I like their Hallucigenia!

I'm surprised people are so against the double figure setup for dilophosaurus. Personally I love it as it's just much more dynamic and offers so many possibilities for storytelling.

Well, I don't know if I'd say I'm against it, but I would prefer it otherwise. I would be more interested in multi-packs of small herbivores, since those are much more likely to flock or herd than the largest carnivore in an ecosystem. Also, my shelves are too rich in theropods already!

[Faelrin]

@Halichoeres Not a book, but a classic thread, sorry. Definitely worth a read if you have the time. Here's the link.

Huh no wondered I forgot. That was a while ago, and with how much I've had going on this year, it's no wonder I forgot you had those. As much as I am an Anomalocaris fan, I do think their set of Hallucigenia is the winner. It seldomly gets figures compared to the former as well.

[TheCambrianCrusader]

Wait was Wiwaxia an ecdysozoan? I was under the impression it was a mollusc or at least closely affiliated.

[triceratops83]

Hey Halichoeres, are you gonna get the PNSO Saurophaganax or do you consider it just an Allosaurus?

[Halichoeres]

@Halichoeres Not a book, but a classic thread, sorry. Definitely worth a read if you have the time. Here's the link.

Huh no wondered I forgot. That was a while ago, and with how much I've had going on this year, it's no wonder I forgot you had those. As much as I am an Anomalocaris fan, I do think their set of Hallucigenia is the winner. It seldomly gets figures compared to the former as well.

I read that thread and it was quite the ride! Thank you for sharing the link. I love forums for the fact that they can durably index conversations; such a huge advantage over social media.

As for the Anomalocaris, I definitely don't expect others to remember what I have or what I've shown here!

Wait was Wiwaxia an ecdysozoan? I was under the impression it was a mollusc or at least closely affiliated.

D'oh! You're right, Wiwaxia is a lophotrochozoan, possibly a stem-mollusc. I've been a biologist long enough now that I should be more careful about using words like 'all.'

Hey Halichoeres, are you gonna get the PNSO Saurophaganax or do you consider it just an Allosaurus?

Glib answer: both! Actual answer: I don't pretend to know enough about the specimens in question to judge whether it's a separate genus, but a large individual of Allosaurus seems like the most parsimonious explanation a priori. Moreover, the PNSO Saurophaganax seems to be modeled on Allosaurus, especially the head. That said, it is an excellent Allosaurus, and I already have small, decent-but-not-great CollectA Saurophaganax, and this is enough of an improvement that I'll probably get it eventually. But not until it can have some non-theropods for company.

[Concavenator]

If the CollectA Anomalocaris had actually been good I would have been interested, but apparently it's quite off. Well, I pointed out in the TNG thread what is possibly a new Anomalocaris coming from them, hopefully that will be a better depiction.

Come on, if my DeviantArt is called after Saurophaganax, Allosaurus is my favorite dinosaur and I don't plan to get that figure you shouldn't either!  Jokes aside, quite the pointless choice for a figure, they could have at least called it Allosaurus fragilis to make it relevant. Between the Mapusaurus, the Lythronax, two Yangchuanosaurus and the Saurophaganax, PNSO has released some stuff this year I wouldn't have thought they would even consider.

You're right, in one of their videos Zhao Chuang mentions they based the figure on A. fragilis. Will you be replacing Safari's with it?

[Megalosaurus]

I love all those cambrian creatures.
Really interesting species also.

[Sim]

Kaiyodo Anhanguera (Dinotales 1.2)
Scale: 1:25
Sculptor: Takashi Kinoshita
Released: 2001

I noticed your Anhanguera looks different to the two Dinotales versions on Toy animal wiki.  Do you know why that is?  I think I read at least some Dinotales were re-issued as Dinomania, could your Anhanguera be from that?

[crazy8wizard]

I noticed your Anhanguera looks different to the two Dinotales versions on Toy animal wiki.  Do you know why that is?  I think I read at least some Dinotales were re-issued as Dinomania, could your Anhanguera be from that?

I can vouch for the fact that this paint scheme is definitely part of the original dinotales line, it's just that it's a variant. The best explanation is simply that the wiki pages probably just aren't complete.

[SBell]

Kaiyodo Anhanguera (Dinotales 1.2)
Scale: 1:25
Sculptor: Takashi Kinoshita
Released: 2001

I noticed your Anhanguera looks different to the two Dinotales versions on Toy animal wiki.  Do you know why that is?  I think I read at least some Dinotales were re-issued as Dinomania, could your Anhanguera be from that?

The only Dinomania series used figures from Dinotales series 3. Anhanguera was released in series 1 (item #012) with an orange/brown head and bluer wings. The one pictured with the white head and and throat is from the Series 1 re-release, item number 012.2 Those are the only releases of the figure from Dinotales.

The problem is that the TAI is using my (terrible) v1 photo--not a photo of 1.2. I should get them to update that...(possibly with the far superior photo seen here--my photos are from 16 years ago and the camera was terrible!)

[bmathison1972]

Early Kaiyodo Dinotailes/Animatales figures often came in more than one color/paint variant

[SBell]

Early Kaiyodo Dinotailes/Animatales figures often came in more than one color/paint variant

But series one specifically has two different releases. 1.2 came out after series 2, when they retooled and repainted all of the series one figures. That white throat is definitely a 1.2

Somewhere on the figure it will even be marked "012."

The figures with the "." are the re-releases for series 1.2

[Sim]

Thanks for the answers guys!

[Halichoeres]

For a thread maintained by someone with an increasingly broad aversion to theropods, there sure is a lot of discussion of theropods here!

If the CollectA Anomalocaris had actually been good I would have been interested, but apparently it's quite off. Well, I pointed out in the TNG thread what is possibly a new Anomalocaris coming from them, hopefully that will be a better depiction.

There are several decent Anomalocaris figures already! F-Toys and Takara Tomy, for example! But yeah, CollectA's was a bit of a letdown, and apparently there won't be any invertebrate at all this year.

Come on, if my DeviantArt is called after Saurophaganax, Allosaurus is my favorite dinosaur and I don't plan to get that figure you shouldn't either!  Jokes aside, quite the pointless choice for a figure, they could have at least called it Allosaurus fragilis to make it relevant. Between the Mapusaurus, the Lythronax, two Yangchuanosaurus and the Saurophaganax, PNSO has released some stuff this year I wouldn't have thought they would even consider.

You're right, in one of their videos Zhao Chuang mentions they based the figure on A. fragilis. Will you be replacing Safari's with it?

Yeah, I was thinking that since it's a nice sculpt and has lips, I could hit two birds with one stone: Safari's Allo and CollectA's Saurophaganax.

As for what PNSO will consider, if it's large and a theropod, it seems they will consider it.

I love all those cambrian creatures.
Really interesting species also.

The only bad thing about them is they're really hard to photograph!

Sounds like the Anhanguera question is resolved, but I just want to add:
The 1.2 series had improved assembly in most cases. I have both versions of Anhanguera, and the one with the orange throat will lose a wing if you look at it funny. The same thing happens with the fins on Bothriolepis and Axelrodichthys. I've never had that problem with the 1.2 versions. And Dinomania figures all came from Series 3 of Dinotales, with no changes to the paint job. I think they're indistinguishable without the packaging.

Anyway @SBell are you a TAW editor? I used to be but I don't remember my login. Please feel free to use my photo there if it would be useful.

[Sim]

Thanks for the info regarding the Kaiyodo figures, @Halichoeres.

[SBell]

Sounds like the Anhanguera question is resolved, but I just want to add:
The 1.2 series had improved assembly in most cases. I have both versions of Anhanguera, and the one with the orange throat will lose a wing if you look at it funny. The same thing happens with the fins on Bothriolepis and Axelrodichthys. I've never had that problem with the 1.2 versions. And Dinomania figures all came from Series 3 of Dinotales, with no changes to the paint job. I think they're indistinguishable without the packaging.

Anyway @SBell are you a TAW editor? I used to be but I don't remember my login. Please feel free to use my photo there if it would be useful.

I'm not an editor (or maybe was and forgot?) but it's handled now.

I used to try and keep up with some sections, but it's so hard -- especially earlier Japanese models from less common companies. Lots of missing companies.

[Halichoeres]

Bilaterians of the Cretaceous!


Natural History Museum Patagotitan (manufacturer unknown)
Scale: 1:55 based on limb elements
Released: 2023
Albian or Cenomanian of South America
Etymology: Gr./Sp. "Titan of Patagonia"
This figure, sold only from the gift shop in London's NHM, as far as we know, was initially pretty appealing because of its more plausible posture, compared to the Safari version. It has definite trade-offs, though.


The feet are much less accurate on the NHM version, with the elephant toes you see in decades-old reconstructions of sauropods. Score this one for Safari, despite what is likely one too many hind claws.


The head is similar in size to that of Safari's. Patagotitan's head in particular is not known, but Safari's is definitely too large. The NHM is made to a slightly larger scale based on the limbs, which means the head is slightly more proportionate.


Osteoderms aren't known from Patagotitan, but there's a decent chance it had some. I consider that a wash between the two.


On balance, I think I still prefer Safari's, with its superior paint, texturing, musculature, and foot anatomy. but I'm glad I was able to compare them in-hand. If I hadn't ordered the NHM version, I'd probably have always wondered.


Haolonggood Ampelosaurus
Scale: 1:30
Released: 2023
Maastrichtian of Eurasia
Etymology: Gr. "vine[yard] lizard"
It's been a relatively big year for titanosaurs, although this is compared to a pretty low baseline: there are almost as many figures on DTC of the genus Acrocanthosaurus as there are of all 70 million years' worth of titanosaurs. This is a nice addition to the herd; it doesn't bother me that there might be a paper or two in a few years' time refining our knowledge of its proportions or osteoderm arrangement.


An overhead shot.


Replaces the good-for-the-time CollectA Ampelosaurus. For the record, I'm very unimpressed with Papo's forthcoming version.


Origin Studio paddlefish, cf. Protopsephurus
Scale: 1:10 - 1:15
Released: 2022
Barremian of Eurasia
Etymology: Gr. "first gloomy/cloudy one," but after the recently extinct Chinese paddlefish Psephurus gladius. It's not obvious what the original describer of the latter intended, and other interpretations are possible.
This fish, which was not specifically identified by the artist or seller, came with the Origin Studio Ichthyovenator model kit. A buyer of the theropod kit was gracious enough to part with just the fish; I wish I could work that out for every spinosaurid with such an accessory! The kit is nominally 1:35, and this maintains the time-honored tradition of making the fish wildly out of scale with its predator. During the Cretaceous, most paddlefish were active predators of other fish. The filter-feeding American paddlefish is quite an aberration, somewhat like the basking shark among lamniform sharks. It went on a parallel track, but in fresh waters.


Since it was included as prey, it shows a bunch of predation damage. But it works as a wounded fish being scavenged by my other fish.


Thames & Kosmos mosquito (Culicidae indet.)
Scale: about 1:1
Etymology: L. "gnat"
Thames & Kosmos is the US branch of a German publishing company focused on children's titles and educational toys. This is a stretch, as part of a Jurassic World kit (which also included a Ty***nosaurus skeleton and a very small Blue figurine, both of which will end up on my trade thread by and by). Some might remember the Zuru mosquito I bought a couple months back. Afterward it occurred to me there must be many amber mosquito toys associated with the JP franchise. This was the easiest/least ugly I could find after a brief search. I think it's actually a flat printed mosquito, but the plastic shell gives a tolerable illusion of an intact animal. I don't normally collect fossil/skeletal figures, but this is kind of an edge case, considering the extreme fidelity of amber inclusions.


Certainly it looks less incongruous among my other figures than the Zuru figure did. A funny thing about the amber in the movie, which came from the Dominican Republic: that's exclusively Cenozoic amber, so you'd literally be more likely to get a manatee than a dinosaur. But we'll just pretend it was Myanmar; either way the story hinges on an industrialist exploiting laborers in hazardous conditions in poor countries for his own self-aggrandizement.